WSL - start a specific distro (bootup, boot up)

In this short article, we would like to show how to start a specific distro on WSL.

Quick solution:

wsl -d YOUR_DISTRO_NAME_HERE

Where: it is eqivalent to wsl --distribution YOUR_DISTRO_NAME_HERE.

Practical example

In this section you can find example of starting Ubuntu disto.

Simple steps:

1. Open any command line, e.g. PowerShell
2. View the list of distros and states (Ubuntu is Stopped):

   PS C:\Users\john> wsl -l -v
     NAME                   STATE           VERSION
   * docker-desktop         Running         2
     Ubuntu                 Stopped         2
     wsl-vpnkit             Running         2
     docker-desktop-data    Running         2

3. Start Ubuntu disto:

   PS C:\Users\john> wsl -d Ubuntu

4. View the list of distros and states, again (Ubuntu is Running):

   PS C:\Users\john> wsl -l -v
     NAME                   STATE           VERSION
   * docker-desktop         Running         2
     Ubuntu                 Running         2
     wsl-vpnkit             Running         2
     docker-desktop-data    Running         2