Google is providing the world with unprecedented virtual access to its secretive data centres, through a new site dubbed 'Where the Internet lives'.
Google senior VP of technical infrastructure, Urs H"olzle, says the site provides a never-before-seen look at the technology, people and places "that keep Google running".
"Very few people have stepped inside Google's data centres, and for good reason: our first priority is the privacy and security of your data, and we go to great lengths to protect it, keeping our sites under close guard," says H"olzle, adding that only a small group of Google employees have access to the server floor.
The gallery of photographs by Connie Zhou featured on the new site are taken from inside eight of Google's data centres in the US, Finland and Belgium. Google is also allowing people to virtually explore its Lenoir, North Carolina, data centre in depth through Google Street View.
"Fourteen years ago, back when Google was a student research project, Larry [Page] and Sergey [Brin] powered their new search engine using a few cheap, off-the-shelf servers stacked in creative ways. We've grown a bit since then, and we hope you enjoy this glimpse at what we've built," says H"olzle.
"Walk in the front door, head up the stairs, turn right at the ping-pong table and head down the hall to the data centre floor. Or take a stroll around the exterior of the facility to see our energy-efficient cooling infrastructure."
The release of the images and new site follow the publication of an in-depth report by Wired senior reporter, Steven Levy, on how Google operates its data centres. Levy wrote "In The Plex", a book published last year about Google's growth and philosophy, and was given the exclusive chance to write the first report from the floor of a Google data centre.
Google says over the next few days, it will explore some of the photographs in-depth through posts on the Google Green Blog.
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