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Microsoft is bringing GPU computing to the Windows Subsystem for Linux

The Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) allows you to install a Linux environment within Windows and run some Linux applications without the need to reboot or switch computers. Right now only command line apps are officially supported, but in the future Microsoft plans to add support for desktop apps with a graphical user interface. In […]

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Coming soon to Windows 10: Linux apps and a Windows Package Manager

Microsoft isn’t exactly turning Windows 10 into a GNU/Linux distribution, but the lines seem to be getting blurrier all the time. When Windows 10 first launched, it was the first version of Microsoft’s desktop operating system to feature an optional Windows Subsystem for Linux, allowing developers and advanced users to install a Linux distro within […]

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Windows Subsystem for Linux comes to File Explorer (Windows 10 Preview Build 19603)

Windows 10 includes an optional feature called Windows Subsystem for Linux that lets you use a terminal window to run Linux utilities and access a Linux file system. But up until recently WSL was trapped in the terminal (unless you took extraordinary steps to give install a complete desktop environment). But starting last year, Microsoft […]

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Windows Terminal v0.10 brings mouse and split-screen improvements

Microsoft’s Windows Terminal app is less than a year old, and it’s still more of a public preview than a fully functional replacement for other Windows command line tools. But it keeps inching closer. The latest release is out today, and Windows Terminal v0.10 brings a bunch of bug fixes and a handful of new features. […]

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Microsoft to deliver Windows Subsystem for Linux kernel updates more quickly (using Windows Update)

The Windows Subsystem for Linux allows you to run a Linux terminal within Windows, complete with a full-fledged Linux kernel baked into the Windows operating system. Now Microsoft has announced plans to deliver Linux kernel updates more quickly. Previously the kernel was tied to the Windows OS image, which meant that you only got a […]

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Wine on Windows lets you run Windows apps… on Windows (through Windows Subsystem for Linux)

Wine is a compatibility layer that makes it possible to run some Windows applications on non-Windows operating systems including Linux and macOS. So naturally some folks have been trying for years to see if they could run Wine on Windows for no particularly good reason. Up until recently it hasn’t really been possible. Now it […]

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Windows Subsystem for Linux 2 debuts with Windows 10 preview build 181917

The Windows Subsystem for Linux lets you run command line Linux tools in Windows 10 by installing a full Linux system that can run alongside Windows. In May Microsoft announced that a major update to the Windows Subsystem for Linux was on the way, and now the first preview of WSL 2 is available. It’s baked […]

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Windows Subsystem for Linux 2 is faster, supports more apps

Along with a new Terminal app for interacting with command line tools, Microsoft is previewing a major update for its Windows Subsystem for Linux. The new version is called WSL 2, and Microsoft says it brings significant file system speed improvements, with some operations running up to 20 times faster. WSL 2 also brings full […]

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Windows on ARM is getting 64-bit app support… and a Linux subsystem

The first Windows 10 PCs with ARM devices started shipping recently, and they really do run a version of Windows that looks nearly identical to what you’d see on a computer with an Intel or AMD processor. The only catch is limited app support. Today you can use Windows on ARM to run 32-bit applications […]

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Microsoft makes porting Linux distros to Windows Subsystem for Linux easier

We live in strange times, when it’s possible to install a Linux distribution like Ubuntu or Debian as if they were Windows applications. While it’s not unusual to run one operating system within another using virtualization, what makes Windows 10 weird is that its Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) doesn’t require virtualization: you install your […]