Run Windows Subsystem For Android on your Windows 10 and Windows 11 PC using prebuilt binaries with Google Play Store (MindTheGapps) and/or Magisk or KernelSU (root solutions) built in.
License: GNU Affero General Public License v3.0
wsabuilds's Introduction
WSABuilds
MagiskOnWSA (For Windows™ 10 and 11)
Windows Subsystem For Android™ (WSA) with Google Play Services and (or) Magisk
Wondering Why There Have Been No Updates To This Repo?
Don't worry, this project is not dead! It is just that I have been preoccupied with work, leading to the lack of updates.
Changes to expect in these next 2 weeks:
"Pre-alpha" WSA Manager for Builds from this repo
Automated WSA Releases via GitHub Actions + Making sure that the latest WSA builds are avaliable in this repo
Changes to the WSABuilds Documentation
Downloads
WSABuilds Builds Status (⚠️❗IMPORTANT: Read Before Downloading❗⚠️)
Builds Status and Stability
Known Issues that may affect your WSA experiences:
Folder Issue : Long folder name for the WSA Folder (auto generated by the MagiskOnWSALocal script) may cause WSA to not start. Rename the folder to WSA after extracting and before installing WSA.
Installed Magisk Modules disappear after install and subsequent reboot (WSA v2307):MustardChef#154
Update Skipped to allow time for adjusting the Docs and the build script (MagiskOnWSALocal). Sorry for any Inconvenence. Updates will resume as normal after this.
v2308.40000.3.0
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v2309.40000.2.0
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Indicator Keys
✅
Stable
Everything works as intended. If you think that the build is not stable, please open a GitHub Issue or report the issue in our Discord
⚠️
Unstable
Experience may not be smooth due to known bugs or issues
Click on the Emoji for more information
⛔
Not Working
Build is not working. DO NOT DOWNLOAD!
Click on the Emoji for more information
➖
No Information Yet
Not enough information to confirm status. Please join the Discord and confirm whether or not the builds are working.
Download Variant
Differences:
Follows the "WSA Preview Program Channel"
Follows the "WSA Retail" or "Insider Fast Channel"
Builds are generally newer than the "WSA Retail" and "Insider Fast Channel"
Builds are generally more stable than the builds in the "WSA Preview Program Channel"
Current Version:
2309.40000.2.0
2308.40000.3.0
Release Date:
Builds Released: 27/09/2023
Builds Released: 19/09/2023
Update Frequency:
Multiple Updates Every Month
One Update Every Month
It is recommend to check this table regularly to see if there is a newer update avaliable for WSA for the Stable Builds and Pre-Release Builds
Operating System
Download Page
Download Mirror
Custom Builds:
Requirements
Windows Build Number
Windows™ 11: Build 22000.526 or higher.
Windows™ 10: 22H2 10.0.19045.2311 or higher.
May work on Windows™ 10: 20H1 10.0.19041.264 or higher.1
1. You may need to install KB5014032 then install KB5022834 to use WSA on these older Windows 10 builds
Custom/modfied Windows OS installations (such as ReviOS, Tiny 10/11 and Ghost Spectre etc.) may have issues with running WSA.
