This guide will help you set up your development environment on WSL. It will provide the necessary steps to configure and personalize your environment to ensure a professional setup. By following these steps, you'll be equipped to create incredible projects on WSL.
Keep in mind that you can customize all the tools listed below to your liking. Don't settle for the basics—look for more plugins and customizations that can make using the terminal and various development tools more efficient for you.
WSL (Windows Subsystem for Linux) allows you to run a Linux distribution directly on Windows without the need for a virtual machine.
It provides a full Linux environment, enabling developers to use Linux tools, scripts, and applications seamlessly alongside their Windows workflow.
Use WSL for its efficiency, compatibility with Linux software, and the convenience of not needing to switch between operating systems.
Imagine you are a web developer who prefers using Linux tools for coding. With WSL on Windows, you can open a terminal, type wsl, and instantly access a Linux shell. You can then run Linux commands, install software like Node.js or Python, and manage your projects just like you would on a native Linux system.
For example, you can navigate to your project directory with cd, install dependencies with apt-get, and start your development server—all without leaving your Windows environment. This integration streamlines your workflow and makes development more efficient.
Open PowerShell as Administrator.
Run the command:
wsl --install
This command installs WSL and the default Linux distribution (Ubuntu).
Open PowerShell.
Run the command:
wsl --list --verbose
This command lists all installed Linux distributions and their WSL versions. Look for WSL 2 to ensure you're using the latest version.
If you have any doubt of this process and what to know more, see WSL Microsoft documentation here: