Can a PC with a Linux OS (no Windows) run Windows .exe programs?

krs

I didn't think so, but now I see .exe applications that supposedly run on Linux as well.

And if Linux can run .exe files, how does it protect itself from malware which often is a Windows executable?

gordguide

Linux users have the option of using WINE to run Windows Executable files without the Windows OS installed. However, the number of apps that it works with is limited.

As far as the virus or malware threat goes, it's pretty limited since there is no Windows system to infect it simply won't work. Security researchers routinely use Linux, MacOS and virtual machines to examine Windows malware with nearly complete safety, which helps them counter the threat quickly.

There is a theoretical risk that a nasty app may be targeting Linux (for example) but uses the .exe extension so as to pretend to be a Windows app. Still, the risk of infection is low; few Linux people would run it at all once they recognized the extension. Malware generally does not target the most scattered, obscure users but instead attempts to infect the maximum number of computers before countermeasures render it ineffective.

__________________
"Being an artist doesn't take much, just everything you got. Which means, of course, that as the process is giving you life, it is also bringing you closer to death. But it's no big deal. They are one and the same and cannot be avoided or denied. So when I totally embrace this process, this life/death, and abandon myself to it, I transcend all this gibberish and hang out with the gods. It seems to me that that is worth the price of admission." —Hubert Selby, Jr.

krs

I was specifically wondering about this program
Cute Partition Manager - An advanced partition manager

It sounds as if you can install and use it with a regular Linux box, but the application is a .exe file.

gordguide

Well, it just sounds like someone either didn't do their homework or something is funny about the app.

I downloaded it and opened it in BBEdit and the very first line is:

Note: I tried to copy the actual code as well, but some characters apparently fight with vBullitin because it wouldn't display the text, even with a CODE wrap around it. So, you get just the header without some code that proceeded it.

UPDATE: From the help files, it looks like it must run on a Windows system. However, once you run the self-extracting exe file in Windows, you can create a boot floppy or CD/DVD; in other words you need a Windows system to create the boot disk, but you could boot from that disk on any x86 system (might require BIOS support though) and modify partitions. It may support Linux file types, which is where I would guess the confusion about what OS it runs on comes from.

It most certainly doesn't run in Linux but it probably can create partitions that you could then use to install Linux on a PC. Although every Linux distro has the same thing, and so does every Windows boot floppy. I suppose it has features these others lack.

__________________
"Being an artist doesn't take much, just everything you got. Which means, of course, that as the process is giving you life, it is also bringing you closer to death. But it's no big deal. They are one and the same and cannot be avoided or denied. So when I totally embrace this process, this life/death, and abandon myself to it, I transcend all this gibberish and hang out with the gods. It seems to me that that is worth the price of admission." —Hubert Selby, Jr.