Windows Subsytem for Linux to Support Linux GUI Apps

Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) is one of the most exciting additions to Windows in recent years. With Windows Subsystem for Linux 2, Microsoft introduced massive new improvements, fundamentally changing the architecture behind how WSL works.

At Build 2020, Microsoft is now introducing new features for WSL. The company is announcing two major new features, including the ability to run Linux GUI apps.

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With new updates to WSL, users will be able to run Linux GUI (graphical user interface) apps without needing a third-party app. Previously, users had to use third-party X servers, such as VcXsrv, to use Linux GUI apps with WSL. That’s no longer the case, as WSL will soon let users run Linux GUI apps directly without needing any third-party software.

Another massive improvement coming to WSL is support for GPU compute workflows. If you have previously tried to train machine learning models within a WSL instance in the past, you probably experienced how slow the process is. With the upcoming support for GPU compute workflows, the WSL instance will be able to use GPU-powered hardware acceleration, which will help speed up parallel computation, training ML/AI models, etc.

Microsoft is also making it easier for users to install WSL, with a new “wsl.exe –install” command that will make the process of installing WSL and starting an instance much quicker than before.