France migrates 2.5M government workstations from Windows to Linux
Original: France ditches Windows for Linux to move away from American tools, mirroring a shift in India
Why This Matters
Growing trend of digital sovereignty as nations reduce dependence on US tech giants
France announced migration of 2.5 million government workstations from Microsoft Windows to Linux, citing need for control over data and strategic decisions. Move follows India's similar shift to domestic software like Zoho Mail in 2025.
French budget minister David Amiel stated the country can no longer accept dependence on solutions whose rules, pricing, and risks they do not control. The switch begins with France's digital agency DINUM. India made similar moves in 2025, with ministers Amit Shah and Ashwini Vaishnaw switching to Zoho Mail and documents suite. India's education ministry mandated Zoho Office Suite for official documentation, migrating 1.2 million government email accounts. European nations are increasingly prioritizing digital sovereignty amid geopolitical concerns. Germany's Schleswig-Holstein migrated 44,000 employee inboxes from Microsoft to open-source alternatives, while Austrian military dropped Microsoft Office for open-source software. India spent Rs 1,200 crore on foreign software licenses in 2025 alone.