Installing Ubuntu 24.04 on Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL)

Last update: 04-26-2024

Welcome to this short guide where I'll walk you through the installation of Ubuntu 24.04 LTS on the Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL). This step-by-step tutorial is ideal for developers who want to utilize the latest Ubuntu features on their Windows machine.

Getting Started

First, we need to open the Windows Terminal. You can do this by searching for "Terminal" in the Windows start menu and opening it.

Listing Available Distributions

With the terminal open, list all available WSL distributions by entering the following command:

wsl -l --online

You should see Ubuntu-24.04 listed among the available options.

Installing Ubuntu 24.04

To install Ubuntu 24.04, use the following command:

wsl --install -d Ubuntu-24.04

Installation might take a little longer the first time as the system needs to download the distribution from the internet.

Setting Up Your New Distro

After downloading and installing, you'll be prompted to create a new user account. Enter a username and password when prompted to complete the setup process.

Verifying Installation

Once the setup is complete, verify the installation by checking the Ubuntu version:

lsb_release -a

This command will display details about the Ubuntu distribution you've just installed.

Exiting WSL

To exit from the Ubuntu distribution and return to Windows, simply type:

exit

Confirming Ubuntu in WSL

Finally, you can confirm that Ubuntu 24.04 is installed on your system by listing the installed WSL distributions:

wsl -l

You should see Ubuntu-24.04 among the listed distributions, indicating that the installation was successful.

That's it! You now have Ubuntu 24.04 installed on your Windows system via WSL, ready for development and exploration. Happy coding!