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I am using Windows 10's WSL feature to run Ubuntu 16.04.

Although WSL is meant for terminal apps and has no official GUI support from MS, the community enjoying this feature quickly started running Ubuntu GUI apps on their Windows desktop using 3rd party Windows X servers such as vcxsrv.

I have done this successfully, using vcxsrv. However, I have a 3240x2160 hi-DPI laptop, and these applications' fonts end up looking blurry. Here is an example of Sublime Text 3 running on Ubuntu, side-by-side with Notepad++ running on Windows. Zoom in if it's not obvious.

I am asking how I can fix the DPI scaling or whatever is causing this, in order to have my Ubuntu GUI apps looking crisp like my Windows apps.

What I tried

  1. ran vcxsrv with the flag -dpi 2, -dpi 216, -dpi 400, and -dpi auto with no seeming effect.

  2. I tried going into the GUI toolkits' own DPI settings, hoping I'd at least get SOME apps fixed on a case-by-case basis.

    1. Ran gsettings set org.gnome.desktop.interface scaling-factor 2: this had no affect on the GTK app Meld
    2. Set the Qt environment variable QT_AUTO_SCREEN_SCALE_FACTOR=2: this had no effect on the Qt app Quassel
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    I think we are lucky to have GUI running in WSL with VcXsrv in the first place. I too have noticed lack of hdpi in some gueys. IIRC VcXsrv has some plans for better hdpci support but don't quote me on that. Jan 26, 2018 at 3:38
  • You probably need to change something from Windows side. Did you try the new "Override System DPI Scaling" options inside Compability tab in VcXsrv.exe Properties?
    – onoma
    Jan 29, 2018 at 16:15

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