Microsoft is increasing its efforts across the company to adopt Rust as its first choice for internal software development. The new job opportunity is perfect for Rust experts interested in converting large amounts of C# code to a newer, memory-safe programming paradigm.
According to a recent job posting from Microsoft's Prague office, Microsoft is recruiting a chief software architect for the Microsoft 365 platform. The job posting states that the ideal candidate will be proficient in the C# and Rust languages and have experience delivering "large-scale", high-volume services. Their primary responsibility is to adopt the Rust programming language as the new foundation for the core M365 organization, the SubstrateAppPlatform (SAP).
The SAP group responsible for writing the running code for Microsoft's cloud services means Redmond has decided to accelerate previously announced plans to adopt Rust. The job posting states that the company is forming a new team focused on using the Rust language as a foundation for "global-scale platform services" and other modernization efforts.
This Rust expert will have important responsibilities within the SAP team, including technical guidance, design and implementation of Rust libraries, SDKs, etc. This highly skilled engineer will also need to communicate with stakeholders and senior managers, as they must understand the company's business needs beyond technical challenges.
Rust is a new general-purpose programming language created by software developer Graydon Hoare as a personal project while working at Mozilla. Programs written in Rust can provide a higher level of protection against memory-related errors and security vulnerabilities, eliminating entire classes of dangerous flaws during binary code compilation.
Rust was originally released in 2015 and has become increasingly popular among major technology companies. Linus Torvalds incorporated Rust code into the Linux kernel, and Google also started using the language in the Chromium project. In 2020, Microsoft began rewriting important parts of Windows in Rust, bringing more security and even significant performance improvements to Windows, a system that has been cobbled together from different coding languages for decades.
Microsoft is also a founding member of the Rust Foundation, a non-profit organization whose members include companies such as Amazon, Huawei, Google and Mozilla. Before making room for newcomers in the programming world, the C# language was designed in 2000 by Anders Hejlsberg, the original creator of Turbo Pascal and a Microsoft employee.