Microsoft recently published a fairly detailed guide that"s meant to help users in installing Linux. It seems Microsoft does indeed want its users to try Linux, or at least it has no problem if you do so.
In an article titled simply "How to download and install Linux", the tech giant has laid out how Windows users can 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.
Microsoft writes:
Linux is an operating system, similar to Windows, but with many different versions due to the nature of being open source and fully customizable. To install Linux, you must choose an install method and choose a Linux distribution.
To install Linux:
- Choose an install method: Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL), Bare metal Linux; or create a Virtual Machine (VM) to run Linux locally or in the cloud.
- Choose a Linux distribution: Ubuntu, Debian, Kali Linux, OpenSUSE, etc.
- Follow the steps for your preferred install method:
- Use the install Linux command with Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL)
- Create a Linux Virtual Machine (VM) in the cloud
- Create a Linux Virtual Machine (VM) on your local machine
- Create a bootable USB to install bare-metal Linux
- After installing Linux: Get familiar with your distribution"s package manager, update and upgrade the packages available, and get familiar with the other Linux resources at Microsoft, such as training courses, Linux-versions of popular tools, news, and Open Source events.
You can find the guide on this page on Microsoft"s website.
If you are wondering about the performance side of things, Ubuntu seems to be doing very well and manages to beat Windows 11 by massive margins in certain workloads. Microsoft though has been making good progress on the WSL side of things and although this isn"t the latest data, its performance is expected to be fairly comparable to the native OS most of the time.