France has begun replacing Windows with Linux through DINUM, expanding open-source tools across communications, productivity, and cloud systems to cut reliance on US vendors and strengthen digital sovereignty.
France has formally launched one of Europe’s most significant open-source public-sector migrations, with its Interministerial Directorate for Digital Affairs (DINUM) beginning the transition from Microsoft Windows to Linux across key government systems.
The move places open-source Linux at the core of France’s sovereign computing strategy, as the government works to reduce dependence on “extra-European” technology providers, particularly US vendors. Far beyond an operating system replacement, the programme spans eight critical digital layers: workstations, collaboration tools, cybersecurity, AI systems, databases, cloud and virtualisation, networks, and the broader software stack.
The collaboration layer is already shifting. Microsoft Teams is being replaced by Visio, a French video platform built on the open-source Jitsi framework, while secure government messaging is moving to Tchap, the state’s sovereign communications stack. France is also rolling out La Suite Numérique, an open-source productivity suite designed to replace proprietary office tools.
Sensitive state and health-related data are set to move to trusted sovereign infrastructure by year-end, reinforcing the broader data-control agenda.
French minister David Amiel underscored the rationale behind the overhaul: “We must become less reliant on American tools and regain control of our digital destiny. We can no longer accept that our data, our infrastructure, and our strategic decisions depend on solutions whose rules, pricing, evolution, and risks we do not control.”
Anne Le Hénanff, Minister Delegate for Artificial Intelligence and Digital Technology, added: “Digital sovereignty is not an option, it is a strategic necessity.”
With Linux, Jitsi-based collaboration, and open productivity software now embedded in policy, France’s migration could become a blueprint for wider European government open-source adoption.
