Проблема: Как известно, не все программы под windows имеют свои аналоги в Linux, и часто эти программы бывают очень нужны. Требуется запуск прог Windows в Linux.
Решение: Есть класс программ, позволяющих запускать программы других операционных систем (не обязательно Windows) в Linux и других UNIX-системах. Это эмуляторы — такие программы, которые позволяют, грубо говоря, эмулировать Linux в Windows или наоборот. Среди них следует выделить наиболее часто применяемые.
1. WINE
opensource, GPL.
Wine Is Not a (CPU) Emulator это прослойка, которая транслирует Win32API в POSIX API, то есть свободная реализация Windows API, которая позволяет запускать программы Windows, переводя вызовы программы под Windows в вызовы Linux. Это позволяет выполнять программы почти на полной скорости. Однако из-за того, что продукты Microsoft являются закрытыми, невозможно точно воспроизвести структуру их API, что приводит к разного рода сбоям и странностям при выполнении Windows-программ в WINE. Положительным моментом является то, что вам не нужно ставить Windows — только WINE и программу.
Плюсы: достаточно быстрая работа на реальных ресурсах машины, работа с реальными каталогами и файлами, нет необходимости в установке Windows.
Минусы: не все приложения поддерживаются и работают не всегда стабильно.
Ссылки:
http://www.winehq.org
http://gazette.linux.ru.net/team/a_kuprin.html
http://linuxshop.ru/linuxbegin/print633.html
1.1 CodeWavers CrossOver Office
closedsource.
Основанный на WINE коммерческий продукт, отличающийся лучшим исполнением особенно важных Windows приложений, таких как Adobe Photoshop, Microsoft Office, Autodesk AutoCAD и некоторых других. В общем, более стабильная, хотя и не самая свежая версия WINE, с графическим установщиком, который предоставит вам удобный и простой интерфейс для настройки.
Ссылки: http://www.codeweavers.com
1.2 TransGaming Technologies WineX / Cedega
proprietary, но есть возможность скачать исходники.
Так же основанный на WINE, но имеющий одно очень существенное, особенно для геймеров, усовершенствование — он содержит в себе улучшенную, вдобавок, полную (в плане совместимости) поддержку интерфейса Direct3D.
Ссылки: http://www.transgaming.com
2. DOSEMU
opensource, GPL.
dosemu — эмулятор DOS для запуска старых приложений, часто используется для бухгалтерских и прочих весьма специфичных нужд. Многие программы под DOS использовали его «особенности» и баги для работы, которых в dosemu может не оказаться.
Плюсы: быстрый запуск и работа устаревших, но нужных программ DOS (бухгалтерских, например), не требователен к ресурсам.
Минусы: нетривиальная установка, не все программы будут работать.
Ссылки: www.dosemu.org
3. Win4Lin
closedsource.
В файл, который для Windows будет диском, ставится полноценная копия Windows и потом туда ставятся нужные приложения. Старая версия Win4Lin позволяла запускать Windows 95 с очень приличной скоростью и работать с приложениями для этих систем в виндовс, однако для этого требуются патчи на ядро. Патчи есть далеко не для всех версий ядер, и для определённых версий Win4Lin патчи были свои — нужно было угадывать.
Win4lin PRO не требует патча, позволяет запускать Windows 2000/XP, но работает медленно и при этом подгружает служебные программы для «ускорения». Есть подозрения, что в этом эмуляторе используются наработки автора QEMU и особенно его ускоряющего модуля. Особенностью этого эмулятора является то, что есть возможность работать с реальными каталогами Linux.
Плюсы: возможность запуска Windows.
Минусы: проблемы с накладыванием патчей на ядро (закрытых и возможно небезопасных), либо очень низкая скорость запуска Windows, необходимость устанавливать Windows, невозможность эмуляции других ОС.
Ссылки:
http://www.win4lin.com/
http://www.netraverse.com/
http://sys.net.ru/docs/win4lin/Win4Lin6/
http://sys.net.ru/docs/win4lin/win4lin2debian
4. Виртуальные машины
Имитируют весь компьютер целиком вместе с жёстким диском (в виде файла), CD-ROM и USB (всё это связано с железом настоящего компьютера). Установленная туда ОС будет работать с реальным железом только через эмулированное. Виртуальные машины это как раз то, что обычно называют «эмулятор Linux» или «Эмулятор Windows» — с помощью виртуальных машин вы действительно сможете эмулировать Linux или Windows.
4.1 QEMU
opensource, GPL.
QEMU — виртуальная машина. В QEMU можно поставить почти любую ОС — любой
Windows (начиная с Windows95 до WindowsXP включительно), любой дистрибутив Linux или FreeBSD, BeOS/Haiku, ReactOS, Syllable и проч. Для быстрой работы нужен kqemu — ускоряющий модуль (так же под GPL), который имеется на сайте автора. Для этого потребуются заголовки ядра — в основном, чтобы собрать ускоряющий модуль kqemu, с которым замедление работы гостевой ОС составит до 1.5 раза (вместо 5-10 раз без модуля). Этот эмулятор использует наработки другого проекта, BOCHS. Так же позволяет создавать виртуальные машины собственной утилитой qemu-img. Работа с эмулятором (вызов, задание параметров) происходят в консольном режиме, но есть и графические оболочки.
Плюсы: хорошая скорость работы (с kqemu) гостевой ОС, стабильность, широкие возможности (эмуляция нескольких платформ, одновременный запуск множества систем, точность эмуляции), защищённая среда.
Минусы: несколько меньшая скорость эмуляции, чем VMware, консольный интерфейс (хотя есть графические оболочки типа Qemulator).
Ссылки:
форум о QEMU
www.qemu.org
Установка в Дебиан (на английском)
4.2 BOCHS
opensource, GPL.
BOCHS — виртуальная машина, точный эмулятор x86 платформы. Имеет свой BIOS, VGABIOS и прочее, что и используется QEMU. Очень точный, но очень медленный, применяется в основном разработчиками, где нужна уверенность, что это сбой в программе, а не эмулятора.
Плюсы: полная точная эмуляция x86, возможность установки в него практически любой ОС, лёгкая и простая установка в Debian.
Минусы: очень низкая скорость работы гостевой ОС.
Ссылки:
www.bochs.org
4.3 VMWare
closedsource.
VMWare — как и QEMU, виртуальная машина. Обладает более высокой скоростью эмуляции, поддерживает большее число ОС. Кроме того, установка VMWare на Дебиан нетривиальна, хотя имеются deb-пакеты в неофициальных репозиториях; требуется компиляция закрытых ускоряющих модулей с заголовками ядра. Есть сообщения, что у VMWare имеются проблемы с полноэкранным режимом. По требовательности к ресурсам мало отличается от QEMU, потребляя много оперативной памяти и процессорного времени. Возможности те же: безопасная среда для эмуляции гостевых ОС. Плюс графический интерфейс для создания виртуальных машин.
Плюсы: более быстрая эмуляция гостевых ОС, есть графический интерфейс для создания виртуальных машин.
Минусы: закрытые проприетарные модули потенциально могут вывести хост-ОС из стабильного состояния.
Ссылки:
http://www.vmware.com/
http://www.nixp.ru/news/6914
http://software.newsforge.com/print.pl?sid=05/04/27/186203
VmWare in Ubuntu
4.4 VirtualBox
opensource, GPL.
VirtualBox — так же виртуальная машина x86, основана на наработках QEMU. Отличается простым графическим интерфейсом и весьма высокой скоростью эмуляции (часто быстрее QEMU) и поддержкой периферии (USB, сеть, FireWire). Точность эмуляции ниже, чем у QEMU (невозможно запускать многие ОС, например BeOS/Haiku, MenuetOS, Syllable).
Есть guest additions, которые позволяют очень нужные вещи, а именно копи-паст с хост-системы в гостевую (clipboard sharing) и незаметный захват мыши.
Плюсы: простая установка и настройка, возможно расширение функционала плагинами, широкая поддержка периферии, в ряде случаев быстрее QEMU.
Минусы: при интенсивном использовании графический интерфейс мешает, точность эмуляции менее распространённых ОС не высока.
Ссылки:
http://www.virtualbox.org/
Работа и впечатления
4.4 KVM — Kernel-based Virtual Machine
opensource, GPL.
KVM — это решение полной виртуализации, хотя сам по себе это модуль ядра Linux. Для работы требуется модифицированная версия QEMU. Для работы требуется поддержка виртуализации процессором.
Плюсы: модуль ускорителя в ядре, простая установка.
Минусы: требуется поддержка виртуализации процессором.
Ссылки:
http://kvm.qumranet.com/kvmwiki
http://inf.by/linux/211/
5. Гипервизоры
opensource, GPL.
XEN — гипервизор, позволяет запускать гостевую ОС как процесс ядра в хост-системе. Отличается очень низкими накладными расходами (от 2 до 8% потери производительности гостевой ОС), защитой хост-ОС, а так же использованием технологий виртуализации современных процессоров. Однако для того, чтобы использовать его возможности, требуется патч на ядро не только хост-ОС, но и гостевой ОС, что делает запуск проприетарных систем внутри очень непростым делом.
Плюсы: потенциально наибольшая достижимая скорость работы гостевой ОС, ниже требования к ресурсам хост-ОС.
Минусы: весьма нетривиальная установка — требуется патч на ядро гостевой ОС.
Ссылки:
http://www.cl.cam.ac.uk/Research/SRG/netos/xen/
http://wiki.xensource.com/xenwiki/XenFaq
http://www.howtoforge.com/book/print/1169
http://xgu.ru/xen/manual/
6. Виртуализация на уровне операционной системы
opensource, GPL.
Open VZ это технология «лёгкой» виртуализации, позволяющая на одной аппаратной системе держать несколько различных версий Linux с одним ядром (поддерживающим ovz и содержащимся, как правило, на небольшом корне с ограниченным доступом по ssh и без других сервисов). В отличие от «тяжёлых» вариантов вроде Xen, Qemu или VMware, накладные расходы обычно составляют единицы процентов.
Ссылки: Краткий доклад одного из авторов OpenVZ.
We use Windows in our workstations at my current job (it was not my choice 🙊), but there is a lot of tasks that are easier to do in a Linux environment. Some days ago I needed to manipulate a huge CSV and just thought: «This would be a lot simple with cat, grep, sort, etc.».
So, I remember that I have read something about running Linux inside Windows using WSL and, well, why not give a try?
Setting up the environment
Some considerations:
- WSL 2 is only available in Windows 10, Version 2004, Build 19041 or higher. Check your Windows version by selecting the Windows logo key + R, type
winver, select OK. - All Windows commands should be typed in a PowerShell session with administrative privileges unless otherwise specified (right-click in the PowerShell icon and choose «Run as administrator»).
Here we go! Since I’m a command-line lover and do not have a Microsoft account to access Microsoft Store, I’ll do this from there as much as possible. First, let’s install a decent terminal emulator and Microsoft is doing a good job with Windows Terminal. I have downloaded v1.1.2021.0 and renamed it to WindowsTerminal.msixbundle. This is the latest version at the time of writing. The installation is pretty straight forward, just open a PowerShell instance, navigate to the directory where the executable was downloaded and type:
.\WindowsTerminal.msixbundle
Now, click in Instal and wait a few seconds to the windows of Windows Terminal show up. Close this window for now, we need to open it as Administrator soon.
The next step is to enable WSL. Use the same method stated at the top of the article to launch an instance of Windows Terminal with administrative privileges (damn, I wish that there was a «sudo» for this. Maybe Microsoft can launch an «addo» 🙃). Observe that should have a «PS» before your prompt, this indicates that you are in a PowerShell session. Now type:
dism.exe /online /enable-feature /featurename:Microsoft-Windows-Subsystem-Linux /all /norestart
The ‘Virtual Machine Platform’ is needed to run WSL 2. To enable it, just type:
dism.exe /online /enable-feature /featurename:VirtualMachinePlatform /all /norestart
You should see «The operation completed successfully.» to both commands. Now reboot your computer.
Once rebooted, open Windows Terminal again and set WSL2 as default:
wsl —set-default-version
If you already have a distribution installed and like to convert it to use WSL2, this is possible. First, check the current status.
wsl —list —verbose
The above command will show a list of installed distributions separated by NAME, STATE, and VERSION. For instance, if you have an Ubuntu installation that is running at version 1 you can type:
wsl —set-version Ubuntu 2
You also can revert it to WSL 1 if you are not satisfied with the result, just change the version number.
Download and installation
Now it is time to download the distribution that you wish to install. I chose Debian because it is very light and stable. Since Windows 10 Spring 2018 Update, curl.exe is present, so let’s use it.
curl.exe -L -o debian.appx https://aka.ms/wsl-debian-gnulinux
The installation step is also quite simple.
Add-AppxPackage .\debian.appx
A strange progress bar will be displayed. Once it disappears, it is done. Now Debian should be available in your applications menu, but don’t click there, use the Windows Terminal do open a Debian session. On the right side of the tab, there is an arrow that hides all the possible sessions.
Clicking on Debian will lead you to the user configuration screen. Choose your username and password and you are done.
Configuration
Now, I recommend that you update installation:
sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade
Verify the version of Debian that was installed.
cat /etc/os-release
For an unknown reason by me, the downloaded image was still the Stretch version of Debian. No problem, let’s update it to Debian Buster. First, make a backup of your sources.list file.
sudo cp /etc/apt/sources.list /etc/apt/sources.list.bak
Now, replace every «stretch» entry with «buster». You can do this with nano or vi or directly with sed.
sudo sed -i ‘s/stretch/buster/g’ /etc/apt/sources.list
Then update the system again.
sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade && sudo apt full-upgrade
Now get rid of obsolete packages in your system.
sudo apt autoremove
Close the Debian tab and open another one to check if you have installed Debian Buster with success.
cat /etc/os-release
You should see something like the below:
PRETTY_NAME="Debian GNU/Linux 10 (buster)"
NAME="Debian GNU/Linux"
VERSION_ID="10"
VERSION="10 (buster)"
VERSION_CODENAME=buster
ID=debian
HOME_URL="https://www.debian.org/"
SUPPORT_URL="https://www.debian.org/support"
BUG_REPORT_URL="https://bugs.debian.org/"
Final considerations
For a better file system performance, make sure to store your Linux project files in the Linux file system (not the Windows file system).
It is probable that when you open a Debian session your prompt show something like: username@hostname:/mnt/c/Users/username$ This is why WSL exposes the Windows file system through mount points placed in /mnt like /mnt/c and /mnt/d just type cd ~ to go to your real home.
Not only the file system of Windows is exposed by WSL, but you can use Windows applications too, try to type explorer.exe . As you can see, Windows Explorer will open with the files of your current directory loaded.
That is it, everything is set up and ready to use.
As much as we love Linux, we all have to agree on Windows’s massive dominance in the industry. Due to being the most widely used operating system for personal computers for the last couple of decades, Microsoft Windows enjoys widespread usage in the business world. If you’re a Linux enthusiast but need to utilize Windows for your Job or academic purposes, you no longer need to be disappointed. There are powerful Linux emulators for Windows that allow you to run Linux programs seamlessly on your Windows machine without installing a fresh copy of your favorite distro.
Best Linux Emulators for Windows OS
Emulators are computer programs that enable users to run software developed for a specific system on another. However, the current state of the computer world is far from enjoyable when it comes to operating system emulators.
As Windows and Linux systems vary in design and implementation, it’s almost impossible to find an emulator that lets users run standalone Linux programs perfectly in Windows. Thus, we’ll mostly focus on “ways” you can run Linux software in Windows.
1. Cygwin
Cygwin is a powerful and innovative Linux simulator for Windows that allows users to run Linux software in Microsoft Windows by recompiling them on Windows. It is a robust POSIX-compatible environment with an extensive collection of GNU and Open Source tools for providing functions similar to many Linux systems.
Cygwin works on most x86 32-bit and 64-bit versions of Windows and is maintained regularly. It is among the best Linux emulators for Windows users who want up-to-date emulation solutions.
Features of Cygwin
- Cygwin doesn’t allow native Linux apps to run on Windows; instead, it provides a mechanism to rebuild them for Windows.
- It comes pre-packed with a robust runtime (cygwin1.dll) that directly offers solid POSIX API functionality inside Windows.
