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# Stepwise Guide to Enable Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL)
- URL: https://developerinsider.co/stepwise-guide-to-enable-windows-10-subsystem-for-linux/
- Published: 2016-08-31T16:33:00.000Z
- Updated: 2023-09-02T15:40:49.000Z
- Author: Vineet Choudhary
- Tags: Wiki, Windows, Bash, Ubuntu

Microsoft built new infrastructure within Windows – the Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) – upon which we run a genuine Ubuntu user-mode image provided by Microsoft's great partners over at [Canonical](http://www.canonical.com/?ref=developerinsider.co), creators of [Ubuntu Linux](http://www.ubuntu.com/?ref=developerinsider.co). The result is that you can now run native Bash on Ubuntu on Windows.

## 1\. Enable the Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL)

To enable the Windows Subsystem for Linux, open the **Control Panel**, click **Programs and Features**, and click **Turn Windows Features On or Off** in the left sidebar under Programs and Features. Enable the **Windows Subsystem for Linux** option in the list here and click OK. After you do, you'll be prompted to reboot your computer. Click **Restart Now** to reboot your computer.  
![](https://cdn.developerinsider.co/images/wiki/enable-wsl/enable-wsl-program-freature.webp)

## 2\. Download Ubuntu/Debian

Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) supports a variety of Linux distributions, including Ubuntu and Debian, You can find them by opening the Microsoft store app and searching for Ubuntu/Debian.

- [Ubuntu 22.04.2 LTS](https://apps.microsoft.com/store/detail/ubuntu-22042-lts/9PN20MSR04DW?ref=developerinsider.co)
- [Debian](https://apps.microsoft.com/store/detail/debian/9MSVKQC78PK6?ref=developerinsider.co)

![](https://cdn.developerinsider.co/images/wiki/enable-wsl/ubuntu-20.04-lts-microsoft-store.webp)

## 3\. Open Ubuntu and Create an Account

After the installation, you can find it in the start menu. Once Ubuntu has finished its initial setup, you'll be asked to create a username and password for Ubuntu (this does not need to match your Windows user credentials).

![](https://cdn.developerinsider.co/images/wiki/enable-wsl/ubuntu-first-run-username.webp)

Now, you can install the latest updates for Ubuntu with the following commands (enter your password which you just created when prompted):

```sh
sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade

```

To check the installed version you can run this command:

```sh
lsb_release -d

```

![](https://cdn.developerinsider.co/images/wiki/enable-wsl/ubuntu-terminal.webp)

## 4\. Customising your Terminal with Windows Terminal

You can also install [Windows Terminal from Microsoft Store](https://apps.microsoft.com/store/detail/windows-terminal/9N0DX20HK701?ref=developerinsider.co) to improve your experience.

![](https://cdn.developerinsider.co/images/wiki/enable-wsl/windows-terminal-microsoft-store.webp)

Windows Terminal allows you to open multiple Terminal instances as tabs, so you can have PowerShell running alongside Ubuntu. It also includes a number of customisation options.

![](https://cdn.developerinsider.co/images/wiki/enable-wsl/ubuntu-mnt-command.webp)

That's it!