Running Windows applications on your Ubuntu Linux box is very possible. WineHQ app for Linux makes this possible by forming a compatible layer between the Windows and Linux interfaces. Note: Some applications can still be installed from the Ubuntu software center but not all Windows applications. Wine is a free and open-source compatibility layer that aims to allow computer programs developed for Microsoft Windows to run on Unix-like operating systems. Wine also provides a software library, known as Winelib, against which developers can compile Windows applications to help port them to the Unix-like system. Here are some guides that might interest you: How to install and configure JIRA on Linux, what is Wine HQ: How to get WineHQ, and Install WineHQ on Linux to run windows applications.
To run Windows games or software, you’ll need to download the files for them as you would on Windows. Some may have specific installation instructions, so be sure to check for an entry in the Wine application database first.
WineHQ Application Database (AppDB): Here you can get information on application compatibility with Wine. An example is Notepad ++ which is compatible with WineHQ.
Search the database for an application to see ratings, comments, tips, guides, and tweaks stated by other users. Note: Platinum-rated applications run perfectly, with no tweaks required, while garbage-rated applications don’t run at all.
Installing Windows Applications
Windows files are installed on the “C” drive. As this doesn’t exist on Linux, Wine creates a folder (usually /home/your-username/.wine/drive_c) to act as the “C” drive for your Windows software.
This is where you will have to locate any installed software or games. This is probably going to be found in the “Program Files” or “Program Files (x86) folders. Once you’ve located your software, you can run it the same way you ran the installer. See Example two below.
wine example-installer.exeExample 1: Once WineHQ is installed, you can download an application’s EXE or MSI (Microsoft Installer) file and double click on it, just like you would if you were using Windows — to run it with Wine.
Next, you will have to access the Downloads folder where the application downloaded was saved to as shown below.
Next, right-click on the installer and select Open with Another application
This will open open the application installer interface as shown below
– Here, you can now work through the entire installation process.
The installation of notepad ++ is relatively easy and straight forward as shown below.
Now that the installation is complete, you can now launch Notepad ++
Example 2: Sometimes, you might encounter issues with the above example. In this case, you will have to run the application from the terminal to see the related errors. Run the following command and replace the path with your application path.
wine /path/to/application.exeIf it is an MSI file, the following command below should be used instead.
wine msiexec /i /path/to/installer.msiRegistry & File System: Some applications require registry tweaks to work properly. You’ll often find information about which registry entries to modify on the application database. Execute the “regedit” command from a terminal to access Wine’s registry editor. For more on regedit, see the following articles.
– How to search through the Windows registry https://techdirectarchive.com/2020/03/18/how-to-search-the-windows-registry/
– How to display Windows system information via the Windows registry https://techdirectarchive.com/2020/03/18/how-to-display-windows-system-information-via-the-windows-registry/
– What is Registry Editor and how to access the registry hives https://techdirectarchive.com/2020/02/08/what-is-registry-editor-and-how-to-access-the-registry-hives/
If you found this article useful or need some additional information, kindly leave a comment below.