On a Windows machine, a Linux container can now be summoned from the ordinary PowerShell prompt, with no installer to wait through and no account to create. The arrival of wslc in WSL 3.0.1 marks a quiet shift in how developers reach for the tools that package software, bringing a capability that once demanded a separate application closer to the commands people already type. It is not yet a full replacement for the orchestration that many projects depend on, and the open question is whether the next release closes that gap or leaves the older workflow in place.
Windows 11 Users Can Now Run Linux Containers Without Docker Desktop Using WSL's New wslc Command
A gap he will never notice
Mark
So what actually changed here? Windows could already run containers.
Mimi
What changed is the effort. WSL 3.0.1 adds wslc, and the reviewer had a container running in under a minute from PowerShell, with no sign-in, reboot, or license prompt.
Mark
And Microsoft's own docs shifted too?
Mimi
Yes. The Microsoft Learn container tutorial used to recommend Docker Desktop. Now it teaches wslc on that page.
Luke
Worth noting this is one reviewer on one machine, a Ryzen 5 7600X with an RTX 4070 Ti Super. Setup times and results may differ elsewhere.
Mark
The GPU part seems like the headline for him.
Mimi
It is. The container saw the card with 16GB of VRAM and driver 617.14, the same as Windows reports. He installed nothing extra, and the --gpus all flag works like in Docker.
Luke
And the benchmark? 124 tokens per second in the container against 128 to 132 natively. That's two runs of one model and one prompt. It's a useful data point, not a broad measurement.
Mark
So is wslc better than Docker Desktop?
Mimi
He explicitly declines to say. Compose is missing, and Microsoft calls it the top request and its next priority.
Luke
Right, and there's no date for that. Until it ships, Compose-based workflows still need Docker Desktop or alternatives like Podman Desktop or Rancher Desktop.
Mimi
Plus wslc is Linux-only, while Docker Desktop can switch to Windows containers.
The Pulse
- A single PowerShell command now launches a Linux container in under a minute, challenging the long-standing need for a separate desktop application.
- Compose support is missing, which keeps multi-service projects tied to Docker Desktop and forces users to weigh their options.
- The reviewer tested GPU passthrough and found the container nearly matched native speed, with 124 tokens per second against 128 to 132 on the host.
- Microsoft has named Compose as its next priority, so the tool's limits are expected to shrink, though no date is set.
- Podman Desktop and Rancher Desktop remain available as free alternatives for anyone who needs Compose files today.
On a Windows machine, a Linux container can now be summoned from the ordinary PowerShell prompt, with no installer to wait through and no account to create. The arrival of wslc in WSL 3.0.1 marks a quiet shift in how developers reach for the tools that package software, bringing a capability that once demanded a separate application closer to the commands people already type. It is not yet a full replacement for the orchestration that many projects depend on, and the open question is whether the next release closes that gap or leaves the older workflow in place.
On a Windows 11 desktop with a Ryzen 5 7600X and an RTX 4070 Ti Super, an XDA reviewer typed one command into PowerShell and had a Linux container running in under a minute. He was never asked to sign in, reboot, or accept a license, and the greeting appeared less than ten seconds after he pressed Enter, image download included.
The tool is wslc, added in WSL 3.0.1. From PowerShell or CMD it pulls images, runs containers, maps ports, and builds from a Containerfile. Microsoft's own tutorial, which once sent readers to Docker Desktop, now teaches wslc on the same page. Setup is a version check and, if needed, a single update command.
His main worry was the GPU, since he runs local language models through llama.cpp and a container that cannot see the graphics card would fall back to a slow CPU. WSL passes Nvidia GPUs through using the driver Windows already has, so he installed nothing extra. The container reported his card and its 16GB of VRAM correctly. On Linux this would normally require Nvidia's Container Toolkit and Docker configuration; here it required nothing.
He then compared speed on the same model and settings. The containerized llama.cpp produced 124 tokens per second, while the native build managed 128 to 132. He called the gap one he would never notice.
He is careful not to frame wslc as a Docker Desktop replacement. It lacks Compose, and Microsoft has said Compose is its most requested feature and its next focus. Docker Desktop also still offers Windows containers and free individual use, which wslc does not match. For single containers, GPU work, and quick tests, he finds wslc removes most of the friction. For Compose today, he suggests Podman Desktop or Rancher Desktop. The thing to watch is whether Compose arrives, because that would move wslc beyond simple workloads.
On a Windows 11 desktop with a Ryzen 5 7600X and an RTX 4070 Ti Super, an XDA reviewer typed a single command into PowerShell and had a Linux container running in under a minute. The container printed its greeting less than 10 seconds after he pressed Enter, image download included. He was never asked to sign in, reboot, or accept a license.
The tool behind it is wslc, a command added in WSL 3.0.1, which came out a little more than a month before the review was published. From PowerShell or CMD, wslc can pull images, run containers, map ports, and build images from a Containerfile. Microsoft's own Microsoft Learn tutorial on containers in WSL used to point readers to Docker Desktop. It now teaches wslc on the same page.
Setup, following Microsoft's guidance, starts and ends in PowerShell. You check your version with wsl --version. If you are below 3.0.1, wsl --update pulls the latest release, and the reviewer says that one command is the whole installation. A machine with no WSL, or a fresh Windows 11 install, needs wsl --install first. After that, wslc version confirms the new command is live, and wslc run --rm hello-world pulls a small test image and prints a greeting from inside the container.
The reviewer's main concern was the GPU. He works with local language models through llama.cpp, which publishes official CUDA container images. A container that cannot reach the graphics card falls back to the CPU, and on a 7600X that would make responses painfully slow. WSL has long passed Nvidia GPUs through to Linux using the driver Windows already uses, so he installed no separate Linux driver. wslc also accepts the same --gpus all flag Docker users know.
To check, he ran Nvidia's CUDA base image with nvidia-smi. The container reported his RTX 4070 Ti Super with 16GB of VRAM and driver version 617.14, matching what Windows 11 reports. On a regular Linux machine, he notes, this would normally require installing Nvidia's Container Toolkit and configuring Docker to use it. Here he installed nothing.
Then he measured performance. He pointed llama.cpp's official CUDA image at a Gemma 4 E4B model file he already uses on Windows, mounted from his models folder. Both setups used Q4_K_M quantization, full GPU offload, 128K context, the same prompt, and a 256-token reply. Native llama.cpp produced between 128 and 132 tokens per second across two runs. The container produced 124 tokens per second both times. In his words, a gap he will never notice.
He is careful not to call wslc a Docker Desktop replacement. It has no built-in Compose runtime. Microsoft has acknowledged Compose as the most requested wslc feature and says it is the team's next focus, with the goal of running existing Compose files unchanged. Docker Desktop also retains advantages: it can switch to Windows containers, while wslc runs only Linux ones, and it is free for individuals, with paid plans required only for larger organizations.
For single containers, GPU workloads, and quick tests, he finds wslc removes most of the initial friction. For anyone who needs Compose today but wants to skip Docker Desktop, he points to Podman Desktop and Rancher Desktop, both free and open source, which handle Compose files on top of WSL. The thing to watch is whether Microsoft ships Compose support, since that is what would make wslc a candidate for more than simple workloads.
Notable Quotes
Microsoft has acknowledged Compose as the most requested wslc feature and says it is what the team is working on next.— XDA reviewer, paraphrasing Microsoft
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