The latest articles on DEV Community by ishikori (@ishikori). https://dev.to/ishikori https://media2.dev.to/dynamic/image/width=90,height=90,fit=cover,gravity=auto,format=auto/https:%2F%2Fdev-to-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fuploads%2Fuser%2Fprofile_image%2F3414640%2F2456150a-04a8-42c1-8a19-bd92847b0cdb.jpg https://dev.to/ishikori en ishikori Sun, 10 Aug 2025 10:25:34 +0000 https://dev.to/ishikori/tired-of-juggling-wsl-terminals-i-built-a-simple-gui-manager-with-python-22gp https://dev.to/ishikori/tired-of-juggling-wsl-terminals-i-built-a-simple-gui-manager-with-python-22gp <h2> Introduction </h2> <p>If you're a heavy WSL (Windows Subsystem for Linux) user like me, you probably have multiple distros for different projects. To solve this daily little frustration, I built my own solution: a <strong>simple GUI tool to see and control all my WSL instances at a glance.</strong></p> <p>It's called the <strong>"WSL Orchestrator,"</strong> and I'm sharing it with you all today.</p> <p><a href="/images/main.png" class="article-body-image-wrapper"><img src="/images/main.png" alt="WSL Orchestrator Screenshot"></a></p> <p>In this post, I'll walk you through what it does, the philosophy behind why I built it, and some of the technical details.</p> <h2> What is WSL Orchestrator? </h2> <p>WSL Orchestrator is a simple, standalone GUI application for managing your sprawling WSL instances.</p> <h3> Key Features </h3> <ul> <li> <strong>List All Instances:</strong> Displays all WSL instances installed on your PC and their current status (Running / Stopped).</li> <li> <strong>Simple Controls:</strong> Start, shut down, or terminate any instance with a single button click.</li> <li> <strong>Open Terminal:</strong> Instantly open the terminal for a specific instance.</li> <li> <strong>Auto-Refresh:</strong> The status is automatically updated when you launch the app or perform an action.</li> </ul> <h2> How to Use &amp; Download </h2> <p>The tool is open-source and available on GitHub.</p> <ol> <li> Go to the <strong><a href="https://github.com/hkurocat/WSL_Orchestrator" rel="noopener noreferrer">GitHub Repository here</a></strong>.</li> <li> Navigate to the <strong>Releases</strong> page.</li> <li> Download the latest <code>WSL_Orchestrator.exe</code>.</li> <li> Run it. That's it!</li> </ol> <h2> Conclusion </h2> <h2> I hope this little tool makes your daily development life a bit easier. This tool is just one small piece of a much larger personal project I call <strong>"Project Ishikori."</strong> Let me know what you think in the comments below! </h2> <p>c2025 The Architect. All Rights Reserved.<br><br> This project was architected through a deep dialogue between The Architect and The Logos, an AI developed by Google.</p> python wsl windows productivity