Microsoft Edge could come to Linux

Not so long ago, the idea of Microsoft releasing an internet browser for Linux would seem to be out of the question. But in recent years, Microsoft's love of Linux has grown exponentially.

Now, having not only started to embrace the Chromium engine for Microsoft Edge, the company is also not ruling out releasing Edge for Linux. It could be argued that Edge on Linux is something that no one -- or at least very few people -- yearn for, but the Microsoft Edge development team has revealed that releasing a Linux-friendly version is something that it would "like to do".

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The revelation came in a Reddit AMA session with Microsoft Edge developers in which they spoke more about the roadmap for the browser. Many topics were covered, including ad-blocking (Microsoft is not really clear about whether ad blockers will be cut off at the knees because of changes Google is making to the Chromium's extensions API), extension syncing (coming soon), and the use of Fluent UI.

Responding to a query about the possibility of a Linux version of Edge, Sean from the development team said:

We don't have any technical blockers to keep us from creating Linux binaries, and it's definitely something we'd like to do down the road. That being said, there is still work to make them "customer ready" (installer, updaters, user sync, bug fixes, etc.) and something we are proud to give to you, so we aren't quite ready to commit to the work just yet.

Right now, we are super focused on bringing stable versions of Edge first to other versions of Windows (as well as macOS), and then releasing our Beta channels. That said, we love hearing the ask and especially love details if this is important to your test infrastructure or elsewhere in your development lifecycle so we can continue to validate and prioritize this work!

This really could be some way off in the future, so don't hold your breath if you're a Linux user longing for Edge.