Can wslc run on Windows Server?
The short answer: Windows Server 2025 is supported and verified; Windows Server 2022 is not supported. This page lays out exactly what runs, what does not, and why.
## Windows Server 2025 — supported and verified WSL 2.9.x runs on Windows Server 2025, and with it wslc. We do not just take Microsoft's word for it — the image compatibility matrix is built by running wslc on GitHub Actionswindows-2025 runners, which are Windows Server 2025 VMs with
hardware nested virtualisation. As of the latest run:
- 23 images pulled and executed on a real Server 2025 runner
- 14 passed, 9 failed, with exit codes recorded per image
- wslc 2.9.4.0 was the runtime
For the exact workflow, see the CI/CD guide.
## Windows Server 2022 — not supported
Windows Server 2022 is not in the supported platform list for WSL 2.9.x. Two things block it:
1. WSL 2 itself has limited and fading support on Server 2022 — the primary
supported server target moved to 2025.
2. wslc's utility VM relies on a newer Hyper-V utility VM path that Server
2022 does not expose. Without it, wslc cannot boot its container host.
There is an open GitHub request asking Microsoft to clarify or add Server 2022 support:
microsoft/WSL #41047. As of
mid-2026 it has no response confirming support.
## Windows 10 — not supported
Windows 10 is out of scope entirely. The container host depends on a Hyper-V utility VM path
that only ships in Windows 11 22H2+ and Windows Server 2025. There is no workaround.
## ARM64 servers
Windows Server 2025 ARM64 is technically supported for WSL, but be careful in the cloud:
many ARM64 VM sizes (notably Azure Arm64) lack nested virtualisation, which
the wslc utility VM requires. A VM without nested virt reports "virtualisation is not enabled"
and wslc will not start. Test on your exact VM size.
## Verifying your server
```powershell
# check WSL version — need 2.9.3.0+ pre-release
wsl --version
# update to a build with wslc
wsl --update --pre-release
# confirm wslc works
wslc version
wslc run --rm alpine echo "wslc works on Server 2025"
```
If wslc version fails with "not recognized", the pre-release flag did not take
effect — see the install guide for the fix.