RAM
4 to 6 GB (Not Recommended)
8 GB (Minimum)
16 GB (Recommended)
Processor
CPU Architecture: x86_64 or arm64
Your PC should meet the basic Windows™ 11 requirements i.e Core i3 8th Gen, Ryzen 3000, Snapdragon 8c, or above
Any compatible Intel, AMD or Nvidia GPU. GPU Performance may vary depending on its compatibility with Windows Subsystem For Android™
Users with Intel HD Graphics 530 and older
WSA may not start or graphical glitches will occur when Intel HD Graphics 530 and Older iGPUs are used. This is a known issue, but unfortunately there are no fixes that I currently know of, plus, these GPUs are too old and do not meet Windows 11 requirements and hence are not official supported. Follow this guide to switch to another iGPU/dGPU/eGPU that you may have or Microsoft Basic Renderer
Users with Nvidia GPUs
Nvidia GPUs are known to cause problems. If Windows Subsystem For Android™ does not start or there are graphical glitches when an Nvidia GPU is used, follow this guide to switch to another iGPU/dGPU/eGPU that you may have or Microsoft Basic Renderer
Storage
Solid-state drive (RECOMMENDED) OR Hard Disk Drive (HDD) (NOT RECOMMENDED)
Minimum Storage Requirements: You must have at least 10GB free on the system drive (C:\)
Partition
NTFS ONLY
Windows Subsystem For Android™ can only be installed on a NTFS partition, not on an exFAT partition
Windows Features Needed
Virtual Machine Platform Enabled
Windows Hypervisor Platform Enabled
These optional settings are for virtualization and provide components that are needed to run WSA. You can enable these settings by pressing the Windows Key + R on your keyboard and typing "OptionalFeatures.exe" into the box, pressing enter and selecting the features above followed by pressing apply
Virtualization
The Computer must support virtualization and be enabled in BIOS/UEFI and Optional Features.
[!NOTE]
If you have the official Windows Subsystem For Android™ installed, you must completely uninstall it to use MagiskOnWSA.
[!IMPORTANT]
In case you want to preserve your data from the previous installation (official or MagiskOnWSA), you can backup Userdata.vhdx, located at %LOCALAPPDATA%\Packages\MicrosoftCorporationII.WindowsSubsystemForAndroid_8wekyb3d8bbwe\LocalCache\userdata.vhdx before uninstallation and restore it after installation. A guide for this process is located further down in this README.
In the latest release, go to the Assets section and download the Windows Subsystem For Android™ version of your choosing (do not download "Source code")
Extract the .7z archive and rename the folder (that you extracted) to WSA
Delete the .7z archive
Move the newly extracted folder to a suitable location (Documents folder is a good choice), as you will need to keep the folder on your PC to use MagiskOnWSA
[!NOTE]
If you're updating WSA, merge the folders and replace the files for all items when asked
Open the Windows Subsystem For Android™ folder: Search for and double-click Run.bat
If you previously have a MagiskOnWSA installation, it will automatically uninstall the previous one while preserving all user data and install the new one, so don't worry about your data.
If the popup windows disappear without asking administrative permission and Windows Subsystem For Android™ is not installed successfully, you should manually run Install.ps1 as administrator:
Press Win+x and select Windows™ Terminal (Admin)
Input the command below and press enter, replacing {X:\path\to\your\extracted\folder} including the {} with the path of the extracted folder
The script will run and Windows Subsystem For Android™ will be installed
If this workaround does not work, your PC is not supported for WSA
Once the installation process completes, Windows Subsystem For Android™ will launch (if this is a first-time install, a window asking for consent to diagnositic information will be shown instead. Sometimes two identical windows will show, this is fine and nothing bad happens if you click OK in both windows)
Click on the PowerShell window, then press any key on the keyboard, the PowerShell window should close
Close File Explorer
Enjoy
Notice (Applicable for both Windows 10 and 11):
You can NOT delete the Windows Subsystem For Android™ installation folder.
What Add-AppxPackage -Register .\AppxManifest.xml does is to register an appx package with some existing unpackaged files,
so you need to keep them as long as you want to use Windows Subsystem For Android™.
Check https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/powershell/module/appx/add-appxpackage?view=windowsserver2022-ps for more details.
You need to register your Windows Subsystem For Android™ appx package before you can run Windows Subsystem For Android™.
For WSABuilds and MagiskOnWSALocal users, you need to run Run.bat in the extracted dir.
If the script fails, you can take the following steps for diagnosis (admin privilege required):
Open a PowerShell window and change working directory to your Windows Subsystem For Android™ directory.
Run the command below in PowerShell. This should fail with an ActivityID, which is a UUID required for the next step.
Run the command below in PowerShell. This should print the log of the failed operation.
