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Reference

WSL, distribution, and instance configurations contain numerous settings that allow to customize the environment for various tasks. This section of the reference explains how to configure these components and provides examples that can be used to configure WSL itself, individual distributions and instances.

Info

This section does not contain complete or fully verified information about WSL and its environment. Despite the name "Reference", it is only a draft — a skeleton and structure that still needs to be expanded to become a full-fledged reference.

Reference structure

General

  • Conventions – a page explaining the basic terminology, notations, settings, code blocks and configuration examples used on the site.

Configurations

  • .wslconfig – a reference of the global configuration file, descriptions of individual settings, and a ready-to-use template.
  • wsl.conf – a reference of the instance-level configuration file, descriptions of individual settings, and a ready-to-use template.
  • wsl-distribution.conf – a reference of the distribution-level configuration file, descriptions of individual settings, and a ready-to-use template.
  • distributions.json – this page is under development.
  • terminal-profile.json – this page is under development.
  • cloud-init – this page is under development.

Settings

  • Paths – a reference of all key Windows and Linux paths used by WSL and its environment.
  • Registry – a reference of the main Windows Registry keys and values used to configure certain WSL settings.

Commands

  • Windows – this page is under development.
  • Linux – this page is under development.
  • PowerShell – this page is under development.

Scripts

  • OOBE script – a reference of the Out-of-Box Experience (OOBE) script and its purpose.