Poll: Should Bitdefender Make A Linux Version for Home Users?

As a longtime user of Bitdefender (since 2014), the topic of a Linux version has been floating around on and off for the past decade. However, what makes these requests different this time around is the end of life support for Windows 10. Many users, unhappy with what Microsoft is doing to with Windows 11, are starting to consider Linux to be a viable alternative (me included: I've been a Windows user my entire life, and with Windows 10 coming to an end; I'm currently in the process of setting up my home desktop PC to run Debian).

While I understand Bitdefender's reluctance to create a Linux version of their software in the past, the end of life support for Windows 10 would be the best time to capitalize on a larger than usual influx of people switching from Windows to Linux. If there ever was a time to create a Linux version of Bitdefender for home users, now would be the ideal time. But if I were to create yet another post begging for a Linux version, I feel that I would get the same dismissive attitude that all of those before me have received. So this time, I'm going to try something different. I'm going to try to show Bitdefender the heightened interest and potential of Linux through the data gathered in this poll. Now admittedly, I'm not highly creative when coming up with poll choices, so go easy on me as this is pretty much my first one. 😅 However, I tried to be as fair and balanced as possible. So without further ado, here is the poll:

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Flexx

https://community.bitdefender.com/en/discussion/101954/should-bitdefender-make-a-linux-version-for-home-users

Kindly take a look at the reply from Bitdefender support.

Regards

Alexandru_BD

Cheers @Captain Obvious and thanks for opening this poll here.

Now, let's see some votes. 😎

Captain Obvious

https://community.bitdefender.com/en/discussion/comment/345555#Comment_345555

I appreciate your enjoyment of the copy and paste function on any thread that mentions Linux (I went through your post history, all of your responses to Linux posts are copypasta), but in this instance, the situation is a bit different than normal.

The Windows community hasn't been this upset with Microsoft since the release of Windows 8. Furthermore, the compatibility and stability of mainstream Linux distributions has reached a point where daily use by members of the general public is very feasible. Lastly, Bitdefender already has security software written for Linux via their Gravity Zone suite of products for business. They already have 90% of the code for a consumer version of Linux written. It wouldn't take that much effort on their part to port that to a consumer version.

Flexx

https://community.bitdefender.com/en/discussion/comment/345717#Comment_345717

While your feedback is appreciated, the current information remains the same: Bitdefender developers are not considering a Linux product for home users at this time, so there will be no new announcements. If this changes in the future, the community will be informed.

The forum admin, @Alexandru_BD, has also shared various reasons why a Linux product is not on Bitdefender's development list. Additionally, other antimalware vendors, such as ESET and Kaspersky, previously offered Linux products for home users but later discontinued them, although their business/enterprise products still support Linux. There may be internal reasons why these vendors chose to stop developing Linux products for home users, and this appears to be a common industry trend.

For more insights into Bitdefender's decision, you may also contact Bitdefender support directly.

Regards

Captain Obvious

https://community.bitdefender.com/en/discussion/comment/345733#Comment_345733

Again, your viewpoint is based entirely off of outdated data. It's like saying, "Bitcoin will never be valuable because it was only $7 per Bitcoin in 2011."

Well that's the main problem with your stance: now isn't 10 years ago. Market conditions and consumer preferences change over time. And with dissatisfaction with Windows being at an all time high, now would a great opportunity to capitalize on this dissatisfaction by offering consumer grade protection for Linux, especially because it's early. Much like Bitcoin, those who capitalized on it early are worth hundreds of millions of dollars today.

Finally, I've noticed you keep bringing up that ESET and Kaspersky stopped offering a Linux version. To that I respond by pointing out that Microsoft has recently ported Microsoft Defender to Linux: the first in its history. Furthermore, there are still companies that have offered Linux protection since 2010, and still offer it to this day such as Comodo Antivirus for Linux and Data 443 Antivirus Protection Manager.

Petersl

Hi,

For me personally having bitdefender antivirus and firewall on Linux would defiantly make me switch to Linux
permanently.

I think with what Microsoft is doing with windows 11, the copilot+ and recall and making it more difficult to install windows 11 with a local user, I think this makes a lot of people switch to Linux and if there is a good security solution for Linux on the market I think a lot more people would be making the switch.

