Microsoft says that the move is part of its cunning cloud plan, but both cloud and on-premises versions will be available. It looks like the Linux port of SQL Server will appear in the middle of next year.  However a private preview version is already beng show to beta testers.

Writing on the Official Microsoft bog, Executive Vice President of Cloud and Enterprise Group at Microsoft, Scott Guthrie said the move will enable SQL Server to deliver a consistent data platform across Windows Server and Linux, as well as on-premises and cloud.

"We are bringing the core relational database capabilities to preview today, and are targeting availability in mid-2017. SQL Server on Linux will provide customers with even more flexibility in their data solution. 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."

Redmond has not decided what other features of SQL Server 2016 will make their way to SQL Server for Linux, but more news is expected over the coming weeks and months.

The news has been welcomed by the likes of Red Hat and Canonical and Paul Cormier, President, Products and Technologies, Red Hat said,

"SQL Server's proven enterprise experience and capabilities offer a valuable asset to enterprise Linux customers around the world. We believe our customers will welcome this news and are happy to see Microsoft further increasing its investment in Linux. As we build upon our deep hybrid cloud partnership, spanning not only Linux, but also middleware, and PaaS, we’re excited to now extend that collaboration to SQL Server on Red Hat Enterprise Linux, bringing enterprise customers increased database choice."