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wt.exe does nothing within WSL Ubuntu #15335

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opened 2026-01-31 04:35:28 +00:00 by claunia · 2 comments
claunia commented 2026-01-31 04:35:28 +00:00
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Originally created by @cseitz on GitHub (Sep 23, 2021).

Windows Terminal version (or Windows build number)

10.0.19043.1237

Other Software

Windows Terminal and Windows Subsystem for Linux

Steps to reproduce

Run wt.exe within WSL bash. Nothing happens, yet no error.

Expected Behavior

Running many different windows executables within WSL bash works fine:

  • cmd.exe swaps to windows cmd
  • explorer.exe . opens windows explorer from within WSL bash's current directory.
  • notepad.exe file opens notepad for that file on windows, yet triggered within WSL bash

But wt.exe does nothing..?

I know Windows Terminal is for windows and not linux; but the interoperability between many things in windows and WSL is very nice, yet Windows Terminal is lacking it.

I imagine it wouldn't be too difficult to implement a Linux executable that just does pass-through via cmd.exe to wt.exe or just adjust Windows Terminal's cli input to work with linux.

I'm not saying WT should be installable on linux; just able to open a new WT window or tab from within WSL bash. You can literally run cmd.exe /c 'wt.exe' and it works; so why not properly implement it and have it be built-in to Windows Terminal?

Actual Behavior

When running wt.exe within WSL bash, nothing happens. No error; just nothing.

This is not on par with many other commands listed in the Expected Behavior section.

Originally created by @cseitz on GitHub (Sep 23, 2021). ### Windows Terminal version (or Windows build number) 10.0.19043.1237 ### Other Software Windows Terminal and Windows Subsystem for Linux ### Steps to reproduce Run `wt.exe` within WSL bash. Nothing happens, yet no error. ### Expected Behavior Running many different windows executables within WSL bash works fine: - `cmd.exe` swaps to windows cmd - `explorer.exe .` opens windows explorer from within WSL bash's current directory. - `notepad.exe file` opens notepad for that file on windows, yet triggered within WSL bash But `wt.exe` does nothing..? I know Windows Terminal is for windows and not linux; but the interoperability between many things in windows and WSL is very nice, yet Windows Terminal is lacking it. I imagine it wouldn't be too difficult to implement a Linux executable that just does pass-through via `cmd.exe` to `wt.exe` or just adjust Windows Terminal's cli input to work with linux. I'm not saying WT should be installable on linux; just able to open a new WT window or tab from within WSL bash. You can literally run `cmd.exe /c 'wt.exe'` and it works; so why not properly implement it and have it be built-in to Windows Terminal? ### Actual Behavior When running `wt.exe` within WSL bash, nothing happens. No error; just nothing. This is not on par with many other commands listed in the `Expected Behavior` section.
claunia added the Resolution-ExternalNeeds-Tag-Fix labels 2026-01-31 04:35:28 +00:00
claunia commented 2026-01-31 04:35:29 +00:00
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@zadjii-msft commented on GitHub (Sep 23, 2021):

This is unfortunately by design. wt.exe is an execution alias, and these to not work in WSL.

See the docs:

Execution aliases do not work in WSL distributions. If you want to use wt.exe from a WSL command line, you can spawn it from CMD directly by running cmd.exe. The /c option tells CMD to terminate after running.

I believe the issue is being tracked by /dup https://github.com/microsoft/WSL/issues/7303

@zadjii-msft commented on GitHub (Sep 23, 2021): This is unfortunately by design. `wt.exe` is an execution alias, and these to not work in WSL. See [the docs](https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/terminal/command-line-arguments?tabs=linux): > Execution aliases do not work in WSL distributions. If you want to use `wt.exe` from a WSL command line, you can spawn it from CMD directly by running `cmd.exe`. The `/c` option tells CMD to terminate after running. I believe the issue is being tracked by /dup https://github.com/microsoft/WSL/issues/7303
claunia commented 2026-01-31 04:35:29 +00:00
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@ghost commented on GitHub (Sep 23, 2021):

Hi! We've identified this issue as a duplicate of one that exists on somebody else's Issue Tracker. Please make sure you subscribe to the referenced external issue for future updates. Thanks for your report!

@ghost commented on GitHub (Sep 23, 2021): Hi! We've identified this issue as a duplicate of one that exists on somebody else's Issue Tracker. Please make sure you subscribe to the referenced external issue for future updates. Thanks for your report!
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Reference: starred/terminal#15335
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