China Abandons Windows for Linux: Technological Sovereignty

A few months ago we wrote here about how France and Germany were starting to replace their Windows and Office 365 workstations with free software alternatives. Many people read it as a symbolic, almost anecdotal gesture. The news coming out of China these days confirms that the trend is far more serious than it seemed: technological sovereignty has stopped being an ideological debate and has become a matter of national and business security.

China brings forward the farewell to Windows 10: what happened?

According to ElHacker.NET, the Chinese government has decided to bring forward the replacement of Windows 10 in several public bodies: the schedule originally set for February 2027 has been moved to the end of this very year, 2026. In its place, computers will move to Linux distributions developed in the country itself, such as KylinOS, openKylin or UnionTech OS (UOS), while Huawei keeps polishing HarmonyOS for desktop as a medium-term alternative.

Europe was already ahead: France and Germany lead the way

It is no coincidence that this happens right after countries such as France (with the migration of 2.5 million public workstations to Linux) or Germany (with its own “Deutschland-Stack” and the Schleswig-Holstein precedent) decided to take the step, as we told in our article on France and its commitment to free software (in Spanish). Denmark and Italy are moving at a similar pace. The pattern is increasingly clear: governments with very different political leanings are reaching the same conclusion.

Why depending on the US is a risk, not just an ideological issue

The conclusion is simple, though uncomfortable for those who have spent years selling us the convenience of “everything in the same old cloud”: depending on a handful of US companies for the critical infrastructure of a country (or a company) also means delegating security, service continuity and, ultimately, part of your sovereignty. Today those companies are reliable providers; tomorrow they may become the target of a large-scale cyberattack, a piece in a trade conflict, or simply the excuse for a political blockade that leaves thousands of administrations and companies without licenses, updates or support overnight.

The lesson for Spain and for any company

At Sinologic we have been insisting on the same thing for years from the world of telephony and communications: the more we control our own infrastructure (with Asterisk, Kamailio, Linux or any other piece of free software), the less we depend on decisions taken out of our hands. What until recently looked like an ideological question or a matter of cost savings is turning out to be pure risk management.

Is this the beginning of the end of Microsoft’s monopoly in public administrations, or will it remain a minority trend limited to a few brave countries? We have our own opinion, but we are much more interested in yours: do you think Spain should take note of what France, Germany and now China are doing? We read you in the comments.