WLinux, Linux® distribution optimized is available on Microsoft Store

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Users who want to experience Linux on Windows now have a lot of choices. With the development and improvement of WSL, distributions including Ubuntu, openSUSE Leap 42, Debian GNU/Linux, and Kali Linux are all registered in the Microsoft Store. However, these distributions often lack development tools and contain some unnecessary packages.

Recently, a team called Whitewater Foundry launched a new Linux distribution designed for WSL and named  WLinux. Unlike other distributions on WSL, WLinux enables many WSL-specific features by default and other enhancements are planned.

WLinux comes pre-installed with favourite development tools, including the zsh shell, git, neovim, and Python 3.7, and other packages can be installed via the apt package management tool. WLinux also has built-in wslu, a set of open source utilities for interacting between WSL and Windows 10.

The development team promised that WLinux could provide WSL users with fixes and test patches in a matter of days instead of months. To improve stability and security, WLinux has removed some unnecessary packages, such as systemd.

Features

  • A fast Linux terminal and development environment for developers and pro-users built on Windows® Subsystem for Linux(WSL) on Windows 10.
  • Out-of-the-box support for most Linux graphical apps with no need to configure display or libGL settings. Note: Requires a Windows-based X client, such as X410.
  • Popular development tools, including zsh shell, git, neovim, and python 3.7 pre-installed. Additional packages can be easily installed via the apt package management system (e.g. $ sudo apt install nodejs) from the expansive Debian repos and third-party Debian-compatible repos. The Debian backports and testing repos are also pre-configured.
  • Pre-installed with wslu, a set of useful open-source utilities for interacting between WSL and Windows 10.
  • A handful of unnecessary packages, such as systemd, have been removed to improve stability and security.
  • Additional scripts to easily install the following popular applications:
    • Google Chrome $ sudo /opt/installchrome.sh
    • Visual Studio Code $ sudo /opt/installcode.sh
    • pip3 for python (Testing)
    • fzf (Testing)
    • Think another app needs to be here? File a feature request and state your case.
  • New features are actively added based on community interest, including paid bug and feature bounties.
  • WLinux offers faster patching than any upstream Linux distro for WSL-specific bugs.

Although WLinux is open source, it needs to be purchased for download at Microsoft Store.

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