Linux – Launch GUI Application in WSL without XServer

My stated problem is that available appx-packages require Windows 1709, which I cannot have. This problem is neither addressed nor answered in the referenced question.

The current WSL instances that are distributed on the Windows Store only support 1709 and greater.

I specifically ask for a source for appx-packages that will run on Windows 10 1703. That information is not provided in the answers to the referenced question, b/c the user does not need them, b/c they are on Windows 10 1709.

This is not possible.

I specifically ask if the most recent versions, i.e. the ones mentioned in the referenced question, can be hacked to not require version 1709 anymore. That information is not provided in the answers to the referenced question, b/c the user is on Windows 10 1709.

This is not possible

As there are blog posts and such where people write about running Linux on Windows 10 1703, there must be appx-packages out there, that will run on Windows 1703. Can anyone provide me with a source for such (outdated) packages?

All you have to do is run lxrun /install in an elevated command prompt. The correct Ubuntu WSL instance will be automatically downloaded and installed.

However, the currently available Linux Distros for WSL all require the most recent Windows version, 1709, which I do not have and cannot get, due to company policy.

The only WSL instance that is compatible with your system is Ubuntu 16.04 by the way. You can perform a forced upgrade to 18.04 but I cannot suggest performing an upgrade using that method. If you need an offline method to install Ubuntu 16.04 WSL on Windows 10 v1703 you can use lxRunOffline v1.1.0.

The following instructions are for users running Windows 10 Anniversary Update or Windows 10 Creators Update:

1. Enable Developer Mode
2. Open PowerShell as Administrator and run: Enable-WindowsOptionalFeature -Online -FeatureName Microsoft-Windows-Subsystem-Linux
3. Reboot
4. Open a command prompt. Type bash and hit enter

The first time you run Bash on Ubuntu on Windows, you'll be prompted to accept Canonical's license. Once accepted, WSL will download and install the Ubuntu instance onto your machine, and a "Bash on Ubuntu on Windows" shortcut will be added to your start menu.

Source: Windows 10 Anniversary Update and Creators Update WSL Install & Uninstall Guide

Let have some background first. To configure general X11 connection, we have to set the DISPLAY variable in WSL with this command export DISPLAY=:0. Also don't forget to use this export LIBGL_ALWAYS_INDIRECT=1 command which enables direct rendering. If these were done then go to the next step: configuring VcxSrv.

VcxSrv has many command line options (XWin man page). You can get the option details with vcxsrv.exe --help command. For WSL, mainly three options are required (can be changed).

-multiwindow
Run the server in multiwindow mode.

-clipboard
Enable [disable] the clipboard integration. Default is enabled.

-wgl
Enable the GLX extension to use the native Windows WGL interface for hardware-accelerated OpenGL.

The command will be: vcxsrv.exe :0 -multiwindow -clipboard -wgl.

Now the final step is to launch it before WSL launches. There may be multiple ways to do this. Here I mention two of them.

1. Create a shortcut with that previous command. You should mention the full path in that command. e.g. E:\VcXSrv\vcxsrv.exe :0 -multiwindow -clipboard -wgl. Here is a screenshot.

Then put that shortcut in %AppData%\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup folder to automatically start VcxSrv when PC boots up.

2. Another way is to add the full command in registry with this command as administrator:

reg add "HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run" /V VcxSrv /D "E:\VcXSrv\vcxsrv.exe :0 -multiwindow -clipboard -wgl"

Follow any one of the above two methods, not both. VcxSrv.exe will launch when you restart your PC.