Get-AppPackageLog-ActivityID <UUID>
Check the log for the reason of failure and fix it.
Updating
How do I update without losing any of my apps and data on Windows Subsystem for Android (WSA)
[!IMPORTANT]
Make sure that WSA has been turned off from the settings and that tools such has WSA-System-Control, WSA-Sideloader, WSAPacman etc are not running.
Make sure Windows Subsystem For Android is not running (Click on "Turn off" in the WSA Settings and wait for the spinning loader to disappear)
Using 7-Zip, WinRAR or any other tool of choice, open the .7z archive
Within the .7z archive, open the subfolder (Example: WSA_2xxx.xxxxx.xx.x_xx_Release-Nightly-with-magisk-xxxxxxx-MindTheGapps-xx.x-RemovedAmazon)
Select all the files that are within this subfolder and extract them to the current folder where the file for Windows Subsystem For Android (the folder you extracted, and installed WSA from) are located
When prompted to replace folders, select "Do this for all current items" and click on "Yes"
When prompted to replace files, click on "Replace the files in the destination"
Run the Run.bat file
Launch Windows Subsystem For Android Settings app and go to the About tab using the sidebar
Check if the WSA version matches the latest version/ the version number that you want to update to
Join the Discord if you are having any difficulties
Uninstallation
[!NOTE]
If you want to preseve your data, make a backup of the %LOCALAPPDATA%\Packages\MicrosoftCorporationII.WindowsSubsystemForAndroid_8wekyb3d8bbwe\LocalCache\userdata.vhdx file. After uninstalling, copy the VHDX file back to the %LOCALAPPDATA%\Package\MicrosoftCorporationII.WindowsSubsystemForAndroid_8wekyb3d8bbwe\LocalCache folder. For a more comprehensive and detailed guide, take a look at the Backup and Restore section in this README markdown
To remove WSA installed through WSABuild:
1.) Make sure that Windows Subsystem For Android™ is not running
2.) Search for Windows Subsystem For Android™ Settings using the built-in Windows Search, or through Add and Remove Programs and press uninstall
3.) Delete the WSA folder that extracted you extracted and Run.bat was run from to install WSA (MagiskOnWSA folder)
4.) Go to %LOCALAPPDATA%/Packages/ and check if the folder: MicrosoftCorporationII.WindowsSubsystemForAndroid_8wekyb3d8bbwe is still present:
If the folder is still present: Delete it
If you get an error that states that the file(s) could not be deleted, make sure that WSA is turned off
If the folder does not exist: Skip this step
To remove WSA installed from the Microsoft Store:
1.) Search for Windows Subsystem For Android™ Settings using the built-in Windows Search, or through Add and Remove Programs and press uninstall
Backup and Restore Userdata
Backing Up Your Userdata
In order to make a backup of your WSA data you must copy the Userdata.vhdx (which includes, but is not limited Android Apps and their data, settings etc.), located at %LOCALAPPDATA%\Packages\MicrosoftCorporationII.WindowsSubsystemForAndroid_8wekyb3d8bbwe\LocalCache\userdata.vhdx, to a safe location
Restoring Your Backup
Before attempting to restore your backup, you must remove WSA if installed. Then before you run the Run.bat script (to reinstall WSA after removing it), you need to remove these lines from Install.ps1, located in the your extracted WSA folder:
The Lines (as shown below) that you need to remove in Install.ps1 may vary depending on the type of WSA Build that you are trying to install.
