Windows Command Line

Windows Terminal, Console and Command Line, Windows Subsystem for Linux, WSL, Windows Package Manager

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[Cross Post] WSL Interoperability with Docker
Dec 8, 2017
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[Cross Post] WSL Interoperability with Docker

Craig Wilhite
Craig Wilhite

We frequently get asked about running docker from within the Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL). We don’t support running the docker daemon directly in WSL. But what you can do is call in to the daemon running under Windows from WSL. What does this let you do? You can create dockerfiles, build them, and run them in the daemon—Windows or Linux, depending on which runtime you have selected—all from the comfort of WSL. Overview The architectural design of docker is split into three components: a client, a REST API, and a server (the daemon). At a high level: ...

Background Task Support in WSL
Dec 4, 2017
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Background Task Support in WSL

Tara Raj
Tara Raj

Starting in Windows Insiders Build 17046, WSL supports background tasks (including daemons). In the past, if you opened WSL and started sshd, httpd, screen, or tmux  you needed to have a console window open to keep those tools running. But, starting with 17046, these processes will continue running in the background even after the last console window has been closed. Elevated and Non-Elevated WSL Instances As part of background process support, we have incorporated your asks for a better experience while running multiple WSL instances (WSL in 2+ console windows) as per a discussion from our GitHub repo. You can...

A Guide to Invoking WSL
Nov 28, 2017
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A Guide to Invoking WSL

Craig Wilhite
Craig Wilhite

There are a variety of ways to invoke the Windows Subsystem for Linux from Windows commandlines and they all behave a little differently. Let’s get to the bottom of it.    “wsl” The first (and recommended!) method will start up your default distro. Additionally, it starts the distro in the current working directory where you invoke the command. You can change the default distro by using the “wslconfig” tool. In the example below, we’ll launch into the default distro (Ubuntu) in the current working directory. Then we’ll exit and change our default distro to SUSE.   “” Alternatively, you can specify by nam...

Running Node.js on WSL from Visual Studio Code
Oct 27, 2017
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Running Node.js on WSL from Visual Studio Code

Bartosz Sosnowski
Bartosz Sosnowski

Starting with the October Insiders Build of Visual Studio Code we have added an easy way to run your Node.js applications on top of the Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL). This is useful for developers targeting Linux or multiplatform production environments, making it possible to develop on Windows without relying on external systems or virtual machines. We aimed at making running Node.js on WSL as easy and streamlined as possible. You will need Node.js installed and in your in WSL, which can be easily done by following these instructions. In VS Code, all you need to do is add one new attribute to your : T...

WSL & Console team ch…ch…ch…chaaaaanges!
Oct 12, 2017
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WSL & Console team ch…ch…ch…chaaaaanges!

Rich Turner
Rich Turner

Dear friends of WSL (Windows Subsystem for Linux, nee "Bash on [Ubuntu on] Windows") & Windows Console: I would like to share with you some changes to our org' that will benefit WSL, Windows Console and the Windows command-line in general moving forward. After shipping a major new release, Microsoft often shuffles teams and people around to better align and optimize operations. After we wrapped-up engineering on Fall Creators Update a few weeks ago, we integrated the WSL engineering team into the organization that owns Containers and Hyper-V. This is a great move as it brings together several enormously t...

What’s new in Windows Console in Windows 10 Fall Creators Update
Oct 11, 2017
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What’s new in Windows Console in Windows 10 Fall Creators Update

Rich Turner
Rich Turner

With Windows 10 Fall Creators Update (FCU) releasing on October 17th 2017, we thought it time to post the list of improvements coming to Windows Console in FCU. Note: For fans of our sister project, Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL), please also read our post on "What's New in WSL in FCU". The Windows Console team have been hard at work during the FCU product cycle. Some of their work is highly visible (and even audible!), and there's been a lot of under-the-covers work underway. Read on for details: Windows Console Accessibility Improvements For users who are blind and/or have visual difficulties, the comman...

What’s new in WSL in Windows 10 Fall Creators Update
Oct 11, 2017
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What’s new in WSL in Windows 10 Fall Creators Update

Tara Raj
Tara Raj

Similarly to the Windows 10 Creators Update, the Windows 10 Fall Creators Update (FCU)  delivers a large number of improvements and features in the Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) . Note: For fans of our sister project, Windows Console, please also read our post on "What's New in Windows Console in FCU". We've been documenting many of these new features and improvements on this blog over the last few months, but we've often been asked for a single document listing all the new improvements, and with FCU (version 1709, build 16299.15) shipping on October 17th 2017, we thought it was time to publish a list these...

Introducing the Windows Console Colortool
Aug 11, 2017
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Introducing the Windows Console Colortool

Craig Loewen
Craig Loewen

Last week we announced the exciting news that Windows Console has a new default color scheme, and also promised you that we would release a tool to make it easier to change the console to your desired scheme. The Windows Console team is proud to present the 'Colortool' which you can use to apply the new default color scheme, and several alternate pre-defined color schemes or even schemes of your own! Get the Tool You can find the tool inside of this Github repository. It's an open source project provided under the MIT license so feel free to clone and fork it! You can also download the latest ColorTool release...

WSL arrives on Windows Server!
Aug 8, 2017
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WSL arrives on Windows Server!

Rich Turner
Rich Turner

We are very excited to announce that Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) is now available on Windows Server! Using WSL, Windows Server administrators, devops engineers, developers, etc., will be able to run their favorite Linux tools, apps, and scripts, alongside their favorite Windows admin tools. This will make it easier than ever before to automate, control, manage, and deploy an ever broader portfolio of technologies & tools atop Windows Server. Note that, just as on Windows 10, WSL is for running your favorite Linux distros & tools for local interactive use, not for hosting production Linux work...