- An extensive collection of Linux and BSD programs have been ported to Cygwin, including the X Window System, K Desktop Environment, Apache, GNOME, and TeX.
- Cygwin allows running Linux shells, file and sys utilities, terminals, remote login, and file transfers, text processing, compression, and servers directly in Windows.
Get Cygwin
2. Hyper-V
Hyper-V, formerly known as Microsoft Windows Server Virtualization, is a robust hypervisor system that allows Windows users to run multiple operating systems in their systems. It can virtualize a substantial number of POSIX operating systems, including Linux and BSD variants.
Hyper-V will enable users to use their hardware better and run different operating systems virtually. You can run your favorite Linux applications using Hyper-V, given you have got the necessary Windows license.
Features of Hyper-V
- Hyper-V allows the guest Linux system to be isolated by using a dedicated virtual partition on the Windows machine.
- It offers a robust host resources protection mechanism that ensures the virtual Linux system doesn’t clog up your system resources.
- The PowerShell Direct feature allows sysadmins to effectively manage multiple guest OSs and directly send commands to the guest system.
- Hyper-V has native support for persistent memory, encrypted network virtualization, d.VMMQ, cloud backup, and several innovative administration tools.
Get Hyper-V
3. VirtualBox
Oracle VirtualBox is a free-hosted hypervisor that allows users to create x86 virtual machines. This cross-platform software is one of the easiest ways to achieve total Linux system emulation on your Windows PC.
You can install any of your favorite Linux distributions from inside an already installed and running Windows OS. Although many people don’t like virtual machines, if you want to set up a fully functional Linux guest OS, they are a solid bet.
Features of VirtualBox
- VirtualBox is developed using highly optimized C, C++, and x86 assembly code, significantly increasing performance.
- Oracle maintains the software well, frequently adding newer features accompanied by bug fixes.
- VirtualBox is a solid choice for powering resource-intensive cloud servers and software testing.
- The open-source nature of Oracle VirtualBox allows third-party developers to extend the functionality as per their requirements.
Get VirtualBox
4. andLinux
“andLinux” is a robust, modern-day Linux environment designed to run natively inside Microsoft Windows. It packs a complete Ubuntu system using coLinux as its kernel and Xming for the standard X server.
It is one of the most efficient Linux emulators for Windows since it requires no virtual machine to run Linux and performs well across all major Windows versions. Instead, andLinux implements operating system-level virtualization to achieve its end goal.
Features of andLinux
- andLinux allows users to utilize either the KDE or XFCE Linux desktop environment alongside Synaptic for package management and Nautilus as the file manager.
- It enables Windows users to run everyday Linux commands directly from Windows scripts using the andCmd.exe utility.
- The software is entirely open source and comes under the permissive GNU GPL license.
- andLinux supports a variety of Windows versions, including Windows 2000, XP, 2003, Vista, and 7, but it lacks 64-bit support.
Get andLinux
5. QEMU
QEMU is one of the most popular virtual machine emulators due to its support for an extensive range of hardware. It can emulate any architecture and helps you get up and running with a Linux system inside your Windows machine quickly. It can also be used as a Windows emulator inside the Linux System.
It is known for its substantial virtualization support that allows users to create virtual machines with almost native-level performance. The software is maintained regularly, and newer features and bug fixes are added monthly.
Features of QEMU
- It can save the current state of the Linux system as snapshots and can restore them for later usage.
- QEMU allows users to utilize their peripherals, including hard disks, CD drives, network cards, audio interfaces, and USB devices directly.
- QEMU is written in C and is faster than most of the Linux emulators for Windows.
- It sports the GNU GPL open source license, which allows users to tweak the emulator as required.
Get QEMU
6. VMware Workstation
VMware Workstation is one of the most prominent choices for selecting a virtual machine for Linux. It is a hosted hypervisor that allows 64-bit Windows users to set up and run Linux systems locally.
If you want professional-grade performance from your emulated Linux system, siding with VMware Workstation will be beneficial. The software comes with a premium price tag but offers a freemium alternative (Workstation Player), with some functionality being limited.
Features of VMware Workstation
- VMware Workstation lets users choose from a ready-made set of Linux virtual machines for Windows directly.
- The VMware Workstation Player is a free version that does not require users to pay but is limited.
- VMware Workstation comes with out-of-the-box support for OpenGL and supports up to 3 GB of shared video memory.
- This Linux simulator for Windows has in-built support for DirectX 10.1, 4K resolution, Wayland, SSH, and Virtual networks alongside other modern-day features.
Get VMware Workstation
7. Multi Emulator Super System (MESS)
The Multi Emulator Super System, known widely as MESS, is one of Windows’s oldest yet most versatile Linux emulators. It can emulate over a thousand different guest systems on various hardware. The software is currently maintained by the developers of MAME, an innovative console emulator for Linux. Its extreme accuracy makes MESS stand apart from a plethora of everyday Linux Tools for Windows.
Features of Multi Emulator Super System
- MESS is not only a Linux emulator but also a universal solution for almost every one of your emulation goals.
- The development team behind the project identifies ‘portability’ as one of its cornerstones, and the emulator thus runs on a wide range of host systems.
- It has become an official part of the MAME project, and its functionalities have been integrated.
- The software is open-source and thus requires no permission to modify the emulator.
Get MESS
8. JPC
JPC is a modern and lightweight Java-based emulator that can be used for emulating Linux systems on a variety of systems, including Windows. It is an x86 emulator that can be run on any system with the Java Virtual Machine (JVM) installed.
This open-source Linux emulator was developed at the University of Oxford and came under the free GNU GPL license. Although the software runs smoothly on older hardware, emulation speed can be much slower for many applications.
Features of JPC
- The software is highly portable due to its Java heritage and runs on every major platform.
- JPC allows users to take snapshots of the guest Linux system and load them for later usage.
- The software ships with an integrated debugger that makes finding bugs much easier than most Linux emulators for Windows.
- JPC comes with in-built support for network cards and can emulate PC audio very effectively.
Get JPC
9. Wubi
Wubi (Windows-based Ubuntu Installer) is an incredibly lightweight and innovative system utility that allows users to run Linux on Windows without re-partitioning the whole drive. If you’re looking for services enabling you to install Ubuntu from within Windows and choose which OS to use during boot time, Wubi allows doing this precisely.
Although it became quite popular among Linux enthusiasts, the developers have discontinued Wubi, citing a lack of commercial potential. However, you can still use it in Windows.
Features of Wubi
- Wubi is exceptionally lightweight and weighs only 2.3 MB.
- It comes with the GNU GPL license, which allows users to modify the software.
- Wubi allows users to select their desktop environments as per their requirements and is very user-friendly.
- Users can uninstall Ubuntu installed using Wubi like any other Windows software.
Get Wubi
10. TopologiLinux
TopologiLinux is another powerful open source software that empowers Windows users to enjoy all the benefits of a robust Linux system. What makes TopologiLinux stand apart from conventional Linux emulators for Windows is that it isn’t an actual emulator itself.
Instead, it is a fully functional Linux distribution designed to be installed inside an existing Windows machine. It currently runs under Windows 2000, XP, and Vista editions but lacks support for recent editions.
Features of TopologiLinux
- TopologiLinux utilizes coLinux to run on Windows, a software that allows parallel executions of both the Linux and Windows NT kernels.
- This Linux distribution doesn’t require additional partitioning of the host Windows system and can create hard disk image files on either NTFS or FAT partitions.
- It ships with a free GNU GPL license that allows software modification and redistribution with a simple credit.
- TopologiLinux supports multiple Linux desktop environments, including GNOME, KDE, and XFCE.
Get TopologiLinux
11. Bochs
Bochs is a simple yet effective hypervisor system that can emulate full-fledged Linux environments inside conventional Windows computers. The program is written using the C++ programming language, thus making the software extraordinarily accurate and lightning-fast.
It can emulate a wide range of system architectures, including the x86-64 Intel and AMD processors used in most current Linux systems. The software, however, is prone to frequent system crashes when the guest system runs resource-heavy applications.
Features of Bochs
- The software is designed carefully and can emulate various systems, including Linux, DOS, or Microsoft Windows.
- Bochs C++ codebase makes it one of the most portable Linux emulators for Windows and can even be compiled for the early 386 CPUs.
- It can emulate most Unix workstations like Ubuntu, Linux Mint, Fedora, Manjaro, and standard BSD counterparts.
- This GNU GPL-licensed software is entirely free and requires merely a simple credit for modification.
Get Bochs
12. JSLinux
JSLinux offers one of the fanciest ways of running an adequately performing Linux system directly from Windows. It is an excellent piece of software written by the famous open-source developer Fabrice Bellard. JSLinux provides a ready-made Linux system that can be accessed online from anywhere. This makes it a viable solution for users with access to fast network connections and looking to use Linux on the go.
Features of JSLinux
- It is developed using a JavaScript stack and can also be used to test JS applications or benchmark them.
- It currently offers six different Linux environments and provides console and X-Window-based interfaces.
- Users can connect to the worldwide network using any of these Linux environments and use them for online applications.
- JSLinux requires no installation or such and is thus among the most resource-friendly Linux Tools for Windows.
Get JSLinux
13. Cooperative Linux (coLinux)
Cooperative Linux is one of Windows’s most innovative and robust Linux Tools. Virtualization software allows Microsoft Windows users to run both Windows and Linux distributions synchronously.
coLinux utilizes the shared kernel technology and provides a mechanism that enables both the Windows NT and Linux kernels to run concurrently. What makes coLinux different from regular Linux emulators for Windows is that the guest system has full control over the host system’s resources.
Features of coLinux
- coLinux comes with pre-built support for every major Linux desktop, including Debian, Ubuntu, Fedora, and Gentoo.
- Users need to install X-Window servers in their Windows systems to be able to run graphical software.
- coLinux allows the guest Linux system to emulate ethernet connections using TAP, PCAP, NDIS, and SLiRP.
- The software runs on most Windows systems flawlessly but, as of now, lacks support for 64-bit systems.
Get coLinux
14. bhyve
bhyve is a simple, lightweight, yet capable x86 emulator that can aid your everyday Linux emulation. It is a robust hypervisor solution that offers a comprehensive set of modern-day features to facilitate Linux emulation from Windows systems. If you want to run both Linux and Windows but do not want to install resource-heavy virtual machines, then bhyve is a pretty viable solution for you.
Features of bhyve
- bhyve was initially developed for FreeBSD and was later ported to other major systems, including Windows.
- It can run the most popular Linux distributions, such as RHEL, CentOS, Debian, Fedora, OpenSUSE, and Ubuntu, without trouble.
- bhyve supports UEFI, Hyper-V, and OmniOS out of the box and can effectively manipulate AHCI devices.
- The open-source development nature of bhyve means developers can modify or extend the program in any way they like.
Get bhyve
15. Parallels Workstation
Parallels Workstation is a full-fledged hypervisor that allows users to create efficient Linux virtual machines inside regular Windows systems. It offers robust functionalities, including full system emulation, and can emulate video and network adapters alongside hard drive adapters.
