Install Kali in Windows Terminal

How to Install and Uninstall Kali Linux on WSL

The Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) has made it significantly easier for developers, security researchers, and students to run Linux environments directly on Windows, eliminating the need for dual booting or virtual machines. One of the most popular distributions for cybersecurity and penetration testing is Kali Linux. In this guide, we’ll walk you through the process of installing Kali Linux on WSL, and just as importantly, how to properly uninstall it if you no longer need it.

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Installing Linux on WSL: wsl --install

This command installs the latest WSL version along with the default Linux distribution (usually Ubuntu). 

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 Install Kali Linux

To install Kali Linux specifically: wsl --install -d kali-linux

This command downloads and installs the Kali Linux distribution from the Microsoft Store into WSL.

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Check the available distributions with: wsl -l -v

Example output:

  NAME            STATE           VERSION
* Ubuntu          Running         2
  kali-linux      Stopped         2

Here you can see Kali Linux is installed and available for use.

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 Unregister the Distro: wsl --unregister kali-linux

 Warning: This is a full wipe. All data inside that Kali WSL instance is gone.

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Remove the App Package:

Uninstall Kali Linux app from Windows directly from PowerShell:

Get-AppxPackage *kali* | Remove-AppxPackage

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 What Does --verbose Mean in WSL?

When using commands like wsl -l You can add -v (short for --verbose)to get more detailed information. For example:

wsl -l → shows just the distro names.

wsl -l -v → shows distro names plus state and WSL version.

Example:

  NAME            STATE           VERSION
* Ubuntu          Running         2
  kali-linux      Stopped         2

This helps manage multiple distributions and know which ones are running on WSL 1 or WSL 2.