A Linux Version of Microsoft Teams Could be in Sight
Microsoft has confirmed that it is working on a Linux version for its acclaimed Microsoft Teams universal communications platform. Supported on some of the most popular desktop and mobile platforms, including Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android, Microsoft Teams offers a unified communications platform where teams can share a workspace where they can chat, share files, and work with business apps.
With more and more people switching to Linux these days, and since Microsoft itself started integrating Linux into its latest Windows 10 operating system with the WSL (Windows Subsystem for Linux) project, as well as to develop new features for the Linux kernel, it became imperative for the release of Microsoft Teams for Linux. After the widespread rumor that Microsoft might launch a Linux version of its Microsoft Teams communications platform, allowing Linux users to join their Windows, Mac, iOS, and Android teammates, a company employee took to Twitter to confirm that an official version of Microsoft Teams for Linux will soon be available to download.
According to Mr. Alex (Teams Engineering, Microsoft Teams), Microsoft is pleased to confirm the Teams client for Linux will be available in preview by the end of this calendar year, enabling people who use Linux clients at work or in educational institutions to collaborate with others on Teams. Users will be able to install native Linux packages in .deb and .rpm formats. Microsoft not only confirmed that it’s already working on a Linux version of Microsoft Teams, but it also put up a repository for some of the most popular GNU/Linux distributions, Ubuntu and Debian, which means that the installations will be made through a PPA repo that users can easily add to their systems. The inability to video conference or share desktops and applications or give presentations usually makes using Teams on Linux a no go. Without a Linux client on Microsoft Teams, some organizations may have to turn away in favor of Slack so everyone can participate without keeping a browser open all the time.
Microsoft Teams for Linux was possible due to the high demand from users. A request for a Linux client on the Microsoft Teams UserVoice feedback forum gathered more than 9,000 votes. However, don’t expect Microsoft Teams for Linux to be Open Source software, as the code will remain proprietary.
According to Microsoft, the new Linux app will offer a similar experience as the Windows and Mac clients on Linux. Microsoft says it will distribute native Linux packages and Linux users will be able to access different versions of Microsoft teams with the introduction of the desktop client.
Better Late Than Never, Slack Already Dominating Linux Niche
There’s no doubt that Linux client is the best for Microsoft Teams given the large number of developers who do use Linux. According to Stack Overflow’s 2019 developer survey, 53% of developers choose Linux as their favorite platform, while 50 percent choose Windows. According to Alex many Microsoft customers uses Linux and Microsoft wants Teams to be available for everyone. Boasting of an increase in active users from 13 million to 20 million in November 2019, Microsoft Teams has since edge over its biggest rival in the collaboration space (Slack), which does have a functional Linux client that launched last year. I hope the Linux version of Microsoft teams will not remain on the backlog as most Linux user’s claimed.
Originally published at https://nextplane.net on November 8, 2019.
