Executive TL;DR:

• Windows 9x Subsystem for Linux allows running Linux binaries on Windows 9x
• Similar to CoLinux and flinux, but with a modern Linux kernel
• Potential use cases include development and legacy system support

The Buzz Score

The Internet’s Verdict: 70% Hyped, 30% Skeptical

Forum Voices

Users are excited about the possibilities, with one commenter stating:

So, is it like colinux, but for pre-NT windows? Neat! Back when I was still using windows (probably XP era), I used to run colinux, it was kind of amazing, setting up something like LAMP stack on the linux side was a lot easier and then using windows editors for editing made for quite nice local dev env.

Another user notes the similarities to other solutions:

Before WSL, the best ways to run unmodified Linux binaries inside Windows were CoLinux and flinux.

Technical Implications

The Windows 9x Subsystem for Linux has significant implications for development and legacy system support. One user comments on the potential for running early Linux under Windows 95.

A unique use case is described by a user who plans to:

run this in Windows 95 on a Sun PC card under Solaris 7.

Focus Keyword: Windows Linux