docs: replace stale WSL2 references with Hyper-V Linux VM for the serve path#78
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…ve path
The Linux-job dispatch worker on Windows moved from a WSL2 distro to a
Hyper-V Linux VM (HCS via vmcompute.dll) some time back; the docs still
described the WSL2 architecture. The motivation, from the code comment
in pkg/vm/linuxvm_windows.go: WSL2 has no LocalSystem support, so the
installed Windows service couldn't manage WSL distros. Hyper-V Compute
Service has no such restriction.
This pass updates the user-facing pages and the architecture docs that
describe the `serve` daemon path. Specifically left alone:
* docs/cli/run.md, doctor.md, uninstall.md still mention WSL because
the `ephemerd run` one-shot CLI uses pkg/vm/wslrun_windows.go,
which is genuinely a temporary WSL distro and hasn't migrated.
* docs/_archived/ is intentionally archived and stays as-is.
Updates by file:
docs/guides/how-it-works.md
Windows section rewritten end-to-end (prose + Mermaid + Dual-Purpose
Hosts table); same-page "One Image, Every Host" and "Resource
planning" tweaks.
docs/architecture/windows-wsl-dispatch.md
Page title becomes "Windows Hyper-V Dispatch"; added aliases so the
old URL keeps working. Filename intentionally unchanged to keep
inbound links + the {{< relref >}} cross-references valid. Body
rewritten — added "Why a Hyper-V VM (not WSL2)" section explaining
the LocalSystem motivation. Old WSL-specific lifecycle replaced
with the Hyper-V Compute Service / KernelDirect / VHDX flow.
docs/architecture/overview.md
Dual-purpose + build-matrix tables, plus the cross-link text.
docs/architecture/embedded-containerd.md
TCP-listener purpose + Windows-host-to-in-VM containerd note.
docs/architecture/macos-vms.md
"Unlike Windows WSL dispatch" → "Unlike Windows Hyper-V dispatch".
docs/architecture/multi-forge-providers.md
"WSL dispatch" → "Hyper-V Linux VM dispatch" in the
provider-agnostic list.
docs/architecture/forgejo-gitea.md
Mermaid host subgraph label + lifecycle prose + Windows row in the
container-runtime table.
docs/architecture/pre-baked-rootfs.md
Reframed: the rootfs is still pre-baked, but it goes into the
Hyper-V VM initrd / Vz initrd. The temporary WSL distro `ephemerd
run` creates still benefits from the same rootfs.
docs/architecture/cri-passthrough.md
Replaced "WSL-to-Windows" debugging tip with the in-VM equivalent
(the WSL one-liner doesn't apply any more).
docs/getting-started/configuration.md
Resource-planning note + the "what does enabled: true do" sentence.
docs/cli/serve.md
--containerd-tcp-port / --containerd-only descriptions + the
"wait for Linux dispatcher" startup step + the example command.
docs/guides/providers.md, docs/guides/runner-images.md,
docs/contributing/dev-setup.md, docs/contributing/project-layout.md
One-line replacements.
No code changes. mage ci not required for docs-only changes; Hugo
render check passes locally on the touched pages.
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Why
The Linux-job dispatch worker on Windows moved from a WSL2 distro to a Hyper-V Linux VM (HCS via
vmcompute.dll) at some point and the docs still described the WSL2 architecture. Spotted on https://ephemerd.ephpm.dev/guides/how-it-works/ — but the same stale framing was scattered across the architecture docs, CLI reference, and getting-started pages.Motivation for the migration, captured in code:
That sentence is now in the docs too.
What's in vs. out of scope
Updated (the `serve` daemon path on Windows):
Intentionally NOT updated:
Test plan
Followups if you spot more drift: another
wslgrep across docs/ surfaces some `run`-mode + cleanup mentions that I left in place because they're still correct — happy to revisit if the `run` command itself migrates to Hyper-V too.