Why Did Microsoft Put a Data Center Underwater?

Computer company, Microsoft, is taking servers where they've never been before: under the sea. If this innovative approach to data storage is successful, this might just be the future of "cloud computing."

Here’s How We Could Store Data on a Single Atom

Read More:
Microsoft sinks data centre off Orkney
"If Project Natick proves a success, Microsoft envisages sinking groups of five of these cylinders and being able to deploy a data centre offshore in 90 days, whereas it could take years on land."

Want an Energy-Efficient Data Center? Build It Underwater
"Sure, cooling computers with seawater would lower the air-conditioning bill and could improve operations in other ways, too, but submerging a data center comes with some obvious costs and inconveniences."

How to stop data centres from gobbling up the world’s electricity
"Already, data centres use an estimated 200 terawatt hours (TWh) each year. That is more than the national energy consumption of some countries, including Iran."

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[ArifSyukri]

IT Manager : Our data center under attack
Security Eng : I don't see any alert on firewall
IT Manager : Shark attack

[Master_Therion]

Offshore and powered by waves? That's not a server... it's a surfer.

[crayoneater.]

So now we'll actually be surfing the web

Why has nobody said this

[nickgehr]

*Microsoft opened a new job for bikini bottom's citizens*

[JPLToyExperience]

who has a Data Center under the sea...

[TubularAnde]

You've seen cloud computing. Introducing iceberg computing!

[bitbugsbyte]

Great idea! Free cooling and free power from waves! Also it opens up data centers on land for other uses! Also they are protected against tornadoes, fire, hail, lightning and hurricanes.

[coldblaze]

I got the full picture as soon as you said 'taxes'

[rufusleers]

The real reason. Water is one of the only mediums that block EMP waves.

[jbz]

Why bother with carbon emissions when we could heat the oceans directly?

[Alia-bcrc]

Stuck a wi-fi into it and all the cool sharks would gather around it all day long.

[featherinescat]

Should upload all my anime stuffs to onedrive.
1000 years later our descendants will discover them underwater.

[daniellicht]

In the early days of Google, the founders came up with this and were seriously considering doing it via sinking an old sub or airplane. It's often referenced as an example of their ability to think outside the box. At the time it didn't end up making sense but they had significantly fewer resources and it wasn't for the same use-case. Kudos to Microsoft for executing on it.

[EyesOfByes]

Can you make a video about the Facebook data center in Luleå, Sweden? Not only is it -20°C in winter, it's also directly connected to a hydroelectric plant. And the city has a University of Technology.

[cageybee]

nobody:

microsoft: the ocean is just condensed cloud!

[LeesReviews]

I’m 31 and I’m so amazed every day to think about all these data centers and cables all over the world. It is all so amazing what humans and technology are doing, and we’re not stopping it’s crazy.

[kma]

Really great idea
1) Energy that's potentially mostly to all renewable
2) Cooling that's renewable
3) Rapid to deploy
4) Can be deployed on currently inexpensive ocean relative to inner city land pricing


And if maintenance is an issue, they could certainly build them with airlocks and access via submersible so that a technician could be brought in if needed for some fixes.

[jaridkeen]

They should design the data centers to look like coral reefs.

[DavidAlsh]

Replacing failed components like hard drives would be tricky. You'd need to bring these up every 5 years to conduct repairs. Though if the cost saving in power/rent is high enough, it might be practical.

[Deathbyfartz]

don't even need to watch this video till end, before i have several concerns.

first off if microsoft plans to do this for majority of their servers, how would this then affect temperatures at sea or in the location of the server, cause if microsoft want's them in the ocean it's not just because it's easier, it's also because they intend to use the water as coolant for the servers, so essentially they're putting several radiators in the water.
and submersing theese servers into the Ocean would just make it so much easier to cripple whatever infrastructure is dependant on the servers, u only really need to make a tiny pin size hole in the cylinder to destroy the entire server.
and if anything were to happen to the server it couldn't be repaired as, hauling the servers back up is to expensive for Microsoft to do it, so they would in essence just leave broken servers on the ocean floor as trash, and sink down new servers to replace broken ones.

it would be much better to use all that waste heat for something usefull, could be desalination and so many other processes that needs heat.