Data Center Technician I

Backblaze; Reston (VA); On-site; USD 62,000 - 72,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Healthcare for family

401K

RSU grants

ESPP

Flexible vacation

Maternity & paternity leave

MacBook Pro

Childcare bonus

Fertility support

Learning & development

Commuter benefits

Work-life balance

Job summary

Backblaze in the United States is seeking a Data Center Technician to manage and optimize our physical data center infrastructure. You will work hands-on with server hardware, networking gear, power and cooling systems, and cabling, ensuring reliable operations and on-call readiness.

The ideal candidate has 2+ years in data center roles, Linux experience, and a proactive mindset. This full-time role offers competitive pay and strong benefits as part of Backblaze's commitment to open cloud

Qualifications

• 2+ years of experience in data center or server infrastructure roles.
• Hands-on knowledge of server hardware and deployments.
• Proficient with structured cabling, fiber optics, and patch panels.
• Experience with Linux and basic scripting; excellent communication, time management, problem solving and organizational skills.

Responsibilities

• Hardware Deployment & Maintenance: maintain infrastructure, replace components, manage inventory.
• Data Center Operations: act as Backblaze’s physical presence; on-call within an hour of facility.
• Project Management: execute infrastructure projects from installation to production.
• Incident response: respond to data center incidents and Jira tickets.

Skills

Data center experience

Server hardware

Structured cabling

Fiber optics

Linux scripting

Communication skills

Job description

About Backblaze

Backblaze is the object storage leader in the open cloud movement, fueling customer success with cloud storage built purposefully to unlock budgets, unburden administrators, and unleash innovators. Together with our partners, we’re helping customers break free from the restrictive, overpriced legacy solutions that hold them back, and blaze forward with the full power of the open cloud in their hands.

Founded in 2007, we scaled the business with less than $3 million in outside funding until 2021, when we did a traditional IPO on the Nasdaq stock exchange. Today, Backblaze generates over $100m in revenue and is the leading specialized storage cloud - managing over three billion gigabytes of data storage for 500K+ customers in 175+ countries, including businesses, developers, IT professionals, and individuals.
We’re seeking a Data Center Technician to join our team!

About the Role:

Individuals fulfilling this role will be responsible for managing, maintaining, and optimizing the physical infrastructure of our data center operations. The ideal candidate will have significant technical knowledge of server hardware, networking equipment, power and cooling systems, and structured cabling. This role requires a proactive problem-solver with strong leadership abilities, deductive reasoning, and a focus on operational excellence.

What You'll Do:

• Hardware Deployment & Maintenance:
  • Maintain organizational infrastructure including racking equipment, replacing hard drives and other system components
  • Troubleshoot, repair, and replace defective equipment with minimal supervision
  • Help manage onsite inventory of hard drives, cables, rails and other spare parts
  • RMA defective components
  • Setup, test and activate new equipment via the Linux command line
• Data Center Operations:
  • Work as Backblaze’s physical presence in Data Center Operations
  • On-call responsibilities require being within an hour of the facility and occasional trips onsite 24x7 to resolve issues that can’t be handled remotely
  • Workdays may include Saturday and/or Sunday (e.g. working Wednesday - Saturday)
  • Shifts may include evening and/or overnight shifts
  • Help with shipping and receiving including moving, packing, and/or unpacking equipment
  • Follow and improve data center best practices and documentation
  • Maintain a clean and well-organized work environment
  • Help with projects to install new systems and services as time allows
• Project Management:
  • Execute infrastructure projects such as server installations, migrations, upgrades, and server set-up.
  • Full-service execution of new system implementations (from equipment inception to production).
  • Work with cross-functional teams, including: IT, Neteng, NOC and SRE to test and validate functionality.
  • Identify opportunities for automation and process efficiency.
• Incident response
  • Respond to and resolve data center infrastructure incidents and Jira tickets.
  • Troubleshoot and escape hardware, power, and network issues as needed.
  • Participate in on-call rotation when needed for incident response.
• What we value:
  • A proactive mindset with a can-do attitude.
  • Someone who steps up, supports teammates, and shares knowledge freely.
  • Curiosity, reliability, and a desire to grow technically within the team.

Required Qualifications:

• 2+ years of experience in data center or server infrastructure roles.
• Hands-on knowledge of server hardware and deployments
• Proficient with structured cabling, fiber optics, and patch panel management.
• Experience with operating systems (Linux and basic scripting).Excellent communication, time management, problem solving and organizational skills

Backblaze Perks:

• Healthcare for family, including dental and vision
• Competitive compensation and 401K
• RSU grants for full-time employees
• ESPP program
• Flexible vacation policy
• Maternity & paternity leave
• MacBook Pro to use for work, plus a generous stipend to personalize your workstation
• Childcare bonus (human children only)
• Fertility treatment and support
• Learning & development program
• Commuter benefits
• Culture that supports a healthy work-life balance

To provide greater transparency to candidates, we share base pay ranges for all US-based job postings regardless of state. We set standard base pay ranges for all roles based on function, level, and country location, benchmarked against similar-stage growth companies. Final offer amounts are determined by multiple factors, including candidate location, skills, depth of work experience, and relevant licenses/credentials, and may vary from the amounts listed below.

The expected salary range for this role is $62,000 - $72,000.

At Backblaze, we value being fair and good to our customers, partners, and employees. That’s why diversity, equity, and inclusion are at the core of our values. We are committed to fostering a workforce where all employees feel a sense of belonging regardless of race, ethnicity, nationality, gender, sexual orientation, age, religion, socio-economic status, ability, veteran status, and education. We believe that our dedication to cultivating a diverse workspace not only allows us to better serve our customers in over 175 countries but further reinforces our commitment to doing the right thing.We are proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer.

To understand more about the data we collect and process as part of your application, please view our Backblaze Employee Privacy Notice.