Windows Subsystem for Linux Documentation

• 7/11/2016
• 2 minutes to read
• Contributors
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The Windows Subsystem for Linux lets developers run GNU/Linux environment -- including most command-line tools, utilities, and applications -- directly on Windows, unmodified, without the overhead of a virtual machine.

You can:

1. Choose your favorite GNU/Linux distributions from the Windows Store.
2. Run common command-line free software such as grep, sed, awk, or other ELF-64 binaries.
3. Run Bash shell scripts and GNU/Linux command-line applications including:
   • Tools: vim, emacs, tmux
   • Languages: Javascript/node.js, Ruby, Python, C/C++, C# & F#, Rust, Go, etc.
   • Services: sshd, MySQL, Apache, lighttpd
4. Install additional software using own GNU/Linux distribution package manager.
5. Invoke Windows applications using a Unix-like command-line shell.
6. Invoke GNU/Linux applications on Windows.

Getting started

• Install Linux on Windows
• Visit the command reference
• Read frequently asked questions

Team Blogs

• Overview post with a collection of videos and blogs
• Command-Line blog (Active)
• Windows Subsystem for Linux Blog (Historical)

Posts & Articles

• Run Bash on Ubuntu on Windows
• Developers Can Run Bash And Usermode Ubuntu Linux Binaries On Windows 10
• Ubuntu on Windows – The Ubuntu Userspace for Windows Developers

Provide Feedback

• GitHub issue tracker
• Command-line UserVoice portal