Android Settings:
Start-Process"wsa://com.android.settings"
Official Magisk:
Start-Process"wsa://com.topjohnwu.magisk"
Magisk Delta:
Start-Process"wsa://io.github.huskydg.magisk"
Magisk Alpha:
Start-Process"wsa://io.github.vvb2060.magisk"
Google Play Store:
Start-Process"wsa://com.android.vending"
Amazon Appstore:
Start-Process"wsa://com.amazon.venezia"
After running the script, do not run WSA at all, and go to %localappdata%\Packages and (if the folders do not exist, create them) in MicrosoftCorporationII.WindowsSubsystemForAndroid_8wekyb3d8bbwe\LocalCache\ paste the userdata.vhdx
Now run WSA and your userdata should hopefully be restored
FAQ
Help me, I am having problems with the MagiskOnWSA Builds
Help me, I am having problems with installing Windows Subsystem For Android™ on Windows™ 10
I am not working on the patch, and nor claim to. Open an issue in the Discord or Github, and I will try to assist you with the problem if possible. For full support visit the project homepage and open an issue there: https://github.com/cinit/WSAPatch/issues/
How do I get a logcat?
There are two ways:
adb logcat
or
Location in Windows ---> %LOCALAPPDATA%\Packages\MicrosoftCorporationII.WindowsSubsystemForAndroid_8wekyb3d8bbwe\LocalState\diagnostics\logcat
Can I delete the installed folder?
No.
How can I update Windows Subsystem For Android™ to a new version?
Do the same as updating Windows Subsystem For Android™. Wait for a new MagiskOnWSA release that includes the newer Magisk version, then follow the Installation instructions to update
Can I pass SafetyNet/Play Integrity?
No. Virtual machines like Windows Subsystem For Android™ cannot pass these mechanisms on their own due to the lack of signing by Google. Passing requires more exotic (and untested) solutions like: kdrag0n/safetynet-fix#145 (comment)
What is virtualization?
Virtualization is required to run virtual machines like Windows Subsystem For Android™. Run.bat helps you enable it. After rebooting, re-run Run.bat to install Windows Subsystem For Android™. If it's still not working, you have to enable virtualization in your BIOS/UEFI. Instructions vary by PC vendor, look for help online
Can I remount system partition as read-write?
No. Windows Subsystem For Android™ is mounted as read-only by Hyper-V. You can, however, modify the system partition by creating a Magisk module, or by directly modifying the system.img file
I cannot adb connect localhost:58526
Make sure developer mode is enabled. If the issue persists, check the IP address of Windows Subsystem For Android™ on the Settings ---> Developer page and try
adb connect ip:5555
Magisk online module list is empty?
Magisk actively removes the online module repository. You can install the module locally or by
Step 1
adb push module.zip /data/local/tmp
Step 2
adb shell su -c magisk --install-module /data/local/tmp/module.zip
To request a build with custom Magisk or GApps, feel free to open an issue in the Issues page You can also achieve this by using the MagiskOnWSALocal Script and following the provided instructions located in the repo.
Usage Guides
GPU Guide:
Sideload Guide/Installing an APK:
Moving WSA to another drive or partition:
Installing KernelSU
Installing BusyBox
Localhost Loopback Guide
Having Issues?
Common Issues:
Custom Builds Requests
❓Want to request a prebuilt custom build❓
If you can't find the build that you are looking for, I will be happy to fufill any custom build requests.
State the Device Model (Default: Pixel 5)? - Root Solution (Magisk, KernelSU or none)? - If you want a WSA build with Magisk, what variant of magisk would you like? - Would you like GApps (Google Play Store and Play Services (GMS))? - Would you like to keep the Amazon Appstore?
Credits
Microsoft: For providing Windows Subsystem For Android™ and related files. Windows Subsystem For Android™, Windows Subsystem For Android™ Logo, Windows™ 10 and Windows™ 11 Logos are trademarks of Microsoft Corporation. Microsoft Corporation reserves all rights to these trademarks. By downloading and installing Windows Subsystem For Android™, you agree to the Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy
YT-Advanced: For providing and continuing the development of the script made by LSPosed, the Github Action workflow guide is based on his Github Repo. I do not claim his work and the work of the many contributers as my own and nor intend to do so.
Cinit and the WSAPatch Guide: Many thanks for the comprehensive guide, files and support provided by Cinit and the contributers at the WSAPatch repository. Windows™ 10 Builds in this repo rely on the hard work of this project and hence credit is given where due