China locks down servers for Olympics - Mo' better censorship

By Copper Harding @ Wednesday, July 16, 2008 12:31 PM

Section - PCs/Internet

China has long been criticized for its censorship of the internet, exemplified by the Great Firewall of China. (GFC)  Not surprisingly many companies offering services within China also follow the rules and guidelines for restricted content. Google is a prime example of this 'follow the rules' system.

What is most interesting is the people's attitude. Many of China's citizens feel that it is in their best interest to maintain the GFC. The feeling is common and relates much to the general culture towards government overall. The average populace doesn't seem to mind some censorship even as corruption and injustice is revealed to go from the local level all the way up the food chain.

So now, after all that restriction we have a promise from China that many of the internet constraints will be lifted for the sake of the Olympics. As journalists visiting China this last spring reported,  random tech-related websites were inaccessible.

Sites that are known to be a-political and very focused on technology, gadgets, and shiny stuff. So how is China lifting the restrictions? Well, the signs are not positive in this regard.

It seems that China is locking down IDC server rooms - read the following: 'To ensure China Netcom's network stability and the safe operation of existing IDC server farm equipment during the Olympic period, the company’s Shanghai branch has drawn up management regulations for the Olympic Period Server Lockdown to be uniformly implemented beginning on the day of 'The Server Lockdown' until further e-mail notice. Your company is hereby informed of the IDC Management Regulations for the Olympic Period Server Lockdown, please comply.'

The details are just as restrictive towards any type of maintenence or troubleshooting. It looks like the authorities are  taking every step to ensure that the net runs smoothly during the games. Outages of large parts might just easily be blamed on mechanical malfunction with a much longer than average downtime. Details and translations of the lockdown information can be read at Global Voices. X