Small businesses wanting more control over their data management might want to consider using a colocation service. Learn all about colocation in this article.
There comes a point in any business’s lifetime when you need to examine how you manage your data. You may have outgrown your existing setup but you’re not sure where to go next. Data centers offer a potential solution. It’s predicted that there will be 7.2 million data centers worldwide by 2021. But should you choose colocation services or managed hosting? What are the benefits of a colocation service? Read on to learn more about data management.
What Is Colocation?
Colocation happens when you rent space inside a data center to create your own data center. The data center gets the benefit of earning extra income from unused space in its building. It differs from managed hosting since you control the equipment and rent the space. Maintenance of the equipment is up to you.
Data centers will manage the technology and data for their managed hosting customers. Colocation benefits businesses by giving them a steady power supply, physical security, and floor space in a dedicated data center.
If you’re looking for a company that understands colocation and has experience in the field, DataSite is the best solution.
Can’t I Host Data Myself?
You can. If you don’t currently store your data at a data center, then you’re hosting it “in-house.” You own your servers and network infrastructure. One of the drawbacks of doing this involves IT support. You need IT staff who can manage on-site data storage. They also need to update both the hardware and software your servers need.
You’ll need to regularly check the data you hold is still up-to-date. Contacting customers using the wrong information can get you into trouble. Cleaning this data takes time. If you deal with customers in the EU, GDPR means you need to ensure the data is secure at all times.
Why Should I Use a Colocation Service?
The first advantage of colocation is physical space. You don’t need to make room for servers in your offices. That’s physical space you can use for more workers or storage of products. As your business grows, you won’t need to find extra space for more servers. In addition, your existing server space may not have adequate cooling to handle more servers. A space like this colocation provider has this kind of cooling setup built into it.
The next advantage is around power consumption. It’s factored into the price of your colocation package.
The same applies to security. You don’t need to pay for physical security to monitor the servers. A colocation service also has the experience to handle emergencies like fires or floods. While you have to maintain your data, they’ll still protect your space.
In short, using a colocation service frees up your business from focusing on your data management in-house. That lets you focus on what your business is best at. Free up physical space by housing your servers in a colocation center. Enjoy the flexibility they offer when you decide to expand your server array.
Data centers are already prepared for physical threats and cybersecurity attacks. Take advantage of their expertise by housing your servers with them. Check out our other business articles for more tips and advice.
More on this topic: Your Guide to Understanding Master Data Management Tools