Guide for Using Xfce4 Desktop with WSL2

Install Linux on Windows with WSL

Follow the instructions here.
Note: use wsl.exe -l -o to check available Linux distro before wsl --install -d <Distribution Name>

Install and configure VcXsrv Server for Linux GUI

Follow the instructions here, starting 7:39. For IPv4 configuration in .bashrc, follow the instructions below instead.

1. Open Powershell or Command Prompt from Windows start menu
2. Type ipconfig and press enter
3. Take a note of the native IPv4 address of your Windows (NOT WSL), which typically starts with 192.168.
4. Back to your .bashrc file, add export DISPLAY=:192.168.D.D:D at the end
5. In the Ubuntu terminal, type source ~/.bashrc and press enter

Now, go to Windows desktop to configure VcXsrv display.

1. Find the VcXsrv shortcut, right click and choose Properties from the context menu
2. Select the tab Compatibility and then click Change high DPI settings
3. Under High DPI scaling override, check Override high DPI scaling behavior and select Application in the drop-down menu labeled Scaling performed by:.

Run Xfce4

1. Run VcXsrv. Select One large window in display settings and check Disabled access control in extra settings.
2. In the Ubuntu terminal, type command startxfce4 (with VcXsrv already running) and press enter

Install and Run IntelliJ IDEA in WSL

1. Run Firebox in the Ubuntu desktop
2. Get IntelliJ IDEA
3. After it is installed, configure the PATH variable in WSL so that it is more convenient to launch IDEA.
   In the IDEA installation folder, there should be a file named Install-Linux-tar.txt, which suggests adding export PATH=$PATH:"{IDEA installation folder}/bin" at the end of .bashrc
4. In a new Ubuntu Terminal, type idea.sh and press enter to run IDEA.

Other Useful Tips for IDEA

In Project Structure-Platform Settings,

1. The SDKs section can be used for setting the JDK version
2. The Global libraries section can be used for setting other languages (e.g., Scala, OCaml)
3. The SDKs installed in the native Windows environment cannot be used by the Ubuntu environment