For a long time, the relationship between Microsoft and Linux was somewhat like that between fire and ice. Microsoft is the commercial PC-providing giant that it is. Likewise, Linux is, to some extent, the pioneer of open-source software. If there was ever a spectrum for these things, they would be at opposing ends. And so the posturing of Microsoft in previous years has always been to treat Linux as cancer.

However, all that has been steadily changing since the appointment of Satya Nadella. Nadella sought to change the terms of engagement with Linux.

This all began when she made sure that Microsoft became a high paying member of the Linux foundation. At the time, however, others in the industry viewed this move with a certain amount of trepidation in the industry, with Microsoft now seeking to join Linux’s security board.

Representatives of Linux use the Linux-distros and Oss-security mailing list as a private channel to communicate on security issues.

Needless to say, this is important for the maintenance of discussions relating to security issues in the IT industry. In the context of a world where everything, from tiny embedded devices to servers, seems to run some form of Linux at its core, Microsoft has made the right choice of embracing it as an integral part of its strategy to remain relevant in the industry.