Parallels Workstation can also easily virtualize 64-bit processors with NX and AES-NI instructions. Although the product is discontinued for Windows and Linux, they still work like they used to.
Features of Parallels Workstation
- Parallels Workstation comes with pre-built pass-through drivers for parallel ports and USB devices.
- It supports VGA and SVGA graphics cards with VESA VBE 3.0 and a maximum of 256 MB video ram.
- Parallels support up to 16 SATA devices and four IDE devices with a USB 2.0 controller.
Get Parallels Workstation
Ending Thoughts
As you might’ve noticed, there are very few genuine Linux emulators for Windows available. Since it is complex to pack entire Linux runtimes in software intended for another system, most Linux users will find them using one Linux tool for Windows mentioned above.
Our editors have highlighted every plausible Linux emulation method available under the Windows system. We were also pretty surprised by some solutions like JSLinux! Hopefully, you got the insights you sought; keep your eyes here for more Linux tech talks.
Debian is one of the oldest Linux distributions available that is currently being maintained actively. Ubuntu, which is the most popular Linux distribution, is based upon the experimental version ‘Sid’. And Ubuntu in turn acts as a base for numerous operating systems such as Linux Mint, Pop_OS!, Linux Lite, etc. Debian is mostly used by servers around the world because Debian is very stable.
Microsoft has recently updated their WSL or Windows Subsystem for Linux to version 2 (termed WSL2) and the Linux instance installed is more usable for all users now. In this tutorial, we will try to install this Debian Linux on our Windows machine using WSL2.
Enable/Install WSL2
If you are using Windows 11, WSL2 is already installed on your system, and you just have to enable it. We will discuss this after learning to install this on Windows 10. Windows 10 users have to first enable WSL on their system. From the Start Menu, search and run Turn Windows features on or off, and launch it. From Here, enable ‘Virtual Machine Platform‘ and ‘Windows Subsystem for Linux‘ and click OK and restart your PC.
Now, search and open ‘PowerShell’ application and right-click upon it to run it as administrator. Now, just type the following command and press the Enter key on your keyboard :
wsl --set-default-version 2 wsl --list --online
If you are using Windows 11, open the ‘PowerShell’ application as Administrator and then run the following command :
wsl --set-default-version 2 wsl --list --online
Installing Debian on WSL2
Now, the default version that is installed on your PC is Ubuntu (marked by an asterisk here), to install Debian, you can run the following command :
If prompted, you should also reboot your system.
Post installation tweaks
Once you restart your PC, you will see a Terminal window waiting for you asking you to create a Username and Password.
Now, you should also update your system to the latest version using the apt command, type the following in your Debian Machine :
sudo apt update && sudo apt full-upgrade
Summary
While WSL2 provides the complete command line experience to any developer/user, it is still not a complete replacement for actual Installation on a Virtual machine or on bare metal. Applications do not have hardware acceleration and hence drain the battery more and so on. It is still a good decision from Microsoft as many people will have the exposure to Linux command line and maybe even encourage people to fully switch to the Linux Desktop
References
Microsoft’s Official WSL2 Documentation
Microsoft Windows, commonly known as Windows, has been a widely used operating system for the last many decades. Due to its advanced graphics, features, and functionalities, it has been a favorite of the majority of the population across the world, both for business and personal requirements. The Microsoft Office Suite pack, for instance, is an extraordinary package that caters to the users’ preferences so effectively that no other OS stands a chance to pass through their minds.
If Linux is to be compared with Windows OS, the results will prove a huge difference between their technical and graphical preferences. But it would not mean that the 2 systems could not work together on a single together. Your read that right. Don’t feel bad, if you are a Linux fan but need to work on Windows for business or academic purposes because Linux emulators have got you covered! Let us jump to the following sections to learn about these.
What are Emulators?
An emulator is a computer program, hardware, or software that lets one computer system behave like another. In other words, it allows users to run software that is developed for an entirely different system on another system. In the process of emulation, a computer program attempts to emulate or imitate another program.
As a matter of fact, every operating system is different from another, it is always a possibility that the program that runs on one OS won’t run on another. For example, there are programs that won’t run on Linux but can smoothly work on Windows since both the OS have different designs and implementations. In such cases, emulators are introduced to bridge the gap between the systems and enable programs and/or software to run on different systems.
What are Linux Emulators?
Linux Emulators will allow the user to use a Linux operating system within a Windows operating system without any collision between the two OS, while their separate programs run together on a device.
The foremost step before configuring a Linux emulator is to check the hardware specifications of the device that contains the Windows operating system. These specifications are related to the RAM, the processor, and the physical memory of the device. In order for the Linux emulator to perform in a proper way, the user must take care of the minimum requirements which are-
- RAM- 4GB
- Hard Disk space- 250GB, and
- A dual-core Processor
Once you check all the above requirements, the final step will be to search for a suitable Linux distro.
Now, you will go through a number of Linux emulators for the Windows systems, to decide the best one for your system, and that will indeed be a difficult task. So we, at VerveLogic have compiled the best 15 emulators to make the search process lot easier for you. Let us go to the section below and find it out.
15 Linux Emulators for Windows Operating System
1. Cygwin
Cygwin is one of the best Linux Emulators for Windows users, which compiles the Linux software on Windows, thus making it functionally adaptable on the OS. Windows users with low CPU power or main memory on their systems can consider the Cygwin emulator as an ideal choice.
Features
- The Cygwin emulator can run on x86, 32-bit, and 64-bit Windows versions.
