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# From GitHub Issue #1 to Reality — WSL is Now Officially Open Source
- URL: https://itsfoss.com/news/wsl-is-open-source/
- Published: 2025-05-20T14:35:57.000Z
- Updated: 2025-05-20T14:35:57.000Z
- Description: WSL just went open source!
- Author: Sourav Rudra
- Tags: Open Source, News, #Import 2025-11-08 21:15

[Microsoft](https://www.microsoft.com/?ref=itsfoss.com)'s Windows Subsystem for Linux, or [**WSL**](https://itsfoss.com/wsl/), is a compatibility layer that allows people to run Linux distributions directly on their Windows machines, foregoing the need to configure a [virtual machine](https://itsfoss.com/virtual-machine/) or dual-boot setup.

So far, 2025 has been an eventful year for WSL, as major Linux distributions like [Fedora](https://docs.fedoraproject.org/en-US/cloud/wsl/?ref=itsfoss.com) and [Arch Linux](https://itsfoss.com/arch-linux-wsl-release/) officially started offering images for it, with Ubuntu switching to its [new tar-based distribution format](https://ubuntu.com/blog/ubuntu-wsl-new-format-available?ref=itsfoss.com) earlier this year.

Just when it seemed things were settl**WSL**ing down for WSL, Microsoft went ahead and open sourced it.

## WSL Goes Open: What to Expect?

![just a placeholder image of wsl running arch linux with its welcome app and a fastfetch output being shown](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/2025/05/wsl-welcome-fastfetch-output.jpg)

**Just a placeholder image of WSL running Arch Linux.*

Open sourced under the [MIT License](https://opensource.org/license/mit?ref=itsfoss.com), WSL is now fully available for anyone to inspect, modify, and contribute to, with its [very first GitHub issue](https://github.com/microsoft/WSL/issues/1?ref=itsfoss.com), opened back in April 2016, now finally closed nine years later.

Microsoft says that it open sourced WSL to encourage community contributions and accelerate its development while improving Linux support on Windows.

This release joins their existing line-up of open source WSL components like the [WSLg](https://github.com/microsoft/wslg?ref=itsfoss.com), which handles Wayland and X11 support, and the [WSL2-Linux-Kernel](https://github.com/microsoft/WSL2-Linux-Kernel?ref=itsfoss.com), which is the source for the Linux kernel used on WSL2.

![an image that shows the wsl architecture with a flowchart](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/2025/05/wsl-architecture.png)

**WSL's architecture as shared by Microsoft.*

Microsoft also shared **an overview of WSL's architecture**, showing how it leverages the Linux kernel running inside a lightweight virtual machine with tight Windows integration. 

This setup allows Linux distributions like Debian, Ubuntu, Fedora, Arch Linux, etc. to run on Windows with full system compatibility and access to files, networking, and graphical utilities.

If you're interested in exploring the source code, contributing to WSL's development, or forking it for your own projects, check out the official [documentation](https://wsl.dev/?ref=itsfoss.com) and [GitHub](https://github.com/microsoft/WSL?ref=itsfoss.com) repository.

[WSL (GitHub)](https://github.com/microsoft/WSL?ref=itsfoss.com)

**Suggested Read** 📖

[9 Months Later, Microsoft Finally Fixes Linux Dual-Booting BugA sneaky move by the tech giant but at least we have some moves in the right direction.![](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/icon/android-chrome-192x192-101.png)It's FOSS NewsSourav Rudra![](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/thumbnail/microsoft-fixes-linux-dual-boot.png)](https://itsfoss.com/microsoft-fixes-linux-dual-boot/)

[Using Linux With WSL on WindowsGet started with Linux within the comfort of your Windows system with WSL. Learn the essential WSL concepts.![](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/icon/android-chrome-192x192-104.png)It's FOSSAbhishek Prakash![](https://itsfoss.com/content/images/thumbnail/using-wsl.webp)](https://itsfoss.com/wsl/)