When an app tries to use the Linux kernel, it gets translated into a Windows native system call and any responses from the kernel is translated into a native Linux response. The solution is not an emulator, neither a virtual machine. Microsoft has added a Linux kernel interface to their Windows kernel.

Needless to say, it is a great productivity tool for administrators as well. This enables developers and others to work “natively” in a Linux environment when languages like Ruby or Python are more conveniently utilized through the Linux interface. The Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) is a type of resource within the Windows operating system that allows users to run Linux command lines on a computer with a Windows operating system installed. No virtual machines, no extra software needed. If you have Windows 10, you can run one or several Linux distributions, which are 'baked in' into your system. There is however a new kid in town: WSL (Windows Subsystem for Linux). We use Docker for some development, virtual machines for other. It is sometimes convenient though to develop on your notebook. See our overview article OS for Raspberry Pi to learn more. Raspbian on the Pi as a native system, Ubuntu Mate for ROS and robotics, and a few others. If they do have a system, they use some flavor of Linux. It's a fact, that at Raspberry Valley, we create stuff on single board devices: Raspberry Pi, Arduino and others.

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