Open Source Unix Shell Emulators for Windows

Lakka is a lightweight Linux distribution that transforms a small computer into a full-blown emulation console. Built on top of the famous RetroArch emulator, Lakka is able to emulate a large range of hardware and has some useful features such as Braid-like rewinding, joypad hotplug, and video streaming. Lakka is easy to set up and use. Once installed on your SD card, you just have to put your ROM on the card, plug your joypad, and enjoy your favorite old games. We also support PS3 and XBox360 controllers so you don't have to buy new ones. We try our best to keep the hardware required to run Lakka as cheap as possible. The software is optimized to run fast even on low-end computers. The power can be supplied by any micro USB adapter like the one for your smartphone.

Wubi is an officially supported Ubuntu installer for Windows users that can bring you to the Linux world with a single click. The website has moved to http://www.ubuntu.com/desktop/get-ubuntu/windows-installer, where you can find the latest release.

Be warned this project was discontinued in 2013 and has not been updated in years.

CYGNIX means "CYGnus pseudo-uNIX". It is a pseudo-UNIX environment based on CygWin. It's tiny and not meant to be a full featured CygWin developing environment. CygNix is ideal for Unix users who sometimes have to do some routine works on Windows.

RPM (RedHat Package Manager) and a collection of GNU / freeware tools in RPM format for Cygwin Posix emulation layer (http://sourceware.cygnus.com/cygwin) for Windows 95/98/NT/2000

EmuExec is the right answer to make emulation on linux as simple as possible. But it is more than a simple multisystem frontend, you just have to see it by yourself.

OpenXCI is a Xen-based desktop hypervisor. Unlike other desktop hypervisors, it is not targeted at businesses wanting remote provisioning, but rather at individuals who want a high-performance alternative to dual/multi-booting.

PW32 is primarily C runtime library for Win32 aiming to POSIX compliance. Its main concerns are effeciency and support even for low-end Win9x systems. LGPL. Also, PW32 is collection of ported software, aiming to be GNU (etc.) distribution for Win32.