It provides you with a Windows version of the bash shell and a compatibility layer that permits many Linux programs to run natively on your Windows machine. Versions of Windows previous to the Fall Creators Update required slightly different instructions. The instructions on this page are current as of May It may silently wait for you to press a key after it's done, so you might want wsl 2 windows 10 home free download press Backspace every 15 seconds or so, to check if it's finished.
This error is a known bug that occurs in some versions of Windows If you get this error, you can fix wsl 2 windows 10 home free download by repeating steps 1 and 2. Then, continue to step The first time you run your WSL distribution, you will be asked to create a user account.
It can be different than your Windows username. You will be asked to set a password. Linux is running. You're now at the bash prompt, and you can run Linux commands and programs. Now is a great time to perform a software update. Follow the instructions below to update your software with the apt command. The apt command allows you to search for, download, and install software, all from the command line.
It automatically manages your software dependencies for you. That way, if one program depends on a certain version of another program, both will be installed, and kept up-to-date. Any apt commands that make changes to your system must run as root.
If you're logged in as your regular user as you usually should berun a program as root by prefixing it with sudo "superuser do". It requires you enter your password, and your program is run as root.
Updates download, but nothing is installed or upgraded yet. To upgrade all available packages, run:. Sudo will not ask you for your password this time, unless more than five wsl 2 windows 10 home free download have elapsed since the last sudo command. The size of the upgrades is calculated, and you will be prompted to continue.
Type y and press Enter. The upgrades download and install, which might take a while, depending on the speed of your computer and Internet connection. When the upgrade is complete, you will be returned to the bash prompt. Wsl 2 windows 10 home free download Linux system is now up-to-date. At any time, you can exit bash using the exit command. WSL has its own filesystem. This Linux filesystem is installed to your Windows filesystem at the following location:. It's good to know that this is where it's located, but you shouldn't move or make any changes to the files it contains.
When you're using WSL, you might be wondering how you can access your Windows files. Your C: drive is located at:. The name mnt stands for "mount," which is where your Windows drives are mounted within WSL.
For convenience, it's a good idea to create symbolic links to your Windows home folder. A symbolic link is similar to a shortcut in Windows: it's a file that points to another file or directory. When you refer to the symbolic link, the system will dereference the link, and behave as if you had specified the actual "target" file or directory.
Using symbolic links can save you a lot of typing, and remembering of obscure directory names. To create a symbolic link in Linux, use the ln command. The syntax for creating a symbolic link is ln -s targetname linkname. You can do this with the cd command:. Next, use ln -s to create the symbolic link. Now there's a symbolic link called winhome in your WSL home directory, which acts like a shortcut to your Windows home directory.
So, you can change to your Windows home directory using:. Enjoy your new Linux subsystem! Make sure to visit our overview of Linux commands for more information wsl 2 windows 10 home free download tools and programs you can use.
System requirements. Installing WSL. Getting started with your Linux subsystem. The Windows and WSL filesystems. Creating links to Windows folders. Note Versions of Windows previous to the Fall Creators Update required slightly different instructions. Tip Sudo will not ask you for your password this time, unless more than five minutes have elapsed since the last sudo command. Additional information Tutorial: How to use the bash shell.
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