Windows (WSL, experimental)

On Windows, run n10 inside WSL 2. Install Node.js, Git, tmux and your agents in the Linux distribution, and keep repositories and worktrees there too. n10 opens its window on the Windows desktop through WSLg; without WSLg, the TUI runs in Windows Terminal.

Recommended setup

• Windows 11 on x64
• The Microsoft Store version of WSL, updated with wsl --update, running WSL 2
• Ubuntu 24.04 LTS
• Windows Terminal

Other distributions, ARM64 and Windows 10 are untested. WSL 1 and native Windows execution are unsupported. n10 requires tmux inside WSL.

Set up WSL

Open PowerShell as administrator:

wsl --install -d Ubuntu-24.04

Restart Windows if asked, then open Ubuntu 24.04 LTS from the Start menu and create your Linux user. To confirm it runs on WSL 2:

wsl --list --verbose

The VERSION column should say 2. If it says 1, run wsl --set-version Ubuntu-24.04 2 from PowerShell.

Install the prerequisites

Run the following commands in the Ubuntu terminal. Later steps explicitly marked PowerShell run in Windows.

sudo apt update
sudo apt install -y git tmux build-essential python3 gh curl

n10 needs Node.js 22.12 or newer, which is newer than Ubuntu's own nodejs package. Install it inside WSL with nvm, following the Linux instructions on nodejs.org. WSL can find Windows programs on its PATH, so check that these tools use their Linux installations:

command -v node npm git tmux
node -p process.platform

The paths should point to Linux installations, not Windows drives such as /mnt/c/. The last line should print linux.

Install your agents inside WSL as well, following each one's Linux instructions, and sign in from the Ubuntu terminal. Check authentication inside WSL even if you have already signed in on Windows. For GitHub:

gh auth login

Keep repositories in Linux

Clone repositories into your Linux home, for example ~/src:

mkdir -p ~/src && cd ~/src
git clone https://github.com/you/app.git

Paths such as /mnt/c/ access Windows drives. Git operations across this filesystem boundary can be slower, and permissions and line endings can differ. n10 opens repositories there with an unsupported-location warning. Worktrees go inside the repository by default, so they stay on Linux too. If you set Worktree Path, keep it in your Linux home.

To browse your Linux files from Windows, open \\wsl$\Ubuntu-24.04\home in File Explorer. Use Linux Git for this checkout, including in your editor's Git integration.

Install and run n10

npm install -g @notaharness/n10
cd ~/src/app
n10

With nvm, global packages install into your home directory, so neither the install nor n10's own updates need sudo.

n10 opens as a window on the Windows desktop through WSLg, which WSL 2 includes on Windows 11. If n10 reports no display, check your WSLg setup. To update and restart WSL, save your work first: wsl --shutdown stops all WSL distributions and ends their tmux and agent sessions. Then run these commands in PowerShell:

wsl --update
wsl --shutdown

Open a new Ubuntu terminal and run n10 again.

If n10 prints n10: running without Chromium's sandbox. as it starts, the .deb package may help. On x64 Ubuntu, download and install it inside WSL, then run n10-desktop. The n10 command still launches the npm installation:

curl -LO https://github.com/notaharness/n10/releases/latest/download/n10-desktop_amd64.deb
sudo apt install ./n10-desktop_amd64.deb
n10-desktop

If n10 stops unexpectedly, it may print this hint:

n10: stopped unexpectedly. If the error above says no sandbox is usable, run `N10_NO_SANDBOX=1 n10` to start without Chromium's sandbox.

Using that command prints:

n10: running without Chromium's sandbox (N10_NO_SANDBOX=1).

System notifications, image paste and graphics-driver compatibility are untested. Report problems in an issue.

Without WSLg, use n10 --tui.

Sessions

Agents run in tmux inside WSL. Quitting n10 or closing Windows Terminal detaches from them. Reopening n10 in the repository reattaches while those sessions are still running.

Stopping the distribution, running wsl --shutdown or restarting Windows ends its sessions. n10 does not automatically restart the agents.

Links and the clipboard

With WSL's Windows integration enabled, pull request links open in your Windows default browser when wslview or explorer.exe is available. If you set BROWSER, n10 uses your Linux browser configuration instead. If a link does not open in the TUI, hold Shift while dragging to select it, then press Ctrl+Shift+C to copy it.

In the TUI, with Windows Terminal's default shortcuts, copy selected text with Ctrl+Shift+C and paste with Ctrl+Shift+V.

Not supported

• WSL 1
• Repositories or worktrees on a Windows drive (/mnt/c/...)
• Windows-side Node.js, Git or agents
• Running one n10 across several distributions or Linux users