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🐧 WSL + Fish Shell Setup Notes

2 min read

Manage WSL Distribution

wsl -l -v                       # List all installed distros with version
wsl --unregister Ubuntu         # Remove old Ubuntu instance (⚠️ data loss)
wsl --install -d Ubuntu-24.04   # Install fresh Ubuntu
wsl -s Ubuntu-24.04             # Set Ubuntu as default distro

Check Default Shell

echo $SHELL                     # Show current shell
cat /etc/shells                 # List available shells

Update & Upgrade Packages

sudo apt update
sudo apt upgrade -y

Install Fish Shell + Useful Tools

sudo apt install fish -y
sudo apt install w3m -y         # Terminal web browser (for fish_config preview)

Register Fish in Available Shells

cat /etc/shells                 # Verify fish is listed (usually /usr/bin/fish)

Switch to Fish

fish                            # Start fish session
chsh -s /usr/bin/fish           # Set fish as default login shell

⚠️ In WSL, chsh sometimes doesn’t persist. If it doesn’t stick:

  • Create/edit ~/.wslconfig (Windows side) or use a .profile hack to auto-start fish.

Verify Installed Packages Count

grep -i "installed" /var/log/dpkg.log | wc -l

Configure Fish

fish_config

  • Opens a web UI (served locally).

  • Requires w3m or browser to preview themes.

  • Configure prompt, colors, completions, etc.

Install & Configure Zoxide (Optional but Recommended)

curl -sSfL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/ajeetdsouza/zoxide/main/install.sh | sh
  • Add to the end of your Fish config (~/.config/fish/config.fish):
zoxide init fish | source

Install FZF (Optional for Zoxide Completions)

sudo apt install fzf

  • FZF provides fuzzy search for directory navigation and works with Zoxide for interactive selection.

  • Ensure the above zoxide init fish | source is in your config for seamless integration.

✅ Next Steps / Tips

  • Install Fisher (plugin manager for fish):
curl -sL https://git.io/fisher | source && fisher install jorgebucaran/fisher

  • Popular plugins: jorgebucaran/nvm.fish, ilancosman/tide (prompt), patrickf1/fzf.fish.

  • Set aliases/functions in ~/.config/fish/config.fish.

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