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A German state is ditching Windows and Microsoft Office for Linux and LibreOffice on the 30,000 PCs it uses for local government functions (www.theregister.com)

submitted 7 months ago* (last edited 7 months ago) by ForgottenFlux@lemmy.world to c/technology@lemmy.world

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Schleswig-Holstein, Germany's most northern state, is starting its switch from Microsoft Office to LibreOffice, and is planning to move from Windows to Linux on the 30,000 PCs it uses for local government functions.

Concerns over data security are also front and center in the Minister-President's statement, especially data that may make its way to other countries. Back in 2021, when the transition plans were first being drawn up, the hardware requirements for Windows 11 were also mentioned as a reason to move away from Microsoft.

Saunders noted that "the reasons for switching to Linux and LibreOffice are different today. Back when LiMux started, it was mostly seen as a way to save money. Now the focus is far more on data protection, privacy and security. Consider that the European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS) recently found that the European Commission's use of Microsoft 365 breaches data protection law for EU institutions and bodies."

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[–] tal@lemmy.today 41 points 7 months ago* (last edited 7 months ago) (1 children)

I remember some city in Germany actually doing it some years back and then eventually giving up and switching back.

googles

It's a little unclear exactly what software was and wasn't switched, but sounds like it's Munich, and now they're back on LibreOffice again.

https://winbuzzer.com/2020/05/14/munich-ditches-microsoft-office-and-windows-in-favor-of-open-source-xcxwbn/

By 2006, the city had started a concerted effort to move away from Microsoft products and onto Linux. Fast forward to 2013 and 80% of all workstations in the government and related organizations were running LiMux. However, Microsoft’s Windows and Office services were still used.

As we reported back in 2017, the government made a controversial decision to abandon open source and return to Windows.

A newly elected government in Munich, Germany has said it will aim to use open source solutions in its offices. In doing so, the government is moving away from Windows and Microsoft Office despite committing to the products several years ago.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LiMux

LiMux was a project launched by the city of Munich in 2004 in order to replace the software on its desktop computers, migrating from Microsoft Windows to free software based on Linux.[citation needed] By 2012, the city had migrated 12,600 of its 15,500 desktops to LiMux. In November 2017 Munich City Council resolved to reverse the migration and return to Microsoft Windows-based software by 2020.[1][2][3] In May 2020, it was reported that the newly elected politicians in Munich, while not going back to the original plan of migrating to LiMux wholesale, will prefer Free Software for future endeavours.[4]

EDIT: I guess I should have just read the other comment responding to the parent, which mentioned Munich.

[–] menemen@lemmy.world 26 points 7 months ago

Amd just after Munich announced it will go back to Windows, Microsoft decided to move its German central to Munich. What a coincidence.