Linux distros won’t run on Windows 10 S after all

When Microsoft announced Windows 10 S, one of the main distinctions from vanilla Windows 10 was that only Windows Store applications would run on the education-focused OS. But it turns out when Microsoft said that “applications are delivered via the Windows Store,” it didn’t mean that all Windows Store applications would work on 10 S, as noted by Lilliputing. 

In a blog post on MSDN today, Rich Turner, a Senior Product Manager at Microsoft, clarified that certain applications won’t be allowed to run on Windows 10 S, including “all command-line apps, shells and consoles.”

Regrettably, that means that Ubuntu, SUSE Linux, and Fedora — the Linux distros that are coming to the Windows Store — won’t be permitted to run on Windows 10 S. As Turner explains, the Linux distros, even though distributed through the store, have more access to the system than a standard Universal Windows Program on the store — essentially, they’re command-line tools that work outside the closed sandbox that Microsoft limits most Windows Store apps to.

According to Turner’s post, Windows 10 S is primarily aimed at “non-technical users” who don’t want or need that kind access, and specifically isn’t designed for app developers or IT administrators who need more advanced control over their machines. To be clear: there’s no technical reason that the Linux distros from the store can’t run on Windows 10 S, aside from the choice by Microsoft to limit that option, and anyone running a 10 S device that chooses to upgrade to a full version of Windows 10 will immediately be able to install the Windows Store-distributed versions. 

The article was published on : theverge