Work across Windows and WSL: files, paths and running tools from both sides

After installing WSL you have two operating systems on one keyboard. This entry collects the practical habits that make them feel like one machine: where to keep files, how to call across the boundary, and the handful of settings worth changing.

Two file systems, one rule

Linux sees Windows drives under /mnt/c; Windows sees Linux under \\wsl.localhost\<Distro>. Both directions work, but crossing the boundary is slow for anything that touches many small files. The rule: keep files on the side whose tools you run on them. A Node or Python project you build in Ubuntu belongs in /home/ana/projects, not in /mnt/c/Users/ana/projects. Documents you open in Word stay on C:.

cd /mnt/c/Users/ana/Downloads       # Windows files from Linux
cp /mnt/c/Users/ana/Downloads/data.csv ~/projects/
explorer.exe .                      # open the current Linux folder in Explorer

In Explorer, the Linux entry in the sidebar lists every distribution. You can drag and drop files there like any other folder. Avoid editing files under the hidden Linux installation folder in %LocalAppData% directly; always go through the \\wsl.localhost path.

Run Windows programs from Linux

Any Windows executable on your Windows PATH can be called from bash by adding .exe. Output comes back as text you can pipe:

notepad.exe ~/notes.txt
code .                               # VS Code with the WSL extension
powershell.exe -NoProfile -Command "Get-Date"
ipconfig.exe | grep -i 'ipv4'
clip.exe < output.txt                # copy to the Windows clipboard
cmd.exe /c dir                       # cmd commands

Windows programs receive Windows paths, not Linux ones. notepad.exe ~/notes.txt works because WSL translates the argument for you, but when you build a path in a string, convert it with wslpath:

wslpath 'C:\Users\ana\Documents'        # -> /mnt/c/Users/ana/Documents
wslpath -w ~/projects/site               # -> \\wsl.localhost\Ubuntu\home\ana\projects\site

Run Linux commands from Windows

wsl ls -la ~
wsl -d Ubuntu -- grep -c error /var/log/syslog
wsl --cd C:\Projects\site -- npm run build
Get-Content .\names.txt | wsl sort | wsl uniq -c

wsl <command> runs the command in the default distribution and returns its output to PowerShell, so Linux tools can sit in the middle of a PowerShell pipeline. --cd sets the starting folder; -- marks where wsl’s own options end.

Networking between the two

• A server listening in WSL (for example npm run dev on port 5173) is reachable from a Windows browser at http://localhost:5173. WSL forwards localhost automatically.
• The other direction is not automatic in the default NAT mode: to reach a Windows service from Linux, use the Windows host’s address, which is the nameserver line in /etc/resolv.conf, or switch to mirrored networking where localhost is shared.
• Other machines on your network cannot see WSL ports unless you forward them with netsh interface portproxy or use mirrored mode.

Docker and systemd

Docker Desktop for Windows integrates with WSL: enable your distribution under Settings, Resources, WSL integration and the docker command appears in Ubuntu. Alternatively install Docker Engine inside Ubuntu the normal Linux way; that needs systemd, which modern WSL enables by default. Check and, if needed, turn it on:

cat /etc/wsl.conf
sudo tee -a /etc/wsl.conf > /dev/null <<'EOF'
[boot]
systemd=true
EOF

Then wsl --shutdown from PowerShell and start again. systemctl status should now work. Careful: enabling systemd changes how services start inside the distribution; to undo, set systemd=false or remove the [boot] section and shut WSL down again.

Settings worth knowing

Per-distribution options live in /etc/wsl.conf inside Linux; global VM options live in %UserProfile%\.wslconfig on Windows. Both take effect after wsl --shutdown.

[wsl2]
memory=8GB
processors=4
swap=2GB

Limiting memory stops WSL from slowly taking most of the machine’s RAM for its file cache. Inside Linux, [interop] in wsl.conf can turn off Windows PATH inheritance (appendWindowsPath = false) if Windows tools shadow Linux ones of the same name.

Backups

wsl --export Ubuntu D:\wsl-backups\ubuntu-2026-10.tar
wsl --import Ubuntu-restore D:\wsl\ubuntu-restore D:\wsl-backups\ubuntu-2026-10.tar

--export writes the whole distribution to a tar file; --import creates a new distribution from it at the folder you choose. It is also the way to move WSL to another drive.

Official documentation

• Working across Windows and Linux file systems
• Advanced settings configuration in WSL
• Use systemd to manage Linux services with WSL