Windows gonna have bash now?

[drunkjedi]

http://techcrunch.com/2016/03/30/be-ver ... indows-10/

[jamesbond]

There are some speculations around it. Some says it's just a re-packaged/re-branded cygwin. Some says that they (=MS, Canonical, or both) created the reverse of WINE (lovingly called as URINE=URINE Really Is Not an Emulator). WINE maps Windows API to Linux syscalls; URINE maps Linux syscalls to Windows API. Either way, it doesn't matter.

Either way, expect that Windows Bash will behave a little teeny weeny different, because, umm, platform differences? ... but enough to make sure that people writing scripts must be aware that they are targetting Windows (and their scripts/programs won't run on Linux anymore, because, ummm, unavoidable platform differences? ... unless they also write it specifically to run on Linux too? But writing for two platforms are tiring, no? Why bother if it already works on Windows, no?) ... and over the time Windows Bash will have enhancements and add-ons (JIT-compilation to scripts, anyone? Access to .NET objects? Access to various kernel guts? No, not through /proc, or /sys, because, ummm, inescapable platform differences? ) .... and before anybody knows it, Windows is the only platform that Bash can run on.

Sounds familiar?

[p310don]

Isn't it a little too close to April Fool's day for this article to be actually true??

[drunkjedi]

Windows doesn't need April fools day to fool ya.
It does it everyday.

[rokytnji]

Pass me a beer while I think about it.

Got any red stripe? 2nd choice? Dos Equis.

Home Windows users and cli?
That is like putting a ant in front of a rocket ship control panel.

Not much going to happen there. Other than scurrying.

Urine? You are in _________?

[Ted Dog]

@JB +1000

Did you know out of 2^16 possible id codes for windows partition they select the one historical used to id a linux type partition in GPT. Linux had to use the backup id since win8. This plan to bash bash has been in the works for a while. I think its EVEN more sinister than history of adopt, add, lock in and abandon. They will soon give you ( users ) a microsoft developed linux distribution to lock out the rest of linuxes. I call it the false view of a choice to satisfy government and appear more OPEN than it actually wants to be.

[Burn_IT]

I was under the impression Windows bashing was compulsory in the Linux community.

Is it not just another shell like DOS?? - sorry Command Prompt

[01micko]

My first Windows™ BASH script.

How do we licence this? We'll go with CC0 and watch the thieves squabble amongst themselves, a bit like "Happy Birthday".

Code: Select all

#!"C:\\Programs Files\\Bash\\bash"

# ^^ could be a portability problem with shebang? Must use HOMEDRIVE? or PATH?

#@ echo off #needed?

DRV=C:\\

 [ "$USERNAME" != "ADMINISTRATOR" ] && echo "Only ADMINISTRATOR can run this script" && exit

rm -rf $DRV\\* #rm MUST be in PATH

echo "Success!" # never reaches this line

EDIT: escape backslashes

[jamesbond]

@Burn_IT: This is not about bash running on Windows. Nobody cares for that, we have it solved for years.

The "big thing" is their ability to run native Linux binaries on Windows - bash is highlighted since it is, umm, the main point of entry for interaction. As I said above, it's a reverse of WINE (=URINE, as somebody lovingly called it and I adopted it). They plan to enable running most popular native Linux commands on that dreaded platform. This link: https://msdn.microsoft.com/commandline/wsl/about has a video of how they run native Ubuntu binaries, unchanged, on Windows.

Is this new? NO. Here are some referennces on previous effort:
1. This has been going for ages, 10 years at least if memory serves correctly: http://www.colinux.org/ and http://www.andlinux.org/. They even Ubuntu running on it. Co-incidence?
2. More recent: https://0xef.wordpress.com/2012/11/17/e ... n-windows/, it even includes a reference to github repo. In fact, I'd better get a copy of it before MS sends a takedown notice because, hey, infringing technology (though we are the ones who copied your idea, but we have better lawyers, in case you forget).

Please bear in mind that these efforts are all open source. MS version of the same thing? You can all make a guess

So what's the big deal? Because there is an MS label attached to it; MS "embraced" it. We all know what the next steps.

On the positive side, however, this hopefully will expose those still living in the dark side to see what they have been missing. Why would you want to ride a one-trick pony when you can ride the real thing?

@Mick: actually Windows bash script will look very similar to our own bash script, with #!/bin/sh and whatnot.

[jamesbond]

The very funny thing is, for years and years, MS was selling Windows as being "no fuss no pain no command line" because GUI is cool and easy. No more remembering arcane commands with arbitrary options. GUI is easy, GUI is the way forward.

But in the last few years they went to do Server Core, and then PowerShell, and now this. It's as if they are saying that "we don't want to admit it it, but we think that command line is actually a better way to manage your stuff than GUI."

So, if everything is to be managed by command line tools, what's the point of a GUI? Why not use an OS that is optimised to run headless and managed by command line altogether? (This is a rhetorical question in case you don't get it).

Another reminder: Novell did a deal with the devil and had its soul taken way. SCO did a deal with the devil and became a hellspawn. What would happen to Canonical?

[jamesbond]

https://msdn.microsoft.com/commandline/wsl/about

Window Subsystem for Linux (WSL)
This infrastructure supports unmodified Ubuntu binaries by exposing Linux-compatible kernel interfaces. It includes Microsoft components that are responsible for handling Linux system call requests in coordination with the Windows NT kernel.
This subsystem was developed by Microsoft and contains no Linux code.

(Emphasis mine). And we can't know because we can't inspect it, can we? It's not like WINE or ReactOS that needs to do reverse-engineering, Linux is easy to emulate since all its code is available for everyone to peruse. But then you can't peruse their implementation and just have to believe what they say. Sure.

[gcmartin]

Thought this article might be helpful

On another note
Few years ago, SDNs was announce. A push toward proprietary. This year RemixOS, another example. And there's more where something Open Source moves to proprietary. This trend will continue. It doesn't mean bad, it just means you or I or the government cannot see into it (as was the uproar in US over Apple becoming an agent of the government.)

I have no position; as there are both disadvantages as well as advantages. Just an observation of constant industry movements.

[musher0]

Windows doesn't need April fools day to fool ya.
It does it everyday.

[bark_bark_bark]

Here's an article mentioning Bash on Windows 10 (aka URINE): http://www.ghacks.net/2016/04/06/window ... -and-more/

[LazY Puppy]

Windows gonna have bash now?

Totally out of any interest for me - as long as Windows doesn't come with a layered file system and .sfs files.

[8Geee]

Before you know it M$ will lock out bash as they'll own it.
Ubuntu for president.

[Karl Godt]

I have installed cygwin in my MS-Windows installations and use its bash all the time .
When I use Windows ..

I am mainly using the find command therein !