Tux Machines
Microsoft gives unexpected tutorial on how to install Linux
Posted by Rianne Schestowitz on Oct 11, 2023,
updated Oct 19, 2023
Microsoft has published guidance on how to download and install Linux. In other news, Hell freezes over and pigs fly south to their winter feeding grounds.
The Seattle-area proprietary OS vendor has published a helpful guide entitled "How to download and install Linux," inspiring reactions from incredulity to amusement.
In the humble opinion of The Reg FOSS Desk, it really isn't bad at all. Microsoft suggests four alternative installation methods: using Windows Subsystem for Linux 2, using a local VM, using a cloud VM, or on bare metal. It almost feels cruel to criticize it, but it seems that this really amounts to two methods. WSL version 2 is a VM. It's right there in the screenshots, where it says...
Read on
Update
Also here:
Microsoft Wants to Teach You How to Install Linux
But it's their way, with their virtual machines, because your life is nothing without Microsoft.
Liam Dawe:
Welcome to opposite land where Microsoft has a Linux install tutorial
I think I'm going to need more coffee to process this. Did I wake up in opposite land? Microsoft actually genuinely have a tutorial up on how to install Linux.
PCWorld:
Microsoft tells Windows users how to install Linux
It is probably no coincidence that Microsoft is now publishing a detailed guide to installing Linux. Until now, users with Windows 7 or Windows 8 could upgrade to Windows 10 or Windows 11 for free using their existing license. Now, however, Windows 7 or Windows 8 keys can no longer be used to activate the newer versions. Accordingly, the only option is to buy a new license. An alternative could be Linux, which, in contrast to Windows 7 and Windows 8, will continue to be provided with security updates.
TechRadar:
Microsoft suddenly wants to tell you how to install Linux - but why
In the help article, Redmond suggests four methods of getting Linux to run on your machine: Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL), bare metal Linux, a local VM, or a cloud VM.
The guide also directs Linux perspectives to a Microsoft-hosted library of Linux resources. But all of this while it continues to try to push its own OS, Windows 11.
Slashdot:
2023-10-11 [Older] Microsoft Gives Unexpected Tutorial on How To Install Linux
2 more:
Microsoft tells Windows users how to install Linux
In recent years, Microsoft has changed its attitude towards the open source operating system Linux. A slimmed-down version can be found, for example, in the Windows subsystem for Linux. This compatibility layer allows Linux executables to be run in ELF format. But now Microsoft’s gone a step further and explains in detail on its official support page how interested users can install a fully-fledged Linux on their Windows computer.
Microsoft now has a guide on how to install Linux... you read that right
Why follow Microsoft guides on installing Windows when you can grab Linux instead?
Neowin:
Bored of Windows? Even Microsoft wants you to try Linux with a rather helpful guide
In an article titled simply "How to download and install Linux", the tech giant has laid out how Windows users and go about with a Linux installation. It starts off with a brief introduction about what Linux is, talks a little bit about Linux distros, and then summarizes the ways in which Linux can be installed.
In the guide, Microsoft mentions using the Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) among others. Finally, it talks about how users can familiarize themselves with the OS and its various applications, packages, and tools.