Kwikwap test site

Google is rumored to be testing a Google Global Cache service in South Africa

For many South African Internet users Google has become a significant part of their online experience as they trust on the company’s online offerings like search, email, YouTube and Google Maps for both professional and entertainment purposes.

One thing which many local netizens have been asking for is locally hosted Google services, and this is something which may not be too far off. 

According to one industry source Google already has Google Global Cache (GGC) servers in South Africa - hosted in an Internet Solutions’ Cape Town hosting facility - and is already serving Google content to individuals using the TENET network directly from either a peering connection or some sort of GGC-like nodes.

“Name resolution and trace-routing from the University of Cape Town (UCT) hosts confirms that all Google services are being served from local [South African] servers. This has huge implications in bandwidth savings, and quality of user interaction because of lower latency for content that is already available on the local datacenter and caches,” said Al in his Net Theory blog.

“The caching nodes [presumably GGC nodes] currently serve only certain services (map tiles, YouTube videos) and are generally co-located within a client network. The other Google services are served from machines located in Cape Town (based on ping times) and that [sic] are administratively within a Google-owned IP block.”

Another industry source said that the current Google testing is limited to the TENET network, but added that it is not unlikely that Google will peer with other networks soon.  Rumours suggest that issues with Google’s peering arrangements may delay matters, but details regarding Google’s peering, which is speculated to involve Internet Solutions, remains sketchy.

Google involved in CINX?

The Internet Service Providers Association (ISPA) announced in October last year that Google has offered to provide a switch for its Cape Town Internet Exchange (CINX) and that ISPA has accepted "this kind offer".   While it is not certain what Google’s peering plans are, it does fall in line with the rumours that Google is building a Cape Town based server presence. 

Google SA’s new country manager Stephen Newton said he could not comment on locally hosted services, but did day that “Google invests heavily in technical facilities around the world, and is constantly on the look-out for additional locations to insure low latency and great performances to users across the globe.”

Newton added that Google is committed to improving connectivity and online services in Africa, and that this may well include investments in projects in South Africa which make sense to the company.