How to Grant WSL More RAM or Processors by Editing `.wslconfig`¶

If you're running resource-heavy tasks in WSL (Windows Subsystem for Linux) and want to improve performance by granting it more RAM or processors, follow these simple steps:

Step 1: Locate Your Home Directory¶

Open File Explorer on your Windows computer.
In the address bar, type:

%USERPROFILE%
Press Enter to go to your home directory.

Step 2: Create or Edit the `.wslconfig` File¶

Check if you already have a file named .wslconfig in your home directory.
- If it exists, open it with a text editor like Notepad.
- If it doesn’t exist:
  - Right-click and select New > Text Document.
  - Name the file .wslconfig (make sure it doesn’t have .txt at the end).

Step 3: Add Resource Settings¶

Add the following lines to configure WSL resources:

[wsl2]
memory=4GB        # Limits WSL to 4GB of RAM (adjust as needed)
processors=4       # Grants WSL 4 CPU cores (adjust as needed)

memory=4GB: Replace 4GB with the amount of RAM you want to allocate (e.g., 8GB, 64GB).
processors=4: Replace 4 with the number of CPU cores you want to allocate (e.g., 2, 6).

Step 4: Save the File¶

Save your changes and close the editor.

Step 5: Restart WSL¶

Open Command Prompt or PowerShell.
Restart WSL with the following command:

wsl --shutdown
Start your WSL distribution again by opening it or running:

wsl

Step 6: Verify the Changes¶

Open your WSL terminal.
Run the following command to verify the allocated resources:or

htop

cat /proc/meminfo

You should see the updated memory and CPU limits applied to your WSL environment.

That's it! You’ve successfully updated WSL to use more RAM or processors, boosting its performance for resource-intensive tasks. 🎉

How to Grant WSL More RAM or Processors by Editing .wslconfig¶