- It has a strong POSIX-compatible infrastructure that possesses a collection of GNU and Open Source tools that provide functions similar to Linux.
- Other extensive collections of Linux and BSD tools include TeX, X Window System, Apache, K Desktop Environment, and GNOME.
- It allows running Linux shells and also supports system utilities like remote logins, terminals, file execution, file transfers, text processing, compression, and servers directly in Windows.
- The Cygwin emulator provides a mechanism to rebuild native apps of Linux so that they can run easily on the Windows OS.
- Its strong runtime (cygwin1.dll) directly offers solid POSIX API functionality into Windows.
2. Hyper-V
Hyper-V, also known as Microsoft Windows Server Virtualization is an application developed by Microsoft. This emulator can perform emulation on almost all operating systems. Besides Linux distros, it can also run POSIX and BSD variants.
Features
- The Hyper-V emulator functions within a limited virtual partition that stores the Linux distros.
- It provides a resource protection mechanism, which ensures that the Linux system does not tamper with the configurations of the Windows system.
- With the PowerShell Direct feature, the emulator helps manage multiple guest operating systems and helps connect with them directly.
- Among its other features, a few are native support for persistent memory, cloud backup, encrypted network virtualization, d.VMMQ, etc.
- It consumes a lot of RAM, hence the device needs to have greater RAM to perform emulation.
3. VirtualBox
Virtual Box, a free-hosted hypervisor by Oracle, is the most common emulator in the Linux Community. This cross-platform software is amongst the simplest ways to achieve total Linux system emulation in Windows computers.
Features
- VirtualBox has a simple user interface allowing the users to set up Linux OS quite quickly.
- It lets its user create multiple virtual machines. These virtual machines hold alternative operating systems that the user needs to emulate.
- It is developed using highly optimized C and C++ programmable languages, and x86 assembly code, which together leads to an exceptional performance rate.
- Besides catering to light Linux distros, VirtualBox is counted as ideal for software testing and powering some resource-intensive Linux servers.
- Being an open-source application, Oracle VirtualBox permits third-party developers to extend the functionality as per their requirements.
- Oracle is required to update this emulator on a regular basis, hence the user comes across newer features and bug fixes from time to time.
- It is ideal for powering resource-intensive cloud servers and for software testing.
4. andLinux
andLinux is among the most powerful and efficient Linux emulators for Windows systems. It performs well across all major versions of Windows including Windows 2000, XP, 2003, Vista, and 7, but lacks 64-bit support.
Features
- andLinux is completely an open-source software and comes under the permissive GNU GPL license.
- It consists of a pre-installed Ubuntu distro, using coLinux as its kernel and Xming for the standard X server.
- It does not require any virtual machine for running Linux.
- It uses 2 Linux desktop environments: KDE and XFCE, which facilitate the Linux script execution hosted on Windows scripts using the command prompt. For the purpose of package management, there is Synaptic while for file management there is Nautilus.
- It allows the users to run everyday Linux commands directly from Windows scripts using the andCmd.exe utility.
- It emulates Linux OS-level virtualization to maintain a smooth user experience.
5. QEMU
QEMO is a rather stable and popular emulating application. It offers extensive hardware support and can emulate any architecture. It even runs as a Windows emulator inside the Linux OS.
Features
- QEMO is developed using the C programming language making it run faster than most Linux emulators for Windows.
- It supports GNU GPL open source license and thus allows the users to twist the emulators as needed.
- In order to achieve a stable QEMO performance, the user requires programmable CPU power and sufficient RAM.
- The performance of this emulator is native-level due to the frequent updates it receives.
- Since QEMO supports using peripherals, the user can easily connecting network data cards, CD drives, USB devices, hard disks, thumb drives, and audio interfaces.
- It enables the user to save the snapshot of the current state of Linux systems and restore them later on as per his need.
- The software is maintained on a regular basis, hence the user comes across newer features and bug fixes every month.
6. VMware Workstation
VMware is a hosted hypervisor emulator that supports a 64-bit Windows operating system. With this emulator, the user can run various Linux distros locally, on Windows.
Features
- VMware has a simple and clean UI.
- The software comes in 2 versions: a free version and a pro version. The pro version supports a variety of professional features in comparison to the free one such as gaming, etc. The free version comfortably accommodates 3GB of shared video memory and OpenGL.
- The emulator is already configured with Virtual Machines ready for the Linux distros.
- It also has inbuilt support for SSH, 4K resolution, DirectX 10.1, Wayland, and Virtual networks.
- This Linux emulator for Windows has in-built support for DirectX 10.1, 4K resolution, Wayland, SSH, and Virtual networks alongside other modern-day features.
7. Multi Emulator Super System(MESS)
One of the oldest and most versatile Linux emulators for Windows, MESS can emulate more than a thousand different guest systems on multiple hardware. At present, this emulator is maintained by MAME developers. The operational accuracy of this software makes it stand out from the other emulators for Linux.
Features
- MESS is open-source software and does not require any permission in case of any modification.
- It is best known for its universal emulation solution qualities.
- Its portability is commendable, which allows the user to configure and work with it from different devices and systems.
8. JPC
JPC is a java-based Linux emulator developed by Oxford University. It performs emulation of Linux systems on a number of operating systems. Any system with Java Virtual Machine installed over it can be emulated using JPC.
Source: sourceforge.net
Features
- JPC is an open-source Linux emulator that supports the free GNU GPL license.
- Emulation speed may differ from application to application.
- Since it is created on Java, it has pretty great portability and can be run on every major platform.
- In comparison to most emulators for Windows, this one comes with a default debugger due to which it becomes a lot simpler to find bugs.
