Windows 10 Spring Update Bringing WSL Unix Sockets Support, OpenSSH / Curl / Tar Support

Microsoft's next installment of Windows 10, the Spring Update, is bringing some interesting changes for those Linux enthusiasts that may be stuck using Windows at times. The experience may be more bearable with more Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) improvements and even native Curl and Tar support coming to the OS.

On the Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) side for running Linux binaries "natively" on Windows 10, there are several improvements though no indication yet of I/O improvements as the major area still left to be improved for this compatibility layer.

The Windows 10 Spring Update will continue to have the new Debian and Kali Linux support alongside openSUSE/SUSE and Ubuntu, but we'll see if any other distributions join the party prior to spring. There is also new configuration support for WSL, better handling of background tasks, improved interoperability, and there is also support for Unix sockets. With the Unix sockets support, the Docker Linux client can run among other possibilities.

Outside of WSL, the Windows 10 Spring Update is bringing enhanced session support to Hyper-V, the OpenSSH client and server support will be added to Windows 10 itself, and the Tar and Curl commands are also available. The SSH client and key agent will be enabled and available by default while the OpenSSH server can be easily enabled. Support for the tar and curl commands itself via Command Prompt / PowerShell is coming due to reader requests.

More details on these changes that may interest some Linux users who also use Windows 10 can learn more via today's MSDN summary.