Part 3: Method 1 – Running the EXE with Wine (Not Converting, But Running)

You can skip the “DEB” part entirely if you just want to use the application.

wine your-windows-app.exe

Wine creates a virtual C: drive (~/.wine/drive_c/). Many applications work perfectly—older versions of Microsoft Office, Photoshop CS6, Notepad++, games, etc.

But you want a .deb file, so let's proceed.

How To Convert Exe To Deb [new]

Here’s a helpful write‑up on converting .exe files to .deb packages.

Important upfront: You cannot directly convert an .exe (Windows executable) into a .deb (Debian/Ubuntu package) and expect it to run natively. Windows and Linux use different binary formats, system calls, and libraries.

However, if your goal is to package a Windows application so it installs like a .deb and runs via compatibility layers, here’s how to approach it.

Part 3: Method 1 – Running the EXE with Wine (Not Converting, But Running)

You can skip the “DEB” part entirely if you just want to use the application.

wine your-windows-app.exe

Wine creates a virtual C: drive (~/.wine/drive_c/). Many applications work perfectly—older versions of Microsoft Office, Photoshop CS6, Notepad++, games, etc.

But you want a .deb file, so let's proceed.

How to Convert an EXE to a DEB Package (Windows to Linux Installer)

Target Audience: Linux beginners, sysadmins, and developers who need to run Windows software on Debian/Ubuntu systems.

Method 2: Use Existing Tools (Easier for Simple EXEs)

Step 2.2: Verify Installation

wine --version

You should see something like wine-8.0 or newer.

Now you have a Windows compatibility environment inside your Linux system.