June 2024 issue cover feature Data Center Dynamics (DCD) offers a fascinating, in-depth look into the world of Project Silica, a Microsoft research initiative aimed at developing new preservation technologies that use fused silica as a medium for long-term data storage.
Microsoft’s Project Silica initiative comes at a time when the world is generating more data than traditional data storage solutions can effectively manage, a problem exacerbated by generative AI. Project Silica’s solution to this problem is to use a femtosecond laser to etch data onto glass discs, creating microscopically readable variations, a method that promises a storage lifespan of more than 10,000 years.
Richard Black, a key figure on the Project Silica team, said: Data Center Dynamics It was clear that the short lifespan and high maintenance costs of current storage media were an issue. “We realized that in the archiving space we needed a better medium,” he said. The answer was glass.
“We’ve increased the density a lot.”
Microsoft took femtosecond laser technology developed at the University of Southampton and enhanced it. The team achieved densities of 4TB and 7TB, but the project’s focus then shifted to serving the specific needs of Microsoft’s Azure cloud service. “We pushed the density significantly, but ultimately the Azure business asked us to stop,” he said. DCD.
Project Silica now incorporates advanced AI and deep learning technologies to increase the accuracy and efficiency of data retrieval, reducing the need for error correction as well as increasing overall storage density. The data encoded on these durable glass disks is virtually unalterable, protecting against tampering and ransomware threats.
What’s unusual about Project Silica is its use of battery-powered robotic “crabs.” These robots (pictured above) efficiently navigate the storage aisles, retrieving glass dishes and transporting them to viewing stations. I’ve seen them in action, and they’re very fast.
The data writing station currently takes up a lot of space, but Black expects to see a smaller production version in the future: “When I first saw the HoloLens, it was a lot bigger than this,” he told Sebastian Moss. DCD’‘s editor-in-chief hinted at potential scalability and the involvement of Microsoft’s optics-savvy HoloLens team in improving the technology in the future.
Despite the ambitious scope of the project, Black and his team are maintaining a degree of secrecy regarding the final specifications, but it’s clear that Project Silica has the potential to redefine archival storage.
