WinBoat 0.9.0 released
Winboat has released its latest iteration, 0.9.0, which is generally considered an important point in its development journey as an Electron app designed to run Windows applications on Linux using containerization technology. Its core approach involves placing a Windows environment inside Docker or Podman containers, creating a bridge between the host system and the guest OS via the Winboat Guest Server for communication.
A key change this time is support for both Docker and Podman during setup. While USB passthrough isn't currently available on Podman, you have that choice now when installing. The update also brought several helpful improvements to daily use, like UWP app support, which gets you access to basically all your Windows Store apps running in compatibility modes.
There's another flexibility boost too: modifying existing applications directly within the Winboat setup is now possible. This isn't just a neat trick; it means you can customize how an app behaves right inside its container environment. And navigating those applications got simpler with the addition of filtering for context menu launches in this release.
Looking at configuration options, version 0.9.0 allows adjustments specifically for application scaling settings and lets users modify FreeRDP arguments, things that help tailor the RemoteApp experience just right. There's also a new wm-class prefix feature now available; if you're familiar with customizing your window manager (WM), this gives you more precise control over how Winboat presents its windows.
Beyond these core features, other refinements were included, like setting up automatic synchronization of Windows clocks on system startup and making the default install location inside the user's home directory (~/winboat) cleaner. For users hitting certain graphical glitches possibly related to motion or compositor interactions, there's now an option to disable those animations within Winboat itself.
The development team didn't just focus on new additions though; several known problems have been sorted out too. The development team fixed CPU usage spikes when enabling RDP monitoring and resolved the auto-unmounting issue with custom ISOs after installation. Typos peppered throughout earlier builds are cleaned up now for a smoother interaction.
This latest release saw an upgrade to Docker/Windows version 5.14 underneath its Electron shell, bringing more stability and performance benefits, as you might expect from such internal improvements. And crucially, all Winboat instances now bind their connections by default to 127.0.0.1, significantly boosting their security posture.
These changes together enhance how effectively you can manage Windows applications on Linux systems using containerization, making the overall process more adaptable and secure.
The complete release announcement and download can be accessed via the GitHub page linked below:
Release WinBoat v0.9.0
Release v0.9.0
Features:
Podman is now supported, you can pick it during installation, however USB passthrough on Podman is not supported yet UWP app support has been added, now you can see ...
