Server Hardware Systems Engineer (Starlink)

SpaceX•Palo Alto, CA

2d•Onsite

About The Position

SpaceX is hiring a Server Hardware Systems Engineer for the Starlink Site Reliability Engineering team. Starlink relies on a global fleet of servers in data centers and points of presence. This engineer will own the server hardware lifecycle, from detecting and diagnosing issues through repair, validation, and return to service. The role focuses on building telemetry, alerting, and automation that enable a small team to operate a large and rapidly growing fleet, and coordinating with network operations, field technicians, hardware vendors, and data center partners to restore failed hardware quickly. The position also uses fleet reliability data to inform server design, selection, and qualification for new sites across commercial off-the-shelf and custom-designed platforms. It is primarily based in SpaceX offices rather than data center facilities, though time in the field with Starlink data center engineering teams is encouraged. The engineer must be willing to work extended hours and weekends as needed, participate in an on-call rotation, and travel domestically and internationally to Starlink sites.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in computer science, computer engineering, electrical engineering, information technology, or another STEM discipline, or at least 2 years of professional experience in server hardware operations, data center operations, or site reliability engineering in lieu of a degree.
At least 1 year of professional experience troubleshooting and repairing enterprise server hardware in a production environment.
At least 1 year of professional experience administering Linux systems.
Experience writing scripts or software in at least one language, such as Python, Go, or Bash.
Willingness to work extended hours and weekends as needed and participate in an on-call rotation for hardware issues.
Willingness to travel domestically and internationally to data centers and other Starlink sites, and to hold or obtain a valid passport.
Ability to work in data center environments for extended periods, including standing, kneeling, and working in loud, variable-temperature conditions.
Ability to lift, push, and pull 50 pounds.
Must meet U.S. Government export authorization requirements: be a U.S. citizen or national, lawful permanent resident, refugee, or asylee, or be eligible to obtain required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.

Nice To Haves

At least 3 years of experience operating a large server fleet in production data center environments.
Hands-on experience diagnosing and replacing server components such as CPUs, DIMMs, NVMe SSDs, NICs, transceivers, power supplies, and system boards.
Experience with out-of-band management and baseboard management controllers such as HPE iLO, Dell iDRAC, or OpenBMC using Redfish and IPMI.
Proficiency with Linux hardware diagnostics, including kernel and machine check logs, EDAC, ipmitool, smartctl, nvme-cli, and ethtool.
Software development experience in Python or Go, including building production tools, services, and automation.
Experience building monitoring and alerting with Prometheus, Grafana, and Alertmanager, including writing custom exporters.
Experience operating Kubernetes clusters, including node lifecycle tasks such as cordoning, draining, and replacing nodes.
Experience with server networking, including NICs, optics, cabling, and link-level troubleshooting.
Experience managing vendor support cases, RMAs, and warranty processes, and coordinating remote hands across multiple data centers and time zones.
Familiarity with firmware management, TPM enrollment, secure boot, UEFI, and server provisioning at scale.
Experience designing operational workflows in ticketing systems and building dashboards for metrics such as MTTR and backlog size.
Experience with server hardware qualification, burn-in testing, or new product introduction.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills and ability to drive work to completion across teams, vendors, and time zones.
Ability to work in a fast-paced environment and manage multiple concurrent repairs across regions.

Responsibilities

Own the end-to-end repair lifecycle for Starlink server hardware and components, including alert triage, component-level failure isolation, safe removal from production, repair, validation, and return to service.
Manage vendor support cases and coordinate on-site work with data center remote hands and field technicians, including parts delivery, site access, and return of failed parts for warranty replacement or failure analysis.
Build software and automation for hardware telemetry and alerting, diagnostics, production drain and return, alert silencing, post-repair validation, and component tracking from detection to recovery.
Define, measure, and report fleet hardware metrics, including response, repair, and recovery times, backlog trends, and component failure rates; publish regular status updates to stakeholders.
Write runbooks, methods of procedure, and training materials to help NOC and field technicians resolve common hardware incidents.
Validate new server hardware before production entry, including burn-in, firmware, and configuration checks.
Use fleet failure trends to drive server design, selection, qualification, and corrective action with vendors and hardware engineering.

Benefits

Potential eligibility for long-term incentives in the form of company stock or long-term cash awards.
Potential discretionary bonuses.
Ability to purchase additional stock at a discount through an Employee Stock Purchase Plan.
Comprehensive medical, vision, and dental coverage.
Access to a 401(k) retirement plan.
Short- and long-term disability insurance.
Life insurance.
Paid parental leave.
Various other discounts and perks.
May accrue 3 weeks of paid vacation.
Eligible for 10 or more paid holidays per year.
Washington State employees accrue paid sick time in compliance with state and federal law.
Company shuttles for roundtrip travel from select Seattle locations to the SpaceX Redmond office Monday to Friday.