Flexx

https://community.bitdefender.com/en/discussion/comment/345834#Comment_345834

https://community.bitdefender.com/en/discussion/comment/345858#Comment_345858

@Captain Obvious, @Petersl

I’ll try to keep things simple here. As far as I know, there are no Bitdefender staff members on the forum who handle Bitdefender Linux product. I’ll tag @camarie, the developer for the Bitdefender Windows product, along with @dvsls, who is also a Bitdefender staff member, so they can provide you with information once and for all.

I will also tag forum admin @Alexandru_BD so that he can get in touch with the developers again to gather the most current information for you all. Alex, could you obtain some information once and for all?

Regards

Captain Obvious

https://community.bitdefender.com/en/discussion/comment/345889#Comment_345889

You seem to be a bit mistaken as to the purpose of this poll. This isn't your ordinary thread begging for a Linux version. The reason this is done in the form of a poll is to gather data in order to better demonstrate why a Linux version would be financially viable. Unfortunately, we only have seven votes as of the writing of this comment.

camarie

This is outside of my pay grade, so to speak. While I would enjoy the challenge of developing a Linux product myself (albeit not being a Linux guy on day to day), I think a substantial number of possible users should gather for the company to develop such a product. Although there are Linux products AFAIK, they are for business, since the consumer Linux market, while rising in the later years, is quite different from the Windows, as the users are.

But as a personal note, if more and more users will switch to the penguin for various reasons, I would say it is not impossible to have a consumer product one day.

Alexandru_BD

I agree with @camarie on this one. I think there has to be a considerable switch observed in the market, or at least increased Linux usage on the home user side, so that it could set the pace for the developers to consider investing resources for creating a home user solution, specifically for this operating system.

What I can tell you from my viewpoint is that I have noticed an increased interest in this topic on the forum, and members are sporadically asking when and if there will be a version of Bitdefender for Linux in the portfolio designed for home users. For the record, there's so much going on when you are considering to enter a new territory (because as @Captain Obvious said, much has changed in the past 10 years, so you need a fresh set of data and substantial research to back it up). Frankly, I think the decision boils down to the following question: what is the interest out there for such a product and how can the developers satisfy the needs of a Linux home user more efficiently? There have been numerous discussions on this subject and all available feedback was taken into consideration, of course. I think a poll is a good way to gauge interest, at least in the community, and if we add it to the rest of the feedback that the development teams received over time, all these things can significantly contribute to shaping an overall picture of the need, but also of the usage, requirements and of the necessary functions that such a product should have, to meet the requirements of Linux users and to be successful, of course.

So, I say let this poll collect some votes and spread the word. The more votes it gets, the better. 🙂

Flexx

https://community.bitdefender.com/en/discussion/comment/345950#Comment_345950

 I think a poll is a good way to gauge interest, at least in the community, and if we add it to the rest of the feedback that the development teams received over time, all these things can significantly contribute to shaping an overall picture of the need, but also of the usage, requirements and of the necessary functions that such a product should have, to meet the requirements of Linux users and to be successful, of course.

This would be a better approach.

Regards

camarie

And as a side note: while developing on Windows involves 10 and 11 (with the dying x86 variant slowly replaced by arm64, so the vast majority being x64), Linux is an entirely different beast. Even the runtimes vary dramatically between the extremely conservative Debian to the rolling update distros; even the GUI part is not trivial, KDE, Gnome (changing constantly); Xfce/Lxce; minimal distros; Gentoo etc etc etc. Considering also the backend differences (not in kernel, which is more or less stable, but installers, snapd/apt/yum, systemd w/wo etc.) it will quickly narrow down to a handful or distros which might cover the already minimal users numbers.

Also, the nature of Linux would eliminate a number of Windows-specific features and will impose the necessity of supplying others to offer a fully fledged product, driver certifications, crash handling and the myriad of infrastructure things to be done - for sure it would need something of tens of thousands of paying users to cover just an initial version costs. Again, I am not involved in such decisions, but I would think that would be the case to present for justifying such a product.

