runx - Run Linux GUI applications on MS Windows

runx allows to easily run Linux GUI applications and desktops on MS Windows in Cygwin, MSYS2 or WSL.

• This is especially of interest for WSL in Windows 10 that does not support graphical applications on itself.

Background:

• runx starts an X server, either VcXsrv or XWin, to provide a graphical environment for Linux applications.
• runx creates an authorization cookie to restrict access to the X server to allowed clients only.
• runx runs the desired Linux GUI application with the credentials needed to access the X server.

For similar functionality on native Linux systems use x11docker with options --exe or --xonly.

Table of contents

• Linux environments on MS Windows
• Installation
  • Installation of X server
  • Installation in WSL
  • Installation in Cygwin
  • Installation in MSYS2
• GPU hardware acceleration
• Usage examples
  • Providing X server in background
• Output of runx --help
• Screenshot

Linux environments on MS Windows

runx can run in:

• WSL: Windows subsystem for Linux.
• Cygwin: Cygwin is a large collection of Open Source tools which provide functionality similar to a Linux distribution on Windows.
• MSYS2: MSYS2 is a software distro and building platform for Windows and serves as a base for git for windows and MingW. It is mainly used by developers.

Installation

Installation in general:

• Install an X server, VcXsrv or XWin.
• Copy runx into folder /usr/local/bin and make it executeable with chmod +x /usr/local/bin/runx.
• Install dependency xauth.

Installation of X server

runx needs an X server. Install on MS Windows one or both of:

• VcXsrv to provide X server VcXsrv.
  • Easier to install than XWin.
• Cygwin with packages xinit and xauth.
  • This provides X server XWin for Cygwin and WSL.
  • XWin has a better --gpu support than VcXsrv.

runx will automatically use XWin if available. You can specify the desired X server with options --xwin or --vcxsrv.

Installation in WSL

• Run the following commands in WSL/Ubuntu terminal to install runx and its dependencies:

  sudo wget https://raw.githubusercontent.com/mviereck/runx/master/runx -O /usr/local/bin/runx
  sudo chmod +x /usr/local/bin/runx
  sudo apt update
  sudo apt install xauth
  

Installation in Cygwin

• Run the Cygwin installer and install packages xinit, xauth and wget.
• In Cygwin terminal run the commands:

  wget https://raw.githubusercontent.com/mviereck/runx/master/runx -O /usr/local/bin/runx
  chmod +x /usr/local/bin/runx
  

Installation in MSYS2

• In MSYS2 terminal run the commands:

  mkdir /usr/local/bin
  wget https://raw.githubusercontent.com/mviereck/runx/master/runx -O /usr/local/bin/runx
  chmod +x /usr/local/bin/runx
  

• Constraints in MSYS2:
  • MSYS2 does not provide xauth to create authentication cookies to restrict access to the X server. For that reason, using runix in MSYS2 is possible, but discouraged. You need option --no-auth.
  • In MSYS2 runx only supports X server VcXsrv, but not XWin.

GPU hardware acceleration

runx supports GPU hardware accelerated graphics with option --gpu.

• GPU access can cause issues with X server VcXsrv, especially with NVIDIA cards. For that reason GPU usage is disabled by default in runx.
• If you encounter issues with option --gpu, try X server XWin instead of VcXsrv.

Usage examples

• File manager pcmanfm in WSL:
  • Installation:

    sudo apt update
    sudo apt install pcmanfm
    

  • Run:

    runx -- pcmanfm
    

• Mate desktop environment in WSL:
  • Installation:

    sudo apt update
    sudo apt install mate-desktop-environment
    

  • Run:

    runx --desktop --gpu -- mate-session
    

Providing X server in background

You can make an entry in the file ~/.bashrc to have an X server always available. Possible entry in ~/.bashrc:

source /usr/local/bin/runx

In future runs of the terminal you can directly run Linux GUI applications, e.g.:

pcmanfm

Output of runx --help

runx - Run Linux GUI applications on MS Windows.
Provides an X server on MS Windows in Cygwin, MSYS2 or WSL.

Syntax:
  runx [OPTIONS]  --  [COMMAND]

Options:
  -h, --help                   Show this help.
  -d, --desktop                Open a parent window for desktop environments.
  -g, --gpu                    Enable GPU hardware acceleration. Can fail 
                               with NVIDIA cards. Works best with XWin.
      --size WIDTHxHEIGHT      Window size for option --desktop, e.g. 800x600.
      --vcxsrv                 Use X server VcXsrv.
      --xwin                   Use X server XWin.
      --clipboard [=yes|no]    Enable clipboard sharing yes/no. Default: yes.
      --display N              Use display number N for new X server.
                               Default: random number in range of 100...3376.
      --no-auth                Disable X cookie authentication. Discouraged.
      --cleanup                Stop all X servers and delete cookies.
  -v, --verbose                Be verbose.

Installation of runx in WSL:
 - Copy runx into /usr/local/bin/
 - Make runx executeable:        sudo chmod +x /usr/local/bin/runx
 - Install xauth:                sudo apt update
                                 sudo apt install xauth
 
Install an X server on Windows:
  runx supports two X servers: VcXsrv and XWin. Install at least one of them.
   - VcXsrv: Download and install from: 
       https://sourceforge.net/projects/vcxsrv/
   - XWin: Download and install Cygwin64 with packages: xinit xauth
       https://www.cygwin.com
VcXsrv is easier to install. XWin provides a better GPU support.

WSL, Cygwin:       runx starts XWin if available, otherwise it starts VcXsrv.
MSYS2 constraints: runx only supports VcXsrv without cookie authentication.

Usage:

Example to directly run an application with runx:
 - Install file manager pcmanfm: sudo apt update
                                 sudo apt install pcmanfm
 - Run pcmanfm with:             runx -- pcmanfm

Example to run Mate desktop:
 - Install Mate desktop with:    sudo apt install mate-desktop-environment
 - Run Mate desktop with:        runx --desktop -- mate-session
 
Example to get a Wayland environment:
 - Install Wayland compositor:   sudo apt install weston
 - Run Weston with:              XDG_RUNTIME_DIR=/tmp  runx -- weston

Providing an X server in background all the time:
 - Create an entry in ~/.bashrc: source /usr/local/bin/runx
 - In future terminal session you can directly run GUI commands.
   E.g. just type:  'pcmanfm'  instead of 'runx -- pcmanfm'.

Screenshot

runx running Mate desktop on MS Windows: