Install Windows Subsystem for Linux on a Non-System Drive

This page shows how to install Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) system on a non-system drive manually. It can work with both WSL 1 and WSL 2.

Enable Windows Subsystem for Linux system feature

Open PowerShell as Administrator and run the following command to enable WSL feature:

Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName Microsoft-Windows-Subsystem-Linux

Create a folder in a non-system drive

Run the following command in PowerShell to create a folder for the installation. For my environment, I will create the folder in F drive.

cd F:\mkdir WSLcd WSL

Download a Linux distro

Run the following command in PowerShell to download a distro:

Invoke-WebRequest -Uri https://aka.ms/wsl-ubuntu-1804 -OutFile Ubuntu.appx -UseBasicParsing

The following distros are available:

Unpack the downloaded distro

Run the following PowerShell commands to unpack:

move .\Ubuntu.appx .\Ubuntu.zipExpand-Archive .\Ubuntu.zip

Initialize Linux distro

In the unzipped folder, there is one executable (*.exe).

cd .\Ubuntu\ls
Directory: F:\WSL\Ubuntu

Mode LastWriteTime Length Name ---- ------------- ------ ---- d----- 15/05/2019 7:40 PM AppxMetadata d----- 15/05/2019 7:40 PM Assets -a---- 17/08/2018 3:15 AM 212438 AppxBlockMap.xml -a---- 17/08/2018 3:15 AM 3835 AppxManifest.xml -a---- 17/08/2018 3:17 AM 11112 AppxSignature.p7x -a---- 17/08/2018 3:15 AM 223983209 install.tar.gz -a---- 17/08/2018 3:15 AM 5400 resources.pri -a---- 17/08/2018 3:15 AM 211968 ubuntu1804.exe -a---- 17/08/2018 3:15 AM 744 [Content_Types].xml

* Based on the version of Linux distro you are using, the executable name can be different.

Run the executable to initialize:

 .\ubuntu1804.exePS F:\WSL\Ubuntu> .\ubuntu1804.exe
Installing, this may take a few minutes...
Please create a default UNIX user account. The username does not need to match your Windows username.
For more information visit: https://aka.ms/wslusers
Enter new UNIX username: raymond
Enter new UNIX password:
Retype new UNIX password:
passwd: password updated successfully
Installation successful!
To run a command as administrator (user "root"), use "sudo <command>".
See "man sudo_root" for details.

* You need to input a user name and password. I am using username raymond with**‘password’** as password.

Once the installation is done, you can see a new folder is created:

PS F:\WSL\Ubuntu> ls
Directory: F:\WSL\Ubuntu

Mode LastWriteTime Length Name ---- ------------- ------ ---- d----- 15/05/2019 7:40 PM AppxMetadata d----- 15/05/2019 7:40 PM Assets

da---- 15/05/2019 7:47 PM rootfs d----- 15/05/2019 7:49 PM temp -a---- 17/08/2018 3:15 AM 212438 AppxBlockMap.xml -a---- 17/08/2018 3:15 AM 3835 AppxManifest.xml -a---- 17/08/2018 3:17 AM 11112 AppxSignature.p7x -a---- 17/08/2018 3:15 AM 223983209 install.tar.gz -a---- 17/08/2018 3:15 AM 5400 resources.pri -a---- 17/08/2018 3:15 AM 211968 ubuntu1804.exe -a---- 17/08/2018 3:15 AM 744 [Content_Types].xml

If you install WSL from Microsoft Store, the default folder in your Windows user profile will be used:

%localappdata%\Packages

rootfs folder includes the following folders:

PS F:\WSL\Ubuntu> cd .\rootfs\
PS F:\WSL\Ubuntu\rootfs> ls
Directory: F:\WSL\Ubuntu\rootfs

Mode LastWriteTime Length Name ---- ------------- ------ ---- da---- 15/05/2019 7:47 PM bin da---- 15/05/2019 7:44 PM boot da---- 15/05/2019 7:44 PM dev da---- 15/05/2019 7:48 PM etc da---- 15/05/2019 7:48 PM home da---- 15/05/2019 7:44 PM lib da---- 15/05/2019 7:44 PM lib64 da---- 15/05/2019 7:44 PM media da---- 15/05/2019 7:47 PM mnt da---- 15/05/2019 7:44 PM opt da---- 15/05/2019 7:44 PM proc da---- 15/05/2019 7:44 PM root da---- 15/05/2019 7:44 PM run da---- 15/05/2019 7:44 PM sbin da---- 15/05/2019 7:44 PM snap da---- 15/05/2019 7:44 PM srv da---- 15/05/2019 7:44 PM sys da---- 15/05/2019 7:56 PM tmp da---- 15/05/2019 7:46 PM usr da---- 15/05/2019 7:47 PM var -a---- 15/05/2019 7:56 PM 87944 init

These folders include all the Ubuntu folders (libs, executables, etc.).

List all the WSL installations

You can install many Linux distributions in one Windows system.

wslconfig command can be used to list all the installed distributions and set default distribution:

wslconfig
Performs administrative operations on Windows Subsystem for LinuxUsage:     /l, /list [/all] - Lists registered distributions.         /all - Optionally list all distributions, including distributions that                are currently being installed or uninstalled.     /s, /setdefault <DistributionName> - Sets the specified distribution as the default.     /u, /unregister <DistributionName> - Unregisters a distribution.

Find out all the WSL installations in your Windows system using the following command:

wslconfig /l
Windows Subsystem for Linux Distributions:
Ubuntu-18.04 (Default)

Set default distribution:

wslconfig /setdefault Ubuntu-18.04

Run the following command to start the default WSL distribution:

wsl

To uninstall a distribution, use the following command:

wslconfig /u distribution_name

Now you have a WSL installed in a non-system drive. Have fun!