A Few Key Characteristics That Make An Excellent Co-location Datacentre

A colocation facility can house numerous companies' servers, data storage systems and network equipment and offer the companies more bandwidth at less cost than if they were to run their own IT department and in addition the host can carry out maintenance as well so the companies don't have to do so themselves. By using a colocation service, a company can take care of the non-IT side of the business whilst the colo host looks after the IT side. Highlighted in the following article are some of the ways a co-location provider may ensure that its datacentre and the contents therein are protected.

Fire protection is extremely important in a colo datacentre. The host can utilise inert gases instead of water to put out fires as these do not damage computers and there can be sprinkler systems and smoke detectors present within the datacentre as well. The colo datacentre might also contain fire-proof walls inside the building that help to prevent the spread of a fire.

The colocation service will need to ensure that its datacentre is secure. Security measures can involve patrolling guards, CCTV, motion sensors and/or visitors requiring security cards, PIN codes or guard escorts to access facilities. The datacentre may provide separate areas for different companies' equipment to be stored in, with each area requiring its own key to access the equipment. The colocation service may also employ iris scans, fingerprint recognition and voice recognition as part of its security.

In order for equipment to continue running when the power fails, there should be an uninterruptible power supply within the co-location datacentre. As an additional safety net, they should have generators onsite in case of a power failure. The generators usually run on diesel so there should be ample supplies of diesel stored onsite. There should be redundant sets of generators to provide additional security if the power fails.

Colo datacentres should implement a lightning protection system to prevent spikes through the electricity supply which might damage the servers. Power should be supplied smoothly to the servers by first being routed through the lightning protection system, the generator changeover panel and the uninterruptible power supplies.

The equipment within a co-location datacentre requires a great deal of cooling as it generates a lot of heat. Therefore the colo provider should ensure there is adequate air conditioning with redundancy throughout the datacentre.

Multiple redundant fibre optic cable bundles should be used within the datacentre, and the bundles should come into the co-location facility from several different points. This prevents communication disruption in the event of a bundle being damaged. The co-location provider may also use wireless or satellite connections.

Sensors for detecting water may be installed in a colocation service datacentre so that staff are made aware if a leak occurs.

The above are some of the key features that help to make a colocation service datacentre safe and secure so enquire whether the colo providers you are interested in have implemented such measures before settling on one.