Colocation Services in Central London

A data centre is a purpose-built facility for storing, powering, cooling, and connecting your IT infrastructure. Colocation is a service provided by a Data Centre, delivering  empty racks, power, cooling and security services for a customer to install their own equipment outside of their premises.

Physical security, which refers to physical access to the buildings where servers are hosted, is probably the most significant security advantage of colocation facilities, especially when compared to on-premises infrastructure.

Of course, most modern security threats, such as ransomware and distributed denial-of-service assaults, do not require physical access. However, there are a variety of distinct forms of physical hazards that must be considered.

We provide 24/7 manned security, use external and internal HD CCTV systems, and optional biometric ID-only entry points to further protect your assets. We also keep track of maintenance logs and testing schedules, and implement strict fire risk policies.

High-Quality Security – Colocation data centres use cutting-edge security measures that are just out of reach for many private data solutions. Multiple security gates and sophisticated logical security techniques like biometric scanners are used in these hardened facilities to ensure that only authorised visitors may physically access vital data assets.

Scalability – Companies frequently turn to a colocation provider because their current data solution has outgrown them. A company can negotiate service conditions with a colocation provider that allow it to scale services as needed.

Better Uptime Reliability – Uptime reliability for on-premises data solutions isn’t always the best, and it varies from provider to provider. If the facility has an excellent track record, this is one of the best advantages of colocation. E.g. a colocation data centre with a verified uptime reliability 99.99% has less than 56.2 minutes a year.

Interconnectivity – For colocation customers, a carrier-neutral data centre offers a wide range of connectivity alternatives. One of the important reasons why companies migrate to colocation data centres rather than creating their own private data centres is because of the vast connectivity options.

Improved Resource Deployment – A private data centre can be highly expensive to build, and there are other costs that remain after the facility is finished. Outsourcing data centre infrastructure to a colocation facility frees up precious IT capacity, lowers overhead, and allows a company to focus more on research and development rather than troubleshooting their infrastructure on a regular basis.

Here are 3 of the top considerations when choosing a colocation provider…

1 – Location, location, location. If the data centre is mainly being utilised for storage and cloud access, it should be positioned close to your main office. Choose a colocation data centre within easily accessible distance of your IT staff so that they have easy access to the facility; or, if an edge data centre is being used to provide services to customers, it should be located as close as possible to the intended end users to minimise latency issues.

2 – Sustainability. For many businesses, this is a major issue. Organisations devoted to adopting creative and environmentally friendly policies should seek to partner with colocation providers who put forth the effort to build sustainable processes. Green power programmes in data centres are always exploring innovative ways to supply services as efficiently and affordably as feasible.

3 – Network Solutions Build Capacity. Many businesses require their colocation data centres to deliver more than simply space to keep their servers. Such organisations may want network solutions that maximise data security while simultaneously providing scalable cloud computing services. Hybrid cloud and multi-cloud deployments can give these businesses the best of both worlds.

For a more comprehensive list of considerations, download our ebook 11 Questions To Ask When Choosing The Right data Centre.

There are a variety of space configurations and service options available with server colocation.

The smallest amount of data centre colocation space is measured in per unit (U).  1U, 2U, 3U, and 4U colocation space are examples of per U colocation. 1U colocation measures approximately 19″ wide x 36″ deep x 1.75″ high.

Quarter rack colocation consists of around 10U of total colocation space and 8U to 9U of usable space. The size of the rack enclosure, which can be 42U, 46U, 47U, or 48U, determines the number of rack units (U) in a quarter rack. The spacing of the divider shelves also plays a role.

Most data centres do not provide single u or quarter racks

Half rack colocation gives about 20U of total colocation space and 16U to 18U of usable colocation space.

The most frequent colocation space offerings among nearly all colocation data centre operators are full rack colocation and locked cabinets. Full rack colocation provides 42U to 47U (and sometimes more),  of total colocation capacity

As you would imagine, the cost of colocation is directly related to your needs and specifications, and so will vary from customer to customer. Contact our specialists who’ll be able to provide more pricing information once we’re clear on your individual needs.