Hello everybody!
In this video, I’m going to show you how to install, configure and use a Linux subsystem
in a Windows operating system.
Windows 10 will soon develop support for any Linux applications, even those having a graphical
interface.
The Linux subsystem in Windows was introduced back in 2016, though it supports applications
selectively, works slowly and only from the console.
Microsoft announced its plans to roll out update WSL2 that would guarantee starting
Linux applications with a graphical interface and hardware acceleration.
But for now, Microsoft Store offers versions with a console interface in the form of the
Terminal.
Ubuntu, Kali Linux, Suse Linux and even Debian.
Also, the new Terminal is already available in the Store.
This is a new unified environment where users can access the conventional command line - CMD,
the PowerShell tool and Windows Subsystem for Linux.
In today’s video, you’ll see how to install them, configure and start using, and I’ll
show you what the new Terminal is like.
Windows Subsystem for Linux
To start using a Linux subsystem in Windows 10, you need to enable it in the settings.
Go to Control Panel / Programs and Features /
Turn Windows features on or off.
In the window that opens, check the box for Windows Subsystem for Linux - OK.
After that, the computer will restart.
Open the Start menu and launch Microsoft Store, type “Linux” in the search field.
Install the distribution you need by clicking on the “Get” button.
When the installation is complete, the corresponding shortcut will appear in the Start menu.
Click here to launch the program; it needs some time to decompress the files, so be patient.
When you open it for the first time, give the super user name and
the password.
Type the password again.
Now the subsystem is installed.
This tool will be especially useful for web developers and administrators.
The subsystem allows to use specific applications that are only available for a particular operating
system.
For convenience, the subsystem should be configured properly.
Let’s modify the registry, so that you will be able to open a Bash window from any folder,
for example, from your project folder, instead of having to type the path to the folder every
time.
This would be very convenient, right?
For this purpose, download a .reg file and open it on your computer.
I’ll leave the link to the file under the video.
If you want to check everything before changes are applied, you can open the file and see
what exactly it is going to change.
Right-click on the .reg file and select Edit.
Double-click to merge data and agree to make changes.
After that, the new option will appear in the context menu.
Now you can open a Bash window from any folder.
The next step should be configuring Bash.
That is, installing the environment for the subsystem.
A set of utilities to work with gulp or jekyll.
Let’s install node.js, gulp, rinraf, ncu.
Sudo apt-add-repository -y ppa:brightbox/ruby-ng; sudo apt-get update; sudo apt-get -y install
curl –sL http://deb.nodesource.com/setup_10.x | sudo -E bash -; sudo apt-get -y install
nodejs; sudo npm i -g gulp rimraf npm-check-updates bower; sudo chown -R $USER:$(id -gn $USER)
/home/$USER/ .config For example, let’s install screenfetch
Apt install screenfetch Screenfetch Here’s my Ubuntu subsystem,
version 20.04, bash.
MC also works here.
Apt install mc Mc
Here, you can view system files and folders, ...... and mnt will display the drives you
can access.
As I said before, there are different versions available; if you are a system administrator
or security engineer, and you need to monitor a network for security breaches and other
issues, there’s Kali Linux for you.
If you are using Open Suse, here’s a SUSE version too.
The new Terminal You can also install the new Terminal which
you can find easily in Microsoft Store.
The updated version is more stable and some new features have been added.
For example, now you can open several tabs at once.
To open a new tab after the Terminal is started, click the “+” icon on the tab panel, or
press the keyboard shortcut Ctrl+Shift+T. Move between the tabs with the conventional
keyboard shortcuts: Ctrl+Tab to jump right, and Ctrl + Shift + Tab to jump to a tab which
is on the left.
Ctrl + Shift + W closes the current tab.
Tabs can be dragged right or left, and their order can be arranged the way you like it.
By default, the Terminal opens a PowerShell tab, but it supports other shells as well.
If you click on the arrow down icon, you’ll see other options that include Command Prompt,
Ubuntu and Azure Cloud Shell.
In the new Terminal, you can even find emoji.
Just copy and paste it here.
Text scaling is supported as well.
To zoom in or out, hold down the Ctrl button and use the mouse wheel.
If you hold down Ctrl+Shift and use the mouse wheel, you can change transparency of the
Terminal window.
Also, the Terminal contains some adjustable settings which you can modify by editing the
JSON file.
To open it, click on the arrow down and then choose Settings.
Here are the options you can modify: Key bindings, color schemes, custom backgrounds,
and default profile selection.
Visit the Microsoft website for a detailed manual on editing the JSON settings file,
and the list of all settings that can be modified; find the link in the description.
With Windows Terminal, Windows users now enjoy lots of options that used to be available
in Mac OS and Linux only.
Windows Subsystem for Linux will make things easier for web developers and administrators
of Unix servers who have to work in Windows.
So if you ever need to use bash, or additional features available only in Unix and similar
operating systems, you don’t have to install Linux and use a dual boot configuration.
That is all for now!
Hopefully, this video was useful.
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Thanks for watching.
Good luck.