Shutting Down Linux Distros on WSL
This guide shows how to shut down one or all your WSL distros using the wsl.exe
command-line tool.
Terminating a Single Distro:
- Open Command Prompt or PowerShell as administrator.
- List running distros:
wsl --list --verbose
- Terminate a distro (replace
DISTRO-NAME
):wsl -t DISTRO-NAME
- Example:
wsl -t Ubuntu-20.04
- Example:
Terminating All Distros:
- Open Command Prompt or PowerShell as administrator.
- List running distros (optional):
wsl --list --verbose
- Shut down all distros:
wsl --shutdown
Verifying Shutdown (optional):
- After termination, run
wsl --list --verbose
to confirm all distros are "stopped".
Restarting a Distro:
- Launch the distro from the Start menu or use
wsl --distribution DISTRO-NAME
in Command Prompt/PowerShell.