Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Computing
  3. Business
  4. News

Microsoft demonstrates its commitment to open source by joining Linux Foundation

Add as a preferred source on Google

Microsoft has gone through a number of massive changes since it began transitioning from the Windows company to the “cloud-first, mobile-first” productivity solutions company. For one thing, it has gone cross-platform with its applications, supporting iOS and Android along with Windows. For another, it has embraced open source in a way that would have been inconceivable just a few years ago.

One beneficiary of Microsoft newfound respect for open source software has been Linux, which for the longest time was considered an almost evil movement that went against Microsoft commitment to proprietary software. Now, Microsoft provides significant support for Linux and on Wednesday, the company announced it joined the Linux Foundation as a platinum member, Ars Technica reports.

Recommended Videos

Microsoft’s support for Linux is not quite as robust in terms of its productivity solutions — for example, there is no Office 365 for Linux as of yet. Instead, Microsoft aimed more at supporting developers and organizations that use Linux. One example is building a Linux subsystem into Windows 10 that was officially introduced at Microsoft’s Build 2016 event. Another example is supporting SQL Server for Linux and the Docker open source container platform.

By joining the Linux Foundation, Microsoft can hope to meet head-on some of the skepticism that has surrounded its recent support of Linux. As Jim Zemlin, executive director of the Linux Foundation, says, “Microsoft is better able to collaborate with the open source community to deliver transformative mobile and cloud experiences to more people.” It is likely that taking a more active role in the Linux community will demonstrate Microsoft’s commitment to open source in a way that merely offering software that works with it can accomplish.

In a Microsoft blog post announcing the move, Cloud and Enterprise Executive Vice President Scott Guthrie said, “We want to help developers achieve more and capitalize on the industry’s shift toward cloud-first and mobile-first experiences using the tools and platforms of their choice. By collaborating with the community to provide open, flexible and intelligent tools and cloud services, we’re helping every developer deliver unprecedented levels of innovation.”

Clearly, the company recognizes the importance of open source software generally, and Linux specifically, to developers. Highly visible actions like joining the Linux Foundation should work hand in hand with efforts closer to the ground such as improving Hyper-V support for Linux to convince the community Microsoft is serious in its new approach to open source. It is now obvious that being a fan of Microsoft no longer means being anti-Linux.

Mark Coppock
Former Computing Writer
Mark Coppock is a Freelance Writer at Digital Trends covering primarily laptop and other computing technologies. He has…
A broken Galaxy Fold 5 just became the Pixel desktop future I want Google to steal
A broken Galaxy Fold 5 became a tiny PC because Samsung already built the desktop mode Google keeps treating like a side quest.
Desktop mode within Android 16.

A broken Galaxy Fold 5 should be a sad little monument to modern gadget math. One busted outer display, one repair bill nobody wants to inspect too closely, and suddenly a powerful foldable starts heading toward a drawer. Instead, a Redditor turned one into a glowing acrylic DeX box with spare parts, fans, a USB hub, and the kind of LED lighting that makes every homebrew computer look mildly illegal.

https://www.reddit.com/r/SamsungDex/comments/1upica7/fold_5_dexbox/

Read more
You’ll finally be able to try OpenAI’s GPT-5.6 Sol, Terra, and Luna models this week
The GPT-5.6 family will become publicly available on July 9, ending the restricted preview that lasted nearly two weeks.
OpenAI Sol Terra Luna featured

OpenAI is ready to expand access to its latest GPT-5.6 model family. In a recent post on X, the company confirmed that GPT-5.6 Sol, Terra, and Luna will become publicly available on Thursday, July 9. If you've been itching to try the new models since the limited preview began in late June, you won't have to wait much longer.

Why the rollout took longer than expected

Read more
A Windows 11 bug may be quietly eating hundreds of gigabytes of your storage
Windows 11’s storage-eating bug now has a fix from Microsoft
Windows 11 suffering from RAM crisis

If your Windows 11 PC suddenly looks low on storage, your downloads folder or game library may not be the problem. According to Windows Latest, a bug tied to a Windows system file can silently consume tens or even hundreds of gigabytes on the system drive.

The file in question is called CapabilityAccessManager.db-wal, and it sits inside Windows’ Capability Access Manager folder. Windows Latest says the issue may appear as unusually high “System files” usage in Windows 11’s storage breakdown, even though the Settings app does not clearly identify the exact file responsible. In some reported cases, users saw it grow to 200GB, and even more.

Read more