Nov 13, 2016

How to run Epiphany (Web) Browser in Windows 10 with WSL

Epiphany (Web) is a lightweight Linux-only web browser based on the modern WebKit engine, and it is the default web browser in GNOME desktop environment. However, now you can run it natively in Windows 10, thanks to the Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) and the Xming X server for Windows.

Here is how to install Epiphany 3.12 in Windows 10:
  1. Install Windows Subsystem for Linux and reboot the computer
  2. Install Xming X server for Windows
  3. Open Windows Command Prompt and run: bash
  4. Run these commands in bash:
    sudo apt-get install software-properties-common
    sudo add-apt-repository ppa:gnome3-team/gnome3
    sudo add-apt-repository ppa:gnome3-team/gnome3-staging
    sudo apt-get update
    sudo apt-get upgrade
    sudo apt-get install epiphany-browser gnome-keyring gnome-themes-standard
    sudo sed -i 's/<listen>.*<\/listen>/<listen>tcp:host=localhost,port=0<\/listen>/' /etc/dbus-1/session.conf
    sudo sed -i 's/Ambiance/Adwaita/' /etc/gtk-3.0/settings.ini
  5. Right-click on your desktop and create a new shortcut for the following item:
    bash -c "DISPLAY=:0 NO_AT_BRIDGE=1 epiphany-browser"
    with the following icon (click it to download the ico file):
    Epiphany web browser icon
  6. Check if Xming is running in the system tray and double-click the newly created shortcut. Epiphany window should appear:
Epiphany 3.12 web browser on Windows 10

Epiphany (Web) browser 3.12 on Windows 10 is using WebKitGTK+ 2.4, which scores 318 points in HTML5 Test.

UPDATE: By upgrading the WSL from Ubuntu 14.04 to 16.04, you can have the latest Epiphany 3.20 using WebKitGTK+ 2.14 on Windows 10, which scores 386 points in HTML5 Test:

Epiphany 3.20 web browser on Windows 10