Linux Gains Native NTFS Driver: 110% Write Speed Boost and What It Means for WSL Users

Merge event

On 21 April 2026 Linus Torvalds merged a new NTFS driver into the Linux 7.1 mainline kernel, naming it “NTFS Resurrection”.

Historical context

1993 – First NTFS driver for Linux, read‑only only.

2000s – NTFS‑3G (FUSE) became the de‑facto solution but suffered poor performance.

2020 – Paragon contributed the NTFS3 kernel driver with read‑write support; maintenance later stalled.

2022‑2026 – Developer Namjae Jeon spent four years refactoring the driver.

2026‑04‑21 – Linus merged the refactored driver into Linux 7.1.

Performance data

Multi‑threaded write throughput improves by 35 % – 110 % over the previous driver.

Mounting a 4 TB (or larger) disk is up to 4× faster .

xfstests suite: 326 tests passed (previously only average pass rate).

Code base cleaned to ~36 000 lines , improving maintainability.

Copying a large file that previously took about ten minutes now finishes in five minutes or less.

Core improvements

Full write support : file creation, modification, deletion; directory operations; extended attributes; symbolic and hard links; handling of compression and encryption attributes.

Multi‑threaded I/O path optimisation : deep optimisation of the I/O path is the primary reason for the 35 %‑110 % speed gain.

Large‑disk handling : four‑fold speed increase when mounting disks larger than 4 TB.

Higher code quality : extensive refactor to >36 000 lines, passed strict kernel code review.

Impact on WSL 2

WSL 2 runs a Microsoft‑maintained Linux kernel; the /mnt/c mount point still relies on the kernel’s NTFS driver. The new driver will benefit WSL after Microsoft back‑ports it to the WSL kernel branch.

Accessing Windows C/D drives from WSL – indirect benefit after Microsoft updates the WSL kernel.

Mounting external NTFS drives in WSL – direct benefit after back‑port.

Dual‑boot Ubuntu accessing NTFS partitions – direct benefit once Linux 7.1 is used.

Docker Desktop on WSL 2 – indirect benefit, contingent on the WSL kernel version.

Checking the WSL kernel version

# Enter WSL
wsl
# Show kernel version
uname -r

Typical output (newer versions):

6.12.87.2-microsoft-standard-WSL2

6.12.87

– based on Linux 6.12. microsoft – Microsoft‑custom identifier. standard-WSL2 – standard WSL 2 kernel.

Updating the WSL kernel

Via Windows Update (automatic).

Manually trigger update: wsl --update.

Install preview build: wsl --update --pre-release.

After updating, restart WSL: wsl --shutdown then wsl .

WSL kernel artifacts

Source repository: https://github.com/microsoft/WSL2-Linux-Kernel Release notes: https://learn.microsoft.com/windows/wsl/kernel-release-notes Main repository: https://github.com/microsoft/WSL Insider channel:

https://insider.windows.com

Typical update flow

Upstream Linux releases a new version → Microsoft starts back‑porting.

Source and new kernel package appear on GitHub.

After verification, the build is pushed to the Windows Insider channel.

Finally, Windows Update distributes the kernel to all users.

Rollout path for the NTFS driver:

Linux 7.1 merge (April 2026)
  ↓ ~1‑3 months
Microsoft back‑ports to WSL kernel branch
  ↓ ~1‑2 months testing
Windows Insider preview channel
  ↓ ~1‑2 months stabilization
Windows Update full push
  ↓
WSL users finally get the new driver 🎉

Estimated availability: Q3 2026.

Ubuntu 26.04 LTS considerations

Ubuntu 26.04 LTS ships with Linux 7.0, so it does not include the new driver.

Short‑term: install the Linux 7.1 RC or final kernel via a PPA or manual compilation.

Mid‑term: Ubuntu 26.04’s HWE stack will upgrade the kernel in a later point release.

Long‑term: Ubuntu 26.04.1 (≈late 2026) or 26.04.2 is expected to ship Linux 7.1.

Example commands for installing a newer kernel via PPA (when available):

# Add the mainline kernel PPA (example)
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:canonical-kernel-team/ppa
sudo apt update
# Install the latest 7.1 kernel package
sudo apt install linux-image-7.1.*
# Verify after reboot
uname -r

Conclusion

After three decades of limited NTFS support, Linux now offers a robust, high‑performance native NTFS read‑write driver, thanks to four years of dedicated refactoring by Namjae Jeon and Linus Torvalds’ endorsement. This enables reliable NTFS access for dual‑boot users and, after Microsoft back‑ports, for WSL 2 users as well.