Microsoft revealed Monday that it is planning to port its SQL Server to Linux, making a private preview available to testers before making the product generally available in mid-2017.
The development is a big one, as it marks the first time Microsoft has sent one of its main products beyond its own territory and is working with its rivals to make it happen. Despite that, the move may prove to be a lucrative one, as the enterprise product is arguably second to the Windows operating system in terms of earning Micrososft the high-profile status in the tech world it holds.
With that in mind, the move is a clear attempt by Microsoft to cut into the earnings of the long-standing No. 1 in the database software market, Oracle. While Microsoft has a reported 21.5 percent market share in database software, Oracle surpasses it with more than 40 percent. By offering more options to customers, Microsoft hopes to gain some ground in the field.
"SQL Server on Linux will provide customers with even more flexibility in their data solution," Scott Guthrie, executive VP of the Cloud and Enterprise Group of Microsoft, says. "One with mission-critical performance, industry-leading TCO, best-in-class security, and hybrid cloud innovations - like Stretch Database which lets customers access their data on-premises and in the cloud whenever they want at low cost - all built in."
Microsoft's choice has been with met approval, disapproval and even utter confusion depending on who you go to.
Former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer made it clear that the move would have come sooner if it weren't for his objections, calling the idea of the open-source operating system something akin to "cancer" and "communism" within the software industry.
Conversely, current CEO Satya Nadella believes this move could be the key in creating a better standing for Microsoft within a database market that runs on other operating systems.
This is the latest move Microsoft has made under Nadella's leadership to expand the functionality of its products to other systems. For example, late last year, it opened its cloud service, Azure, to customers of Red Hat, the company behind a popular iteration of Linux.
