Microsoft has announced the arrival of a version preview a Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) application in the Microsoft Store for users of Windows 11 .
This new way of installing WSL will allow you to have more regular and faster updates.
Easier installation and updates
Until now, installing and updating WSL has been a bit of a tedious process. You had to enable several features that required restarting the computer and entering several commands on PowerShell. The process had been made easier with the introduction of the wsl --install command, which automatically activated all necessary optional components and downloaded the Linux distribution of your choice. Even so, updating WSL required updating your entire operating system, and testing new features before release required signing up for the Insider program.
Microsoft has decided to simplify installation and updates even further by adding WSL as an application in the Microsoft Store under Windows 11. WSL itself does not know much change, although some new features have been introduced. been added, but introducing it as an app will allow for simpler and separate updates from the system.
Some new products available
Before installing the application, you will still need to take a look at PowerShell to activate the "Virtual machine" feature. To do this, run PowerShell as administrator and enter the command “dism.exe / online / enable-feature / featurename: VirtualMachinePlatform / all”. If you already have the old version of WSL installed, you can still download the application, which will be the version you use first.
This application comes with some new features, like WSLg directly integrated into it, new functionality for the wsl.exe --mount command, an update of the Linux kernel to version 5.10.60.1, a modification of the wsl command - -install so that the --distribution argument is no longer required as well as the addition of the wsl.exe --version command to get the version information.
The WSL application is currently a preview version. Microsoft says it ultimately wants to completely replace the old version.
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Source: Microsoft
