Microsoft will soon add a built-in “sudo” command designed for developers to Windows 11. Sudo is an abbreviation for “make superuser” and is widely used in Unix-based operating systems such as Linux and macOS to run programs or as another user with higher security privileges. For example, it is useful for developers who want to test scripts.
Microsoft uses sudo in Windows to allow developers to run elevated tools directly from a non-elevated console session. “It’s an ergonomic and familiar solution for users to elevate a command they want to upgrade before opening a new upgraded console,” said Microsoft product manager Jordi Adoumie. says.
Microsoft adds “sudo” command for developers to Windows 11
Sudo is currently being tested as part of the latest Canary build of Windows 11, so it won’t be available until regular Windows 11 releases later this year. Microsoft will allow the sudo command to be configured in three modes: new window, login disabled, and inline. The mode most similar to Linux’s sudo is inline, while the other modes lock and limit things more.
“In the coming months, we will be working on expanding the sudo documentation for Windows and sharing more details about the security implications of running sudo in an ‘Inline’ configuration,” Adoumie says.
Microsoft is also open-sourcing this sudo project on GitHub and plans to share more information about sudo plans in the coming months.
The addition of sudo comes years after Microsoft fully embraced Linux by shipping a full Linux kernel in Windows 10. Additionally, the software giant has previously brought the Bash shell to Windows, native OpenSSH on Windows 10, and even brought Ubuntu, SUSE Linux, and Fedora to the Windows Store.