The Windows Subsystem for Linux lets developers run a GNU/Linux environment — including most command-line tools, utilities, and applications — directly on Windows, unmodified, without the overhead of a traditional virtual machine or dualboot setup.

You can:

• Choose your favorite GNU/Linux distributions from the Microsoft Store.
• Run common command-line tools such as grep, sed, awk, or other ELF-64 binaries.
• Run Bash shell scripts and GNU/Linux command-line applications including:
  • Tools: vim, emacs, tmux
  • Languages: NodeJS, Javascript, Python, Ruby, C/C++, C# & F#, Rust, Go, etc.
  • Services: SSHD, MySQL, Apache, lighttpd, MongoDB, PostgreSQL.
• Install additional software using your own GNU/Linux distribution package manager.
• Invoke Windows applications using a Unix-like command-line shell.
• Invoke GNU/Linux applications on Windows.