Customizing Your WSA Installation

2026-03-14·6 min read

#wsa#customize#magisk#kernelsu

Google AdSense

How Customizable Is WSA?

Quite. Because the subsystem is a normal AOSP image, you can swap GApps packages, add root solutions, and change properties the same way you would on a phone.

GApps Variants

MindTheGapps 13 — full Google stack (default in WSA Installer)
NoGApps — no Google services, lightest option
NikGApps / BitGApps — alternative GApps builds with different app sets

Root: Magisk vs KernelSU

MagiskOnWSALocal is the standard root path WSA Installer uses for Play Store patching. Advanced users can swap to KernelSU for a kernel-level root manager with different module support.

Useful Properties

setprop persist.wsa.rooted 1
setprop debug.wsa.gpu 1

Rooting changes the security model. Only root if you understand the implications; WSA Installer's default patched build is sufficient for most users.

Themes & Launchers

Install any Android launcher from the Play Store to reskin the subsystem. WSA itself has no theme engine, but your launcher controls the look entirely.

Google AdSense

#wsa#play-store#gapps

2026-03-08 · 7 min read

Patching Google Play Store onto WSA

MindTheGapps 13 + MagiskOnWSALocal: how WSA Installer brings the full Play Store catalog to your subsystem.

#wsa#android#windows

2026-03-12 · 5 min read

What Is Windows Subsystem for Android (WSA)?

A plain-language introduction to WSA: what it is, why Microsoft built it, and how it lets you run Android apps on Windows 11.

#wsa#architecture#android

2026-03-15 · 8 min read

How Windows Subsystem for Android Actually Works

A technical walkthrough of the WSA stack: the AOSP runtime, the libhoudini/llvmpipe translation layer, init, and how Android apps become Windows windows.

← Back to all posts