If a new leak is true, Microsoft may charge a subscription for Windows 12, a move that is sure to alienate users.

Microsoft has been migrating more and more of its services and products to the cloud and a subscription-based pricing model. According to German site Deskmodder, via Neowin, it appears the company plans to make Windows 12 another subscription-based product.

German media outlet Deskmodder spotted several such subscription-related entries in the INI configuration file of the Canary channel build when it was compared with the Windows 11 23H2 Release Preview build using WinMerge.

The writing has been on the wall for some time in regard to Microsoft’s increased focus on the cloud. The company released Windows 365 in mid-2021, allowing anyone with a web browser to run a copy of Windows in the cloud.

Unfortunately, many users are not interested in running their operating system from the cloud, either because of concerns about privacy, security, internet access, or ongoing costs.

Microsoft’s move may open the door for more widespread Linux adoption, especially as desktop Linux has finally begun rivaling Windows for ease of use.