# WSL Manager 2 – GUI for WSL distros, now also native VMs on macOS > Source: > Published: 2026-09-13 22:43:26+00:00 # WSL Manager 2.0.0 WSL Manager 2.0 is the biggest release since the app was written: it runs on **macOS** now, it gained an **AI layer** (an isolated agent workspace, a chat that knows your setup, and an MCP server so your own tools can drive it), it can manage a **remote Windows host's WSL over SSH**, and every screen went through a full UI/UX audit. ## Downloads | Platform | Get it | |---|---| | Windows (recommended) | [Microsoft Store](https://apps.microsoft.com/store/detail/9NWS9K95NMJB) — Pro is a one-time purchase there | | Windows, no Store | `wsl2-distro-manager-v2.0.0-setup.exe` (installer), or the portable`.zip` below, or`winget install Bostrot.WSLManager` | | macOS (Apple silicon, beta) | `wsl2-distro-manager-v2.0.0-macos.dmg` (signed and notarized), or`brew install --cask bostrot/tap/wsl-manager` | **Pro** unlocks the AI features: a one-time purchase in the Microsoft Store, or a licence key from [wslmanager.com/buy](https://wslmanager.com/buy/) for macOS and non-Store installs. No subscription, free updates. Why a paid tier at all? WSL Manager has been a one-person, spare-time project since 2021. Managing your distros and VMs stays free and open source; Pro is the AI layer on top, and it is what turns the time spent on this app into planned, regular work on the next releases, free features included. ## New in 2.0 ### macOS: native Linux VMs (beta) - The app now runs on Apple silicon Macs and manages **native Linux VMs** through Apple's Virtualization framework, with the same list, start/stop, import/export, copy and snippet flows as WSL distros. - **Create VM** page with a curated catalogue: Ubuntu, Debian, Alpine and eight more arm64 cloud images boot straight into a ready-to-use VM (qcow2 images are converted on the fly), plus an installer-ISO catalogue for everything else. A boot source is required, so no more unbootable VMs. - Rows show the guest IP and real disk usage; Finder opens the VM's actual disk (and the app refuses to start a VM whose disk is still mounted). - **Show-screen** button to summon a VM's display on demand, and an attachable**serial console** to drive a VM without a window. - The app installs its SSH key into VMs that cloud-init never seeded, and explains a VM that stops right after starting. - Native window controls, one title bar, and a `wslmanager://` deep link that activates Pro straight from the browser after checkout. ### AI Workspace, AI Chat and the MCP server (Pro, beta) - **AI Workspace** : guided one-click setup of a dedicated Linux VM (or WSL distro) running**Hermes Agent** ,**OpenClaw** and**Open WebUI** , with a full lifecycle (install, start, stop, uninstall, repair), streamed install progress, honest status probes and a task queue for agent jobs. - **AI Chat** docked in the shell: bring your own API key (any OpenAI-compatible endpoint works), model autocomplete, live streamed replies with tool-call assembly, a code copy button, persistent sessions, failed messages kept with a retry, and long operations that can actually be stopped. - **AI Configuration Assistant** and**Error Diagnosis** for WSL problems. - **Built-in MCP server** with terminal sessions, so external agents can drive your distros and VMs; optional**Cloudflare tunnel** and a**shareable web dashboard** with QR code. - One-click **service recipes** (storage, databases, brokers) for a distro or VM. ### Remote WSL over SSH - Drive a remote Windows host's WSL from the app — including from the Mac — with target validation, quoting that survives every Windows login shell, VHDX compaction on cleanup, and storage-path handling for remote distros. ### Snippets and community scripts - Snippets get a proper **editor** and**sharing** to the community repository through GitHub sign-in (the OAuth client id is bundled). - Community scripts are a screen of their own with filters, and the Snippets tab is shared with the macOS backend. ### Distros, packaging and configuration - **Distro packages** replace templates: custom-distro packaging with`wsl-distribution.conf` , and a dedicated Ubuntu distro for the workspace. - A rewritten **`.wslconfig` engine** with`--manage` surfaces, a rewritten`wsl.conf` editor, serialised config writes, and catalogue installs that work on every distro family. - The distro catalogue is sourced from vendor infrastructure again, with a bundled fallback. - Linux builds of the app. ### Look, feel and accessibility - A full **UI/UX audit** (214 findings closed): one dialog contract for buttons, titles and sizes; destructive actions that look and behave destructive; primary buttons that never silently do nothing; every icon-only control named; the whole app**operable by keyboard** ; a status bar with severity and lifetime; error messages that say what failed and what to do; and no more discarded input on the way out of a form. - Redesigned About dialog, a sparkle-pill AI chat button, a curated dark/light theme resolved entirely from the theme, and page navigation that replaces instead of stacking. - **Ten locales** now ship, including the new Korean translation and es/hu/ja in the MSIX package, with a translation check in CI. ## Fixes worth knowing about - WinGet installs start correctly through winget's symlink (the app relaunches the real executable). - Timed-out or force-killed child processes no longer leak `wsl.exe` ; child processes are tied to a job object. - WSL output is decoded as UTF-16LE, so non-ASCII output is readable. - Tool commands run inside WSL instead of a non-existent `bash` on Windows. - One failed list poll no longer wipes the distro list; deleting a template whose file is gone is tolerated. - Open WebUI reports "starting" until it is actually healthy; gateway status is gated on the port, not the process. - Dozens of bug reports from the issue tracker addressed; broken locales and unreadable copy repaired. Full commit list: `v1.11.0...v2.0.0` ## Contributors - Korean translation by [@moduvoice](https://github.com/moduvoice) ([#316](https://github.com/bostrot/wsl2-distro-manager/pull/316) ), Chinese README by[@Jesse205](https://github.com/Jesse205) ([#306](https://github.com/bostrot/wsl2-distro-manager/pull/306) ). Thank you!