If you've decided to try Linux, you might have trouble leaving Windows.Maybe your favorite game only runs on Windows, or you need a Windows program for your work.Maybe you think dual-booting Windows and Linux is too much trouble.
There are ways to get started with the Linux terminal that can run within Windows.WSL The best option for new users Close If you want to run Linux on your machine without having to dual-boot, WSL, or Windows Subsystem for Linux, is one of the best ways to do it.WSL was first introduced in Windows 10.
It was an attempt to recapture a development market that was moving away from Windows and on to the web with Linux-based servers.Mac laptops were popular among developers because macOS is based in part on FreeBSD and can run many of the same components that would run on a Linux server locally.WSL was intended to let developers of web apps run local tools on their Windows machines without full-blown virtual machines.The original version translated Linux system calls into Windows system calls.
It worked well enough but it could be slow.WSL2 was developed.It runs a real Linux kernel in a virtual machine, speeding up operations and allowing for graphical programs.
If you want to learn Linux, it's a great place to start because you have the familiar Windows desktop.Cygwin The original way to run Linux apps in Windows For many years, if you wanted to run Linux or rather Unix-like programs on a Windows machine and you didn't want to dual boot or create a virtual machine, Cygwin was a popular tool before WSL came along.And even after WSL was available, I would still use Cygwin occasionally because it let me run graphical programs through Cygwin/X.
Cygwin works differently than WSL.While both versions of WSL work with real Linux programs, Cygwin is a library that makes it possible to port Linux and Unix software to Windows.Cygwin programs are recompiled versions.
Cygwin was originally created by Cygnus Solutions, a company that pioneered the commercialization of open-source software in the '90s by selling support contracts before Red Hat acquired the company.You might consider Cygwin if you don't care if the programs are actually Linux programs, but you want the same functionality that you would get with a Linux system.This would be good if you were on a work computer and couldn't install WSL, since that requires administrator permissions.
Cygwin lets you install it in a local directory, so you can install it as an ordinary user.MSYS2 Good for writing native Unix-like apps in Windows MSYS2 is a development tool that piggybacks on top of Cygwin.It uses a lot of the same infrastructure, including the MinTTY terminal.
It uses the pacman package management system from Arch Linux to install packages instead of the Cygwin installer.It's related to the MinGW project that ports the GCC compiler to Windows, but MSYS2 supplies the broader environment, as that's what programs on Linux expect.The key difference between Cygwin and MSYS2 is that the latter focuses more on building native software for Windows.
While Cygwin is focused on porting Unix and Linux programs to Windows, MSYS2 is geared toward building native Windows programs in a "Unixy" way.This would be a good choice if you were already comfortable with Linux or another Unix-like system and you had to use Windows and couldn't dual-boot.As with Cygwin, you can install MSYS2 in a local directory, which makes it useful if you're on a machine where you don't have administrator privileges.
Virtual Machines Get the full Linux experience in Windows If you need more functionality than WSL or Cygwin offer and you still don't want to reboot, virtual machines are an option.The reason that I would use one is when I want the full "Linux experience," for lack of a better word.This means a full desktop.
I like Xfce as a desktop in a virtual machine because it's lightweight and performs well.The advantage of running a virtual machine is that you have full control over the environment.You can pick any distro you want instead of having to install it from the Microsoft Store as you would with WSL.
A virtual machine is also isolated from the rest of the system.You can also experiment more easily with the system, such as testing different configuration options.You can also take snapshots with many virtual machine hypervisors.
The most prominent virtual machine hypervisor on Windows is VirtualBox.It's worked pretty well for me, though sometimes bugs have been introduced that have made virtual machines crash or even refuse to boot unless I tweaked options, so be aware of that.One distro even refused to install once through VirtualBox until I figured out a workaround.
Still, VirtualBox has proven itself valuable for my work with HTG.I can test different distros quickly in virtual machines, grab screenshots, and tear them down once I've submitted a piece.DistroSea Use Linux from your browser An interesting new option is DistroSea, which lets you try out Linux distros in your web browser.
The advantage over even WSL is that you don't have to install anything on your machine.DistroSea offers many popular distros in different versions.DistroSea spins up a virtual machine similar to VirtualBox.
You don't even have to make an account.The performance won't obviously be as good as on a real machine and you'll have to wait in a queue, but it's an effective way to "test drive" a new distro or even Linux itself if you're not used to it.It's mainly a showcase for Cendio's ThinLinc remote desktop software, but it's an effective demo.
Ease your way into Linux on Windows These options offer an easy entry point into Linux for new users coming from Windows.You can run Linux alongside Windows either in WSL, Cygwin, VirtualBox, or on the web via DistroSea.You can keep your familiar Windows environment while you explore Linux.
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