WSL Containers Released
Microsoft Makes WSL Containers Generally Available With New Windows Integration Tools
Anonymous
Microsoft has made WSL Containers generally available, adding a Windows command-line tool and API for building, running and managing Linux containers from Windows. The release is intended to simplify development workflows that previously relied on Docker Desktop or manually configured container tools, and includes capabilities such as file mounts, networking, GPU access and container monitoring. The containers still run on a Linux kernel inside WSL’s lightweight virtual machine; “native” refers to their integration with WSL and Windows workflows, not execution on the Windows kernel. Microsoft has also added enterprise controls for managing access and approved image registries, plus security monitoring through Defender for Endpoint.
Key Points
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WSL Containers adds practical management features including restarting containers, copying files in and out, running health checks, configuring storage locations, and monitoring activity in real time.
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Microsoft’s Consommé networking model sends container traffic out of the WSL virtual machine as Ethernet frames; a Windows process then handles DNS, routing, and port mapping, allowing traffic to use VPNs and firewalls like other Windows processes.
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The WSL Containers API is distributed as the Microsoft.WSL.Containers NuGet package, with C# and C++/WinRT projections for Windows applications.
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Developer tools are beginning to integrate with WSL Containers: VS Code dev containers can use wslc as their default driver, and Aspire can use it as a container runtime.
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