Microsoft makes WSL Linux containers generally available

Microsoft made WSL Linux containers generally available, with Defender visibility and Intune controls; Compose support is still pending.

Microsoft has made WSL Containers generally available, so Windows can run Linux containers through the Windows Subsystem for Linux. After wsl --update—or, according to Help Net Security, from GitHub—users receive wslc.exe, aliased as container.exe, plus a Windows API that lets apps run Linux containers, including local AI workloads. The release adds restarts, file copy, health checks, networking, events, mounts, configurable storage, a consomme network mode, and VS Code and Aspire integrations. Microsoft Defender for Endpoint now surfaces container process, file, and network activity and links it to the Windows host, while Intune can disable the feature or restrict image pulls to approved registries. Both sources say Docker Compose-style support via wsl compose up is not ready; BleepingComputer describes it as still in development, and Help Net Security says it is still planned and is Microsoft’s top requested feature.

• Microsoft made Linux container support in Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL Containers) generally available as of 2026-09-30.
• Users get the feature after wsl --update; Help Net Security also says it can be installed from GitHub.
• The release adds wslc.exe, aliased as container.exe, and a Windows API for apps to build, run, and deploy Linux containers, including local AI workloads.
• New capabilities include restarts, file copy, health checks, networking, events, mounts, configurable storage, a consomme network mode, and VS Code and Aspire integrations.
• Microsoft Defender for Endpoint reports process, file, and network activity inside containers and ties it to the Windows host.
• Intune can disable the feature or limit image pulls to approved registries.
• Docker Compose-style support (wsl compose up) is not available yet; Microsoft calls it the top requested feature and says it is still in development or planned.