Flexx

https://community.bitdefender.com/en/discussion/comment/345954#Comment_345954

@camarie, Bitdefender already had a Linux product in the past called Bitdefender Antivirus Scanner for Unices. The developers already have the source code, so only minor changes would be needed for the product. Why not revive it?

Regards

camarie

This is true, but although I was not involved in it, I think it was just an AV scanner. The "minor changes" part I'm not so sure about.

I suppose we all have to wait for a decision to be made go/no go/later.

Fnerkyboy

Yes, I wholeheartedly agree that we need a decent antivirus product for Linux.

I have been using Bitdefender on Windows and MacOS for years, and would love to also use it on Linux.

As it stands, the next best option is to protect your Linux based web browsers with BitDefender TrafficLight.

Also a good idea to download an offline malware scanner. My personal preference for this is Kaspersky Rescue Disk.

Not an ideal solution by any means, as it doesn't support LUKS encrypted drives (from memory) :(

nayalaramin

https://community.bitdefender.com/en/discussion/comment/345950#Comment_345950

This would be a much better and distinct approach. 👍️

Scott

https://community.bitdefender.com/en/discussion/comment/345954#Comment_345954

This (below) is what came to my mind from camarie's post. Which one do you support? Is Linux exactly the same across all Distros, Debian, Mint, Zorin etc. (I do not keep up with Linux). Could they all be supported with one BD app, version?

Even the runtimes vary dramatically between the extremely conservative Debian to the rolling update distros; even the GUI part is not trivial, KDE, Gnome (changing constantly); Xfce/Lxce; minimal distros; Gentoo etc etc etc. Considering also the backend differences (not in kernel, which is more or less stable, but installers, snapd/apt/yum, systemd w/wo etc.) it will quickly narrow down to a handful or distros which might cover the already minimal users numbers.

IMO, Bitdefender has enough on its plate, I would rather see them improve on what they already have stability wise, function wise, settings wise etc. with their existing product line up, than to become distracted by another OS to maintain. Jack of all trades, master of none?

Granted, Microsoft is trying its best to alienate people with their initial hardware requirements (for security's sake?) from Windows 10 to 11. And now with the debacle of the Windows 24H2 update, I can see why people would want to migrate to Linux, but many will wait Microsoft out to see where it leads. My business, my software, my comfort zone is, still runs on and is with Microsoft.

I voted for the last option.

Cheers and Happy Holidays :)

mohammedtaherpatla

I would like to add that, although maintaining support for Linux is more challenging, targeting GUI users first might be the best approach.

You can also start by rolling out smaller products, such as a VPN or password manager, and then scale to all products and services based on demand.

In terms of full support, having options to cover major devices would be beneficial, even if not all functionalities are available for every system.

Being able to use my Total Care subscription on my Ubuntu systems would be a great advantage.

Flexx

https://community.bitdefender.com/en/discussion/comment/351772#Comment_351772

Bitdefender developers are continuously receiving feedback from Linux users regarding the development of a Bitdefender consumer product for Linux. While Bitdefender already offers enterprise solutions for Linux, the team is actively collecting and evaluating feedback from home users while also analyzing market demand, which is currently growing. However, the decision to release a consumer-focused Linux product ultimately depends on the Bitdefender development team, as it requires extensive research and development (R&D).

I appreciate your suggestion about releasing one Bitdefender product at a time for Linux devices, starting with a VPN and gradually introducing other solutions. However, regarding Bitdefender Secure Pass (formerly known as Bitdefender Password Manager), it is a browser extension that can be installed directly from the respective web browser extension stores.

You can also share your feedback with Bitdefender Support to receive a response, as they can internally connect with Bitdefender developers to obtain the latest information.

Kindly contact Bitdefender support by visiting https://www.bitdefender.com/consumer/support/help/

Select, How to's & Troubleshooting Bitdefender products→Troubleshooting→I don't know→Contact Support→ You will get the option of chat, call or email.

To get immediate update, make use of the chat option. Bitdefender support may require logs and will assist you in generating them.

Also, ensure you do not have any ad-blocker or privacy-blocker extensions enabled, as they might prevent the chat window from appearing.

This post is now closed to further comments.

Regards