Since Linux distros are available through the Microsoft Store, they are considered applications, which means you can use the Settings app and the Windows Package Manager (winget) command to uninstall any distribution. You can also use the –unregister option with the wsl.exe tool, but it only resets the Linux instance without deleting the files. However, this command would remove a distribution you restored from the backup. This guide will teach you how to uninstall any Linux distribution on Windows 11 or 10.
Remove Linux distro on WSL from Settings Remove Linux distro on WSL from Command Prompt or PowerShell Remove imported Linux distro on WSL with commands
Remove Linux distro on WSL from Settings
Whether you have Windows 11 or Windows 10, the steps to use the Settings app to remove a Linux distro would be slightly different.
Uninstall WSL distro on Windows 11
To completely remove a Linux distro on WSL, use these steps: Once you complete the steps, the Linux instance and the distribution will be removed from Windows 11.
Uninstall WSL distro on Windows 10
To uninstall a distro on Windows 10, use these steps: After you complete the steps, the Ubuntu, Kali, Mint, Debian, or the specific distribution will no longer be available on Windows 10
Remove Linux distro on WSL from Command Prompt or PowerShell
To remove any WSL distribution with commands on Windows 11 or 10, use these steps: Once you complete the steps, the instance and distribution files will be removed from your computer.
In the command, specify the name of the Linux distro to remove from Windows 11 completely. For example, this command removes the Ubuntu distro:
Remove imported Linux distro on WSL with commands
If you imported a Linux distro from a backup on Windows 11 or 10, the option to uninstall it won’t appear in the Settings app, Command Prompt, or PowerShell. In this situation, you will need to unregister the distribution to delete it. To remove a Linux distro after being imported (restored) from a backup, use these steps: Once you complete the steps, the distro will reset and no longer be available in WSL, but it won’t be uninstalled from the computer. If you want to reinstall the distro, you can open it again from the Start menu. In the command, replace DISTRO-NAME with the name of the distro you want to set as default (see step 3). For example, this command unregisters and deletes the Ubuntu Linux distribution:
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