How to Access Linux Files on Windows 11 Using WSL

Steps to Mount Linux File System on 🪟 Windows 11

Step 1Open PowerShell as Administrator

⚠️ Admin privileges required

First, you’ll want to open PowerShell with administrator privileges:

1. ⊞ Click Start. Type PowerShell.
2. Right-click Windows PowerShell. Select Run as administrator.

Step 2See Your Drives

To see all the drives and disks connected to your computer that WSL can access, open PowerShell and type the command ‘wmic diskdrive list brief’. This command shows you a list of your drives, including their names and sizes, so you know which one to mount next.

wmic diskdrive list brief

You should see a list like this:

Caption DeviceID Model Partitions Size
SAMSUNG MZVKW512HMJP-000H1 \.PHYSICALDRIVE0 SAMSUNG MZVKW512HMJP-000H1 3 512105932800
ST1000LM035-1RK172 \.PHYSICALDRIVE1 ST1000LM035-1RK172 1 1000202273280

Look at the DeviceID column; this tells you the name of the physical drives.

Step 3Mount the Linux Drive

Mounting your Linux drive lets you access its files directly from Windows. In PowerShell, use the ‘wsl –mount ‘ command, replacing with the specific drive identifier you found in the previous step. You can also mount just a single partition by adding ‘–partition’ and the partition number.

wsl --mount <DISKPATH>

For example, to mount the first drive shown above:

wsl --mount \.PHYSICALDRIVE0

If you want to open just one partition (part of the drive), add --partition and the partition number. For example, to mount partition 1 on the same drive:

wsl --mount \.PHYSICALDRIVE0 --partition 1

By default, WSL will try to mount the drive using the ext4 Linux file system. If your drive uses a different format, like FAT, you can specify it with the -t option. For example:

wsl --mount <DISKPATH> -t vfat

Step 4Access Linux Files in Windows 📁 File Explorer

Once your Linux drive is mounted, you can easily access its files using Windows 📁 File Explorer. Just open File Explorer and type ‘\wsl$’ into the address bar. You’ll see your Linux distributions listed; click on yours, then navigate to the mount folder to find all your Linux files.

In the address bar at the top, type:

\wsl$

You’ll see your Linux distributions listed here. Click on your Linux distro (for example, Ubuntu). Then open the mount folder to find your mounted drive’s files.

Step 5Unmount the Linux Drive (When Done)

When you want to safely disconnect the Linux drive, go back to PowerShell and run:

wsl --unmount <DISKPATH>

Example:

wsl --unmount \.PHYSICALDRIVE0

Summary

• WSL lets you run Linux inside Windows 11 easily.
• You can mount and open Linux drives or partitions directly in Windows via PowerShell commands.
• Once mounted, Linux files are available inside Windows 📁 File Explorer under \wsl$.
• Remember to unmount your drives safely when done.

WSL makes it simple to run Linux tools on your Windows 11 computer. You can mount and access your Linux drives and files directly within Windows 📁 File Explorer using PowerShell commands. Remember to unmount your drives when you’re finished to keep things tidy.

How to Install WSL on Windows 11

How to Use 📁 File Explorer on Windows 11

How to Run PowerShell as Administrator

If you have questions or want to share your experience, please leave a comment below!