How To Install Kali Linux Alongside Windows 10

I recently started to discover some hacking and penetration testing challenges. Therefore, I've spent some time setting up my environment properly. I'll show you how to install Kali Linux WSL 2 on Windows x via the Windows Subsystem for Linux. And of course, we also will ready our graphical user interface with KEX.

Install Kali Linux in WSL 2

First, install the Windows Subsystem for Linux by executing the following ii commands. Alternatively, you can also search for "Turn Windows Features on or off". Then you click on "Windows Subsystem for Linux" and "Virtual Machine Platform".

                dism.exe /online /enable-feature /featurename:Microsoft-Windows-Subsystem-Linux /all /norestart dism.exe /online /enable-characteristic /featurename:VirtualMachinePlatform /all /norestart

Windows desire's y'all to restart your PC. After you did that you lot tin at present download the WSL 2 Kernel Modules and install the bundle:

https://wslstorestorage.blob.core.windows.net/wslblob/wsl_update_x64.msi

Also, don't forget to set WSL 2 as your default version with the post-obit command:

                wsl --set-default-version 2

Now, you're set up to install Kali Linux from the Microsoft Store:

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/p/kali-linux/9pkr34tncv07?activetab=pin:overviewtab

Open the Kali Linux App, this will present you a console window, where you gear up up your username and countersign. You lot can besides hibernate the welcome message by executing the post-obit command in the terminal.

                affect ~/.hushlogin

Brand your terminal awesome

Kali Linux is now installed and you can utilise it to configure the organisation. However, the default console window doesn't look nice. To modify this you should use the "Windows Final", which is a nice open-source project of Microsoft. I've recently made a video almost how to make your WSL two terminal look awesome in Windows by setting upwards the Windows Terminal with zsh and a custom template, but only with Ubuntu WSL. Yet, this will also work exactly the aforementioned with Kali Linux. Check out my commodity, if you desire to know how to fix this.

Install Kali Linux Desktop and tools with Kex

You should now have a cool Kali Linux concluding running in your WSL 2. Only what well-nigh all the cool penetration testing tools? Considering, the Kali Linux WSL version doesn't come with any of these and doesn't have any graphical user interface.

There is a pretty piece of cake and quick solution to fix this in WSL, that is called Kex. Let'south install this in our Kali Linux and ready a Desktop surroundings and install the Kali Linux tools.

Start, let'south update the package sources and install the newest distribution version of Kali Linux.

                sudo apt update && sudo apt dist-upgrade

And so, you lot can install the Kali Linux Kex extension.

                sudo apt install kali-win-kex

At least, you should too install the Kali Linux tools. There are dissimilar variants of tool-sets existing. I've chosen the "large" environment, then that you have all the tools.

                sudo apt install kali-linux-large

Use the desktop environment in Kali Linux WSL two

We now have all necessary tools installed and you can but run your desktop surroundings in Kali Linux WSL2. At that place are three different modes existing and I'll show you them one by one.