Ubuntu 20.04 LTS is now available to download from the Microsoft Store on Windows 10.
The update means it’s easier for folks using the Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) to take advantage of the latest changes and capabilities present in the latest Ubuntu release.
The release is well timed too, primed ready for the next-gen WSL (dubbed WSL 2) which arrives in the May 2020 Windows 10 feature update. WSL 2 is faster and more performant than the existing version by nature of the fact it runs on an actual Linux kernel.
Yes: a real Linux kernel inside of Windows 10. Wonders never cease, do they?
Ubuntu 20.04 LTS is (as you’d expect) available to download for free from the Microsoft Store, but only on systems where WSL is compatible (meaning: not Windows 10 S or 32-bit installs).
Also keep in mind that while you can run GUI Linux apps on WSL it’s not possible by default, so please don’t install Ubuntu from the Microsoft Store expecting a GUI experience. It’s a CLI-first environment.
If you have previously installed Ubuntu from the Microsoft Store you won’t get upgraded to 20.04 via an app update. Instead, Canonical say you should run the do-release-upgrade -d command to upgrade 18.04 LTS to 20.04 LTS manually.
Those who require an older version of Ubuntu (for whatever reason) will be pleased to hear that Ubuntu 18.04 remains available via the Microsoft Store as a separate listing.
Thanks to all who sent this in