  Instead of relying on huge and expensive data centers for rolling out
cloud-based services to rural and remote areas, we propose a hardware platform
based on small single-board computers. The role of these micro-data centers is
twofold. On the one hand, they act as intermediaries between cloud services and
clients, improving availability in the case of network or power outages. On the
other hand, they run community-based services on local infrastructure. We
illustrate how to build such a system without incurring high costs, high power
consumption, or single points of failure. Additionally, we opt for a system
that is extendable and scalable as well as easy to deploy, relying on an open
design.
