Why one of Europe's biggest governments is abandoning Windows for Linux

Summary

• France will migrate many government systems from Windows to Linux to reduce reliance on U.S. tech.
• The move aims to regain digital sovereignty and avoid dependence on U.S. laws and firms.
• Plans include migrating the health data platform to a trusted EU/open-source option by the end of 2026.

It seems someone in the French government has had a similar idea to some of our own writers here at MUO. That’s because the country has announced that it will start moving many of its government computer systems away from Windows and instead look to embrace Linux as a way to minimize reliance on U.S. technology.

Getting away from Windows and taking back control

Relying on U.S. tech just isn’t feasible anymore

This move is part of a new announcement from DINUM, France's interministerial digital directorate. According to the translated statements shared within the announcement, the French Minister of Action and Public Accounts says that France “must desensitize ourselves from American tools and regain control of our digital destiny.” And that the state can no longer “accept that our data, our infrastructures and our strategic decisions depend on solutions whose rules, prices, developments and risks we have no control over.”

According to TechCrunch, this is the French government’s latest attempt to move away from U.S.-based technology, as earlier this year it also stopped using Microsoft Teams amid the growing instability the world is seeing amid ongoing global events, such as the US/Israel-Iran war.

Now more than ever, leaving control of your technical access in the hands of a U.S.-based company that is susceptible to U.S. laws may not seem like the greatest idea for other governments, which is why moving to a system that not only originates within the European borders, but also is open-source, makes sense more than ever.

Linux is a sanctuary for ex-Windows and Mac users alike

Linux offers an open-source alternative that puts more control in the user’s hands

Now, we’ve talked extensively about why Linux is a good alternative to Windows here on MUO, so it probably shouldn’t come as much of a surprise that we can fully understand why the French government would want to make this move. In fact, it’s become even easier to switch from Windows to Linux as new repositories have come out and been improved.

Like any operating system change, though, it will take some getting used to. But the fact that the code is all open-sourced, and there are so many different Linux versions, means there’s no big corporation that can control exactly how you use it. This is one of the biggest perks.

It puts even more control directly in the hands of the people using it — in this case, the French government — which will undoubtedly help remove some of the worry they might have when using U.S.-based technology like Windows. There’s also the fact that most of Europe has different privacy laws to follow compared to the U.S., and while U.S.-based companies do have to follow those laws, too, moving to an open-source product that already likely meets many of those standards just takes another obstacle out of the way.

On top of migrating most of its government systems and workstations to Linux, the French government also says that it plans to migrate its health data platform to a new trusted option by the end of 2026. Exactly how any of this might affect regular, everyday people is unclear at the moment.