[WSL] Remote connection unstable – “Open Folder” infinite loading + extension host never starts (NoResolverFound / transport provider)

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Hello,

I’m experiencing a blocking issue when using Cursor with WSL (Windows 11 + Ubuntu). The problem appears to be related to the remote connection / extension host layer rather than the project itself or WSL.

:puzzle_piece: Environment

  • Windows 11

  • WSL2 (Ubuntu)

  • Cursor version: 3.1.17 (also tested with downgrade to 2.x)

  • No apparent networking issues in WSL

:cross_mark: Issue

When opening a project in WSL via Cursor:

  • Connection to WSL is successfully established

  • The Cursor server (cursor-server) responds correctly

  • HOWEVER:

    • “Open Folder” loads indefinitely

    • Files never appear in the explorer

    • The UI stays empty

    • The remote connection keeps reconnecting in a loop

:pushpin: Relevant logs

Key errors observed:

  • No remote extension installed to resolve wsl

  • No Connect transport provider registered

  • The remote extension host took longer than 60s to send its ready message

  • socket close event (code: 1006)

  • Unable to create workbench contribution 'remoteTerminalBackend' (already registered)

:magnifying_glass_tilted_left: Observations

  • HTTP connection to 127.0.0.1 works (cursor-server is running)

  • WSL networking is working correctly (ip addr OK)

  • The issue seems to occur during remote extension host initialization

:test_tube: Troubleshooting steps already tried

I’ve already attempted the following without success:

  • Full reinstall of Cursor

  • Deleting:

    • ~/.cursor-server

    • %AppData%/Cursor

    • .cursor

  • wsl --shutdown

  • Disabling all extensions

  • Testing with an empty folder

  • Running with cursor --classic

  • Downgrading to Cursor 2.x

  • Verifying WSL networking

  • Opening from WSL terminal using cursor . (sometimes works better but still unstable)

:white_check_mark: What works

  • WSL itself works correctly

  • File navigation in terminal is fine

  • cursor-server is reachable and responds

:red_question_mark: Hypothesis

The issue seems related to:

  • the remote transport layer

  • or the WSL resolver

  • or the remote extension host failing to initialize properly

:folded_hands: Question

Is this a known issue with WSL on recent Cursor versions?
Is there a recommended workaround or stable version to avoid this problem?

Thanks in advance for your help.