How to Install WSL at a Custom Location and Set Up Default User

If you're using Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) and want to:
✅ Install a WSL distribution (like Ubuntu) in a custom location (e.g., D:\wsl\ubuntu)
✅ Fix the missing username/password setup (common with manual imports)
✅ Set a default user so you don’t log in as root

This guide will walk you through the process step by step.

---

Why Install WSL in a Custom Location?

By default, WSL installs distributions in C:\Users\<user>\AppData\Local\Packages. If you:

• Have limited space on C:

• Prefer organizing WSL on another drive (e.g., D:\wsl)

• Want better disk performance

Manual installation (wsl --import) is the solution—but it skips the initial username/password setup, requiring extra steps.

---

Step 1: Download a WSL Distro (Ubuntu)

You need a rootfs (Linux filesystem) .tar.gz file.

1. Download an official Ubuntu WSL image:

   • Ubuntu 22.04 LTS (Jammy) for WSL

   • Choose ubuntu-jammy-wsl-amd64-ubuntu22.04lts.rootfs.tar.gz

2. Save it somewhere accessible (e.g., C:\Users\YourName\Downloads).

---

Step 2: Install WSL at a Custom Location

Open PowerShell (Admin) and run:

wsl --import Ubuntu D:\wsl\ubuntu C:\Users\YourName\Downloads\ubuntu-jammy-wsl-amd64-ubuntu22.04lts.rootfs.tar.gz

• Ubuntu: The distro name (can be changed).

• D:\wsl\ubuntu: The custom install location.

• .tar.gz: Path to the downloaded Ubuntu image.

✅ Verify installation:

wsl -l -v

  NAME      STATE           VERSION
* Ubuntu    Stopped         2

---

Step 3: Fix Missing Username/Password Setup

Since wsl --import skips user setup, you’ll log in as root. Let’s fix that.

Option 1: Set Default User via wsl.conf

1. Launch Ubuntu:

    wsl -d Ubuntu
   

   You’ll be logged in as root.

2. Create a new user (replace yourname with your desired username):

    adduser yourname
   

   • Set a password & fill optional details.

3. Grant sudo permissions:

    usermod -aG sudo yourname
   

4. Set this user as default:

    echo -e "[user]\ndefault=yourname" >> /etc/wsl.conf
   

5. Exit & restart WSL:

    exit
   

    wsl --terminate Ubuntu
    wsl -d Ubuntu
   

   Now you should log in as yourname automatically.