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Is there some good guide on how to use Linux subsystem provided with Windows 10 to set up and run Magento 2?

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  • What do you mean with "subsystem"? A virtual machine?
    – Akif
    Commented Feb 23, 2019 at 9:38
  • I mean this - docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/wsl/faq Commented Feb 23, 2019 at 13:58
  • Basically after you have one of the Linux distributions installed in WSL 2 all the rest is same as if running Magento directly on Linux. You can access the files trough \\wsl$\..\ path path from Windows host. I am developing Magento 2 like this, the only issue I have is slow sync of file changes in WSL in PhpStom.
    – kovinet
    Commented Sep 8, 2020 at 5:45
  • Yes. But if you want to access an existing project you can use symlinking to /var/www/html as I've mentioned. Commented Sep 8, 2020 at 7:46

1 Answer 1

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Introduction:

The Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) is a new Windows 10 feature that enables you to run native Linux command-line tools directly on Windows, alongside your traditional Windows desktop and modern store apps.

The Windows Subsystem for Linux lets developers run GNU/Linux environment -- including most command-line tools, utilities, and applications -- directly on Windows, unmodified, without the overhead of a virtual machine.

You can:

  • Choose your favorite GNU/Linux distributions from the Windows Store.
  • Run common command-line free software such as grep, sed, awk, or other ELF-64 binaries. Run Bash shell scripts and GNU/Linux command-line applications including:
  • Tools: vim, emacs, tmux
  • Languages: PHP, Javascript/node.js, Ruby, Python, C/C++, C# & F#, Rust, Go, etc.
  • Services: sshd, MySQL, Apache, lighttpd Install additional software using own GNU/Linux distribution package manager.
  • Invoke Windows applications using a Unix-like command-line shell.
  • Invoke GNU/Linux applications on Windows.

Installation:

  • Enable developer mode from settings.

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  • Open powershell/cmd as admin and enable WSL using following command

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

You can also enable it from window features in GUI.

  • Restart your system.
  • Install distro of your choice from the windows store. (Just search for eg. Ubuntu and install).
  • Access WSL using bash command on cmd.
  • It will ask you to set username and password for your linux user.
  • Check your distro using the following command ;

lsb_release -a

  • Install apache using the following command;

sudo apt-get install apache2

  • Start apache using the following command;

sudo service apache2 start

  • Access localhost to see if apache has been started successfully. Just open up the browser of your choice and type 'localhost'.

  • Install mysql using following command ;

sudo apt-get install mysql-server

  • Start mysql using the following command ;

sudo service mysql start

  • Access mysql to make sure it is running properly

mysql -uroot -p

Use exit/quit command to exit mysql.

  • Install PHP using the following command

sudo apt-get install php7.2

You can install php version of your choice by just mentioning the version.

  • Check if PHP has been installed using the following command;

php -v

  • Check if you have all the modules needed by placing index.php having phpinfo() at /var/www/html and accessing localhost/index.php
  • Install composer using following command;

curl -sS https://getcomposer.org/installer -o composer-setup.php

If you do not have curl, install it using sudo apt-get install curl

  • Make symlink of your Windows Magento project folder/ from where you want to access Magento files in /var/www/html using ;

sudo ln -s /mnt/c/projects/magento23 /var/www/html/magento23

Note that all the windows filesystem can be found mounted in /mnt folder.

  • cd into your symlinked folder and install Magento using composer.

In my opinion, the WSL way of using Magento in windows is much faster than native windows and much more hassle-free than installing a virtual machine and dealing with its problems. You also have direct access to all project files so you can use your preferred editor for coding.

Note : Currently I have to start apache and mysql server after every restart but I will update if I can get it added to systemctl boot time.

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  • I've my code inside Windows system and I created symlink as you guided. But It is not generating static content and showing static content Commented Apr 22, 2019 at 0:17
  • you have created symlink for whole Magento folder in /var/www/html/ right? It should be working if you've done that. Commented Apr 22, 2019 at 5:39
  • I want to setup magento 2 pwa studio. Can share guide how to do that? I tried magento 2 official guide but it is not working. Commented Apr 22, 2019 at 22:36
  • I have not tried to setup PWA studio in subsystem but I was able to set it up fine on my Linux machine using the same instructions.. Commented Apr 23, 2019 at 2:33
  • I will try it when I have some time and update you. Commented Apr 23, 2019 at 2:34

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