Inside Google's Oregon Data Center

Google recently opened the doors of its Oregon data center to several journalists from the local community newspaper. The huge complex in The Dalles, Oregon was featured on the front page of the New York Times in June 2006. The journalists' account of their trip inside the data center doesn't provide much information technical information about the facility, due in part to the fact that the editors signed a non-disclosure agreement to gain access to the building. But the tour appears to reflect a shift in Google's approach to its data centers, as it seeks to strike a balance between operational secrecy and community relations. Here's an excerpt:

(Facility manager Ken) Patchett said Google’s initial secrecy had been adjusted due to the company’s experience here. "Our challenge was understanding that transparency was important. We’ve learned an awful lot about being open with the community early on. And don’t just focus on what you have to do to build [the plant]; focus on being a solid member of the community."

Patchett outlines a number of Google's community development and charity efforts in the community, and reveals a quirky milestone. "We have now joined, for the first time that I know of — as Google — the Chamber of Commerce,” Patchett said.

But community relations has its limits. The journalists from The Dalles Chronicle asked why Google doesn't disclose the number of employees at its data center. "The ability to determine how some things are done within the Internet space may also be determined by the number of people it takes to operate a particular facility," said Patchett. "So when we talk about how much capacity we have to process the information, that is what’s valuable to our competitors; how fast and how well do we process our information. Some piece of that may able to be derived by the number of people it takes to actually run and support that."

But the Googlers at The Dalles seem to have a sense of humor about the secrecy, as noted by The Dalles Chronicle:

One of the first things we saw, attached to the fence by the security building, was a sign containing the word "Voldemort." It’s a sly reference to Google’s own initial local secrecy, since throughout the Harry Potter series, Voldemort is referred to as "He Who Must Not Be Named."

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  By Rich Miller August 27, 2007 | Permalink | >Get Posts By E-mail

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Comments

Posted by: Venu at August 29, 2007 03:22 PM