Windows subsystem for Linux: WSL 1.0 released as final version in the Microsoft Store

The Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) makes a major version leap from the previously current version 0.70.8 to the final version 1.0, which is now available on Windows 11 and Windows 10 in the Microsoft Store is. While also incorporating some minor bug fixes, the GUI remains the same as before.

The Windows subsystem for Linux is final

The Windows Subsystem for Linux is a compatibility layer intended for Windows 10 and 11 for running Linux executables in ELF format and now making its final release in the Microsoft Store with version number 1.0 of the two operating systems appeared. The current Windows subsystem for Linux is WSL 2, but Microsoft only speaks of WSL.

Comment from the community: WSL 1 can still be selected and used after installation. WSL 2 is only defined as a new preselection.

Windows Subsystem for Linux 1.0 is available for download

The release is once again accompanied by the obligatory optimizations and bug fixes, as the official release notes on the GitHub developer platform reveal.

Windows Subsystem for Linux 1.0 – Release Notes

• Removed the Preview label – WSL in the Store is now generally available!
• Use an override in generator.early to prevent the /tmp/.X11-unix socket from being removed during boot.
• Don't create a pty for systemd to fix issue where systemd would time out during boot.

For the first time Microsoft speaks of general availability and now also removes the “Preview” label from the installation package. The user interface for the Windows subsystem for Linux, the so-called Windows Subsystem for Linux GUI (WSLg), is currently at version 1.0.47 and received the last update about three weeks ago.

Download via GitHub and Microsoft Store

The Windows subsystem for Linux 1.0 is available via the GitHub developer platform as a multi-installer for x86 and Arm64 and via the Microsoft Store and requires at least Windows 10 Build 19041 ahead.

Using the console and the wsl –install command, the Windows subsystem for Linux 1.0 migrates to the system. The official installation instructions from Microsoft provide further assistance.

All details about WSL are provided in the official documentation of the compatibility layer, which also explains the differences between WSL 1 and WSL 2 in more detail.

WSL 1 and WSL 2 im direct comparison (Image: Microsoft)

The editors would like to thank the community for the information and additions to this report.