Linux – WSL binds all ports, lose network access: Unable to connect

networkingwindowswindows 10windows-subsystem-for-linuxwireless-networking

I'm using WSL for some node development on a Windows 10 machine (build 1803). Inevitably, within a few hours of starting WSL, all ports on the system become bound. At this point, no new network connections open, and I effectively lose network access until I restart.

netstat -qn |findstr BOUND

This shows all TCP ports bound up to the max, such as:

 TCP    0.0.0.0:60755          0.0.0.0:0              BOUND

I've tried using ipconfig to reset the windows side adapter, killing all WSL processes, and a bunch of other things, but nothing unbinds the ports. I'd like to be able to use my computer without having to restart every few hours.

I was able to find an open issue with limited info: https://github.com/Microsoft/WSL/issues/2523
but no solutions or workarounds.

Any way to reset WSL or open the ports would be much appreciated!

Best Answer

Temporary fix: use the Task Manager to "End process tree" for adb, wslhost.exe, and wslbridge.exe. However, this kills WSL and anything running on WSL.

Permanent fix: it looks like this is a known WSL bug described on GitHub here and here, and Microsoft fixed it in Build 18890. However, as of May 2019, Build 18890 is well ahead of the stable builds of Windows, so you need to enroll in the Windows Insider Program to get it.

Related Question