Microsoft releases this feature to everybody on Windows 10

May 25, 2021 15:38 GMT  ·  By

Microsoft has officially announced today at Build that Linux GUI apps are now generally available on Windows 10, only a few weeks after the company actually brought this feature to insiders.

In other words, if you want to run Linux GUI applications on Windows 10, you can now do it with the help of the Windows Subsystem for Linux, or WSL, as you no longer have to stick with the terminal for the whole thing.

The feature originally made its debut in Windows 10 preview build in April, and surprisingly, Microsoft has decided it shouldn’t wait for a new OS feature update to enable Linux GUI apps for everybody on Windows 10, so the company is releasing it for users today.

“WSL lets you run a Linux environment, and up until this point has focused on enabling command line tools utilities and applications. GUI app support now lets you use your favorite Linux GUI applications as well. WSL is used in a wide variety of applications, workloads, and use cases, so ultimately, it’s up to you on what you’d like to use GUI app support for. Below, we’ve highlighted some key scenarios to help you fall in love with running applications in a Linux environment,” the company originally said.

Available today for everybody

Needless to say, Microsoft merging the world of Linux and Windows is something the company has been working on for several years already, and the WSL project is spearheading the efforts in this regard.

But with Linux GUI apps on Windows 10, Microsoft pretty much makes it possible for developers to no longer need a stand-alone Linux system just for testing, as the whole thing can now run on top of its operating system.

“You can use this feature to run any GUI application that might only exist in Linux, or to run your own applications or testing in a Linux environment. This could be incredibly useful for developers who want to test their cross-platform app, as they can now run it directly on Windows 10, and then easily inside of Linux without ever needing to change machines or manage a virtual machine,” Microsoft says.

The new feature is available to everybody running an up-to-date WSL installation.