Rack & Patch

A 3D data center game where you’re the network engineer on call. A P1 incident just hit, and you have to find the fault using real tools before the business goes down.

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Inspiration

I've spent years in server rooms and data centers, and the real job looks nothing like what most people imagine. It's racks, patch panels, fiber, a console cable and a lot of troubleshooting under pressure. I teach networking on my YouTube channel Net Route Academy, and I wanted students to actually feel what that's like, not just read about it. So I built a game around it.

What it does

Rack & Patch puts you inside a data center in first person view. A P1 incident has just been raised on a Cisco ISR router in Rack A-01, and it's your job to figure out what's wrong.

You get the same kind of tools a real engineer carries:

  • Console cable to connect to the router and check what's happening
  • Fiber patch cord to swap and test connections
  • Optical power meter to check light levels in dBm
  • Cable toner to trace which cable goes where
  • Thermal camera to spot overheating hardware

It's a fun way to learn real troubleshooting steps without needing access to a real data center.

How we built it

It's built with Three.js and plain JavaScript, with no game engine and no build step, so it runs straight in the browser. I used real photos of routers, switches, patch panels, racks and cable trays as textures so the data center feels real instead of looking like simple 3D blocks. It's deployed on Netlify.

Challenges we ran into

Making it feel like a real game and not a tech demo was the biggest challenge. Getting the equipment to look realistic in the browser while keeping it smooth to play took a lot of tuning. Designing the incident so it's realistic but still fun to solve was also tricky.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

People who have never been inside a data center can now walk through one and solve a real style incident. And engineers who have been there will recognize every tool.

What we learned

I learned a lot about 3D in the browser, lighting, textures and performance. I also learned that turning real work into a game means cutting the boring parts and keeping the "aha" moments.

What's next for Rack & Patch

More incidents beyond the router, like a failed switch uplink and a firewall issue, plus a timer and scoring so players can compete on how fast they fix the problem.

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