Did you know that, on average, data centers upgrade their IT equipment every 3 to 5 years?
Data center managers are always finding new ways to improve their infrastructure. But good equipment isn’t enough to make a data center great.
A great data center also offers its customers services that complement its fundamental infrastructure. But which of these accessory services are most important?
That’s what we’re here to answer. In this article, we’ll discuss some of the basic services every data center needs along with a few services that we think are almost as important.
Read on to learn more!
Basic Data Center Services: Power, Security, Redundancy
What someone means by “data center” can be different depending on where they work. Ultimately, they serve the same purpose, but the infrastructure often varies.
Some businesses may have a server room that they call a data center, and others may have an enterprise-level facility for data storage. And many medium-to-large businesses use colocation services in large data centers like SH Data Tech.
No matter what, though, these data centers all have a few things in common: power, security, and redundancy. And if you’re looking at data center options, these features need to be top of mind.
POWER
Power determines how fast your data, applications, websites, and storage run. A standard data center rack, on average, consumes about 7kW of energy. But some users might need 20 or more kW per rack.
The more power you have, the faster your data will move. It’s that simple, so consider this when you’re comparing data centers. Some businesses won’t need that much speed, but it never hurts to be safe by securing extra power
SECURITY
Security is another bare necessity of a data center. From a locked server room to biometric security, data centers of all types need protection.
Security isn’t just about protection from bad actors or thieves. Good security also ensures that your data doesn’t overheat or disconnect. Cooling systems, airflow, and redundant equipment all impact the safety of your data.
If you’re considering colocation services, data center security should be the determining factor. Without effective security, a data center can’t serve its main purpose.
REDUNDANCY
Redundancy is almost as important as security. When you’re hosting or renting servers in a data center, you should never have to worry about outages.
Redundancy simply ensures that each piece of equipment in a data center has a backup. No backup means no redundancy; without it, one piece of equipment failure could take down a whole data center.
Ultimately, redundancy ensures that a data center does what it promises. It keeps your data accessible. Any worthwhile data center will reach a basic redundancy level.
Migration Services
Let’s discuss some features that not every data center provider will have. Migration services, for example, can be a huge help when you’re picking a data center, but not everyone offers them
The move from in-house servers to a data center can be complicated and frustrating. But a good data center will offer to help. A data center manager will be able to sit with your team and figure out the best plan of action, and they’ll be there to help when you’re ready to move.
Of course, all data center managers will at least open the door for you. But a great data center will have a team ready to help make the transition easy.
Disaster Recovery
Disaster recovery planning is a service that’s outside the regular suite of a data center because it’s more of an IT service. However, data recovery will be a primary focus of your disaster recovery plan. Partnering with an IT company that also manages a data center just makes sense.
A disaster recovery and data center package deal makes it easy to implement a seamless process. If disaster does strike, you’ll only need to make one phone call, making it that much faster to return to business as usual.
Managed IT Services
Using a data center’s in-house IT service can also make for a better experience. Most data centers will have IT professionals on staff to help with your data center needs, but not every data center team can also help with your tech support, network management, cloud hosting, and other IT services.
Marrying IT support and data center services provides you with a holistic approach to your IT infrastructure. With this setup, you won’t have to spend time determining who to call. It’s the same team every time.
Cloud Hosting
Finally, let’s discuss cloud hosting. Most data centers will offer private cloud services, but not every data center will manage your public cloud or create a hybrid cloud service for you.
But, with the ever-growing reliance on the cloud, the need for this consolidation only grows. As of 2020, 36 percent of businesses have deployed a hybrid cloud environment, and we can only expect that number to grow over time. Hybrid clouds are safer, more flexible, and easier to personalize.
A data center that can do both will ensure that your business is ahead of the curve.
Data Center Services: Next Steps
As we’ve seen, data center services range from basic services to complex systems. Although the basics are often similar across the board, great data centers offer other essential services.
If you’re reading this, you’re on track to finding a team more than ready to help you. Contact our data center team to find out how we can fortify your organization’s data protection.
