4 Things to Consider when Choosing Colocation Providers
Businesses that must choose between running enterprise data centers and leasing external data centers and servers now have a third option: colocation. Professional server rooms are provided by colocation center solutions to house data center equipment. When looking for a wholesale colocation provider, it’s critical to rank options based on four crucial criteria.
1. Uptime Service Level Agreements
Server access is crucial, and even a little disruption can result in exorbitant expenditures. Many enterprise colocation providers guarantee 100 percent uptime to their clients, and nothing less is acceptable in today’s climate.
Reliable network connections are required for complete access. A colocation center employs numerous ISPs and WAN connections to build a dependable network that can withstand excessive network traffic or physical damage to the connections.
Downtime can also occur as a result of software modifications. Administrators make changes to server configurations, implement security updates, and upgrade software on a regular basis. If these duties are not completed correctly, the system will crash. A colocation center has knowledgeable staff that understand how to manage network software securely.
2. Safeguarding the Data
To defend their systems against network intrusion or virus, data centers utilize software and hardware technologies, but the best protection is also the most expensive and out of reach for many enterprise data centers. Colocation facilities take use of economies of scale to make the most effective applications more inexpensive.
Physical penetration poses a greater threat to computers than network threats, yet many businesses place minimal emphasis on physical protection. To prevent untrained employees from accessing the data, wholesale data centers deploy surveillance cameras, physical obstacles, and professional security experts. An enterprise colocation provider provides a degree of protection that most businesses cannot afford.
3. Power Management
Utility corporations have a huge control over the happenings in data centers, whether wholesale or enterprise. Servers might shut down suddenly due to brownouts and blackouts, resulting in downtime and data loss. To compensate, IT departments utilize uninterruptible power supply (UPSs), although their goal is not to keep servers running, but to allow systems to shut down normally.
A wholesale data center provider for example, will use onsite generators to keep equipment working during extended power outages. The use of many generators increases the reliability of the electricity. Because the cost of purchasing and maintaining generators is prohibitively expensive for most businesses, low scale enterprise data centers will always be vulnerable to power outages.
4. Green Server Rooms
Data centers consume more than 7.5 percent of all power supplied. Much of this is for cooling, as enterprise data centers are frequently retrofitted into buildings that were not designed to house servers. To maintain equipment within acceptable operating temperatures in server rooms, supplemental but ineffective cooling is used. The latest generation of blade servers will test the boundaries of server room cooling.
Wholesale data centers and colocation facilities meant to house server structures are built to provide optimal cooling while using the least amount of energy. The precise design and installation of HVAC systems in data centers guarantees that no cooling is wasted in unnecessary locations. This enables for low-cost cooling while still maintaining equipment at an ideal temperature for efficient and long-term usage.
Conclusion
Whether wholesale or enterprise level colocation, data center providers are in vogue in most major cities. Digital Fortress is a data center provider having more than seven locations in over five states in the United States of America. Click on the link and check out our centers and offers on our website.