- The software also supports network cards and can emulate the system’s audio files in a great way.
9. Wubi
Wubi stands for Windows-based Ubuntu Installer. It is a very innovative emulator that helps run Linux on Windows OS and that too without repartitioning the complete drive. At first, Wubi will be installed as a normal program on Windows. And then once it gets installed, it will create an installation environment for a Linux distro such as Ubuntu. Now whenever the user restarts the device, he gets a configured boot option to choose the OS that he wants to launch.
Since it lacks commercial capacity, it has been discarded by the developers. Though it can still be used in Windows.
Features
- Wubi is a lightweight program of merely 2.3 or 2.4 MB and has an easy-to-use UI.
- It enables the user to make changes in the software since It is GNU GPL licensed.
- The users are allowed to uninstall Ubuntu just like any other Windows software.
- It also lets its users choose their desktop setup and environment.
10. TopologiLinux
TopologiLinux is another robust open-source Linux emulator software that runs on Windows. Its benefits can be enjoyed by users working on older versions of Windows such as Windows 2000, XP, and Vista. The reason behind this is that coLinux (the module that runs this emulator) supports low-level hardware specifications and as a result doesn’t go with the latest Windows operating system versions.
Features
- The coLinux software that runs TopologiLinux allows the parallel execution of both the Windows NT kernel as well as the Linux kernel.
- Any extra partitioning of the host Window system is not required to emulate the Linux distro.
- It enables the user to modify the emulator since It is GNU GPL licensed.
- It also supports multiple Linux desktop environments such as KDE, GNOME, and XFE.
11. Bochs
Bochs is a simple hypervisor software that can emulate complete Linux systems in Windows devices.
Features
- Bochs program is developed using C++ programming language due to which it is one of the most portable Linux emulators and functions at a fast speed and great accuracy.
- Besides Linux, it can emulate a good range of other systems such as DOS, Microsoft Windows, etc.
- It even emulates many system architectures including x86-64 Intel and AMD processors, used in the latest Linux systems.
- Most Unix workstations such as Ubuntu, Linux Mint, Fedora, Manjaro and standard BSD counterparts can also be emulated by Bochs.
- It couldn’t support resource-heavy applications running on Linux systems and thus leads to system crashes whenever it happens.
- It enables the user to modify the emulator since it is a free and GNU GPL licensed software.
12. JSLinux
JSLinux is a brilliant software developed by the famous open-source developer Fabric Bellard. This emulator is a wonderful solution for the users who need to use Linux and have got access to a fast network connection at the same time. This is because this software provides a ready-made Linux system, which can be accessed through the internet by the user sitting anywhere.
Feature
- JSLinux has been developed using JavaScript and allows the user to test JS applications.
- It capacitates to handle 6 different Linux environments and to provide console-based and X-Window-based interfaces.
- It allows the users to connect to the worldwide network using these Linux environments and use them to access applications online.
- This program is quite a resource-friendly Linux emulator for Windows as it does not require any installation.
13. Cooperative Linux (coLinux)
coLinux or Cooperative Linux is yet another robust Linux emulator for Windows System. It has virtualization capacities that allow Windows users to run both Windows and Linux distros synchronously.
Features
- In coLinux, the Linus system receives full control over the resources of Windows.
- It allows both the Linux kernel and the Windows NT to run at the same time.
- Major Linux desktops such as Debian, Ubuntu, Fedora, and Gentoo get default support from the coLinux emulator.
- To run the graphical software, the users are required to install X-Window servers in their Windows systems.
- It also allows the Linux system to emulate ethernet connections of Windows, using TAP, PCAP, NDIS, and SLiRP.
- The emulator lacks support only for the 64-bit systems at present and besides, works on most Windows systems.
14. Bhyve
Bhyve Linux emulator is an open-source program that was initially developed for FreeBSD and later expanded for Windows and other operating systems. It is a great software for those users who want to run both Linux and Windows but do not want to install resource-heavy virtual machines.
Features
- Bhyve is a lightweight x86 emulator.
- It supports the most popular Linus distros like RHEL, CentOS, Debian, Fedora, OpenSUSE, and Ubuntu.
- It allows the users to modify and expand the emulator as per their requirements.
- It also supports UEFI, Hyper-V, and OmniOS and can change AHCI devices quite effectively.
15. Parallels Workstation
Parallels Workstation is a full-fledged robust emulator that allows its user to configure and work with Linux Virtual Machines inside Windows OS. At present, the program is discontinued for Windows and Linux, it still offers its robust functionalities and features to other systems.
Features
- Parallels Workstation capacitates to perform a complete system emulation and emulate hard drive adapters, video adapters, and network adapters.
- It can virtualize AES-NI and NX 64-bit processors.
- It consists of pre-built drivers and ensures that the device’s parallel ports and USB device are compatible with the environment of the operating system.
- The software supports VGA and SVGA graphic cards with VESA VBE 3.0 and 256 video RAM due to which it can host most Linux distros very effectively.
- It supports up to 4 IDE devices and 16 SATA devices with a USB 2.0 controller.
- The most popular Linux distros it supports include Debian 6.0, Fedora 14 & 15, OpenSUSE 11.1, RHEL 6, SLED 11 SP1, Ubuntu 10.10, 11.04 and 11.10.
End Note
So if you are a Linux enthusiast, we are sure this blog is going to encourage you to try these emulators on your Windows system. On the other hand, if you are a classic Windows follower then mastering Linux on the Windows environment will be a great add-on to your exploration. So give this a try and keep reading our blogs for more interesting topics.
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