Mark Zuckerberg shares rare images of data center in Sweden

“Nearly all the technology in the facility, from the servers to the power distribution systems, is based on Open Compute Project designs as well. You probably don’t think about Luleå when you share with friends on Facebook, but it’s an example of the incredibly complex technology infrastructure that keeps the world connected. I’m looking forward to sharing photos of more of our advanced technology soon,” Zuckerberg said in his post.

Zuckerberg also mentioned in his post that over the coming months he will be posting rare pictures of all the advanced technology that Facebook is building around the world. One such technology is Facebook’s ambitious Aquila project.

Facebook has already started testing its solar-powered plane, Aquila, which is designed to beam Internet down to Earth via lasers. The goal is to have Aquila fly in the sky at 60,000 feet and stay airborne for months at a time, bringing Internet to remote areas, and areas with poor or no Internet connectivity. Aquila is part of Facebook’s ambitious Internet.org project that is aimed at bringing Internet connectivity across the world. Google is doing something similar with its Project Loon, using balloons.

Here are the images shared by Zuckerberg:

The main data hall is so big that engineers move around on scooters The equipment is reduced to its basics so it runs cooler. It can also be easily accessed and repaired quickly. A few years ago, it took an hour to repair a server hard drive. At Luleå, that’s down to two minutes Luleå is a small coastal town just south of the Arctic Circle, and near the top of the world. It’s surrounded by dense forests and icy rivers About 150 people work here, but the data halls are frequently empty. Because of the simplified design, we need only one technician for every 25,000 servers “There is no more efficient data center in the world.” – Jay Park, VP of Data Center Design and Construction “The biggest challenge working here? Getting to the data center by car when it is -30 degrees C outside!” – Emilie De Clercq, Data Center Technician “Look at these racks, the network devices, the cabling. Everything is like reference model!” – Max Zavyalov, Network Engineer in Edge & Network Services team

The data center is huge, but the idea that launched it began on the back of this paper napkin. Late one night, while traveling, engineer Jay Park sketched his vision for a system that streamlined the way power moves from the local utility grid to our servers.