Things to do while in Quarantine, as seen by Bitswift — Episode 1 : Ardor on Linux on Windows

In this episode of Things to do while in Quarantine we will detail how to install Ardor on Linux within Windows using WSL (Windows Subsystems For Linux).

Why would someone want to do this?

Well if you are bored out of your mind stuck in quarantine and want to learn something new that might be a good reason. Aside from that, if you have a bunch of Windows based systems and want to run a stable Linux based Ardor server on them, or any other Linux based app, this might be of interest to you.

What is Windows Subsystems For Linux?

Windows Subsystem for Linux is a compatibility layer for running Linux binary executables natively on Windows 10 and Windows Server 2019. In short, it allows you to run Linux based apps on Windows without the requirement to install clunky Virtual Machine software.

How do we do it?

Part 1: Installing Linux on Windows

First of all, you need to install the WSL service on Windows. To do this head to Control panel → Programs and Features → Turn Windows Features on and Off.

Put a checkmark in the box relating to Windows Subsystem for Linux as seen below:

Click OK to save the changes and pause in awe of the fact you are about to install an Ardor server on Linux within Windows using a built-in native Windows feature.

Great, now that we have taken the time to reflect on what we are doing let us proceed with the download of our favorite distribution of Linux.

Open the Windows Store and search for your favorite Linux distribution. In this example, we will do a search for Ubuntu. If you are fond of Suse or straight-up Debian those options are available as well.

In this example, we will download Ubuntu 18.04.

Click to Install your Distribution and Launch it when the download is complete.

If you were successful you will now see the Ubuntu bash shell. It’s the same Ubuntu minus the Linux kernel parts.

Now we can proceed with installing Ardor for Linux.

Part 2: Installing Ardor for Linux

First lets download Java because it is a prerequisite.

sudo apt-get install openjdk-11-jre-headless

Now let's download the Ardor software because that is also a prerequisite.

wget https://www.jelurida.com/ardor-client.zip

When that is complete let us unzip the contents we just downloaded so we can actually use it.

You may need to first download unzip so try sudo apt-get install unzip if you don’t already have it.

Unzip the file using the command:

unzip ardor-client.zip

Now you will have a folder called “Ardor” within the folder you just unzipped your .zip file. Go into the Ardor folder using the cd command:

cd ardor

Cool, now that you are in the Ardor folder lets run the Ardor server using the following command:

./run.sh

Now behold in all its glory the Ardor server running within Ubuntu on Windows using WSL.

Beautiful isn't it? It makes me smile.

Now open your web browser and browse to http://localhost:27876/index.html

If all was successful you should be greeted with the Ardor GUI as seen below:

From here you are able to securely interface with the Ardor platform and all of it’s supported child chains, including the Bitswift blockchain and its related digital assets. You can use features like the decentralized exchange, and participate in the new token economy through your own node running on Linux from within Windows without much time or effort.

This concludes this edition of Things to do while in Quarantine.

Join us in the next episode where we dive deep into setting up our newly wedded Linux Windows mutant ninja node to earn free Ignis rewards via Smart Contract on the Ardor platform.

Peace!

• Bitswift

Disclaimer: I may or may not have been stuck inside too long.