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What to expect from this guide:

In this guide, we will define how data centers have changed along with technology, we will explain data center virtualization and bandwidth and how this can affect page speed, explain the importance of choosing a Tier IV data center, and explain the importance of INERGEN fire suppression. These critical components will help shape your choice on whether or not to use a data center or traditional hosting.

 

Businesses that succeed in transforming their business hosting issues do two things very well:

First, they identify issues surrounding their website’s hosting, such as page speed, bandwidth, IT issues.

Second, they employ a solution that addresses all of their hosting issues, such as a data center.

But you’re probably wondering: ‘How do I start to understand what hosting methods are effective before I consult with professionals?

Well, today we are going to explain why you should choose a data center for hosting your business.

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Learn how the data center method has increased one company’s revenue by 200-250% in 6 months.

We have been very happy with our choice of a colocation provider and now we are able to service over 100 doctors in multiple practices throughout the US.

We have provided a chapter guide for your convenience:

The evolution of the data center As a Service Model

The goal of a data center today is to act as a “one-stop shop” for all of an organization’s IT and computing needs. This goal has forced today’s data center design to evolve as technology improves and the nation’s reliance on cloud management solutions grows at an astronomical rate. On average, a consumer is using two or more devices to connect to their workload.  Consumers are consistently looking for better ways to manage their data. They are looking for easy access, increased security, and 24 hour a day customer service. The proliferation of data centers across the nation has created a degree of competition among providers that data center hosting services are consistently working to develop new and innovative service models that provide the most services at the least cost.

Today’s Data center As a Service Model

As end user requirements have changed, the data centers of today have updated their data center as a service model to include a host of new service offerings that allow them to act as a one-stop service provider for customers.

These new service offerings include the following:

  1. Network-as-a-Service. The increase in the number of consumers turning to cloud technologies has necessitated the evolution of data center network offerings. Today’s data centers are being asked to develop new ways to deliver high-quality, low latency network services. One example of this is the concept of Bandwidth on Demand. With this service, the available bandwidth has the capability to expand in real time based on the amount of traffic a network is experiencing. Once the traffic level dies down, the available bandwidth scales back as well. This provides a cost-effective solution for businesses with fluctuating bandwidth needs.
  2. Data-as-a-Service. As with the Bandwidth on Demand offering, the data as a service model offers clients data on demand in a clean and efficient manner. The goal here is to offer clients a system for delivering data to different systems, user groups, and applications without sacrificing delivery efficiency.
  3. Backend-as-a-Service. The backend-as-a-service model has become increasingly popular as more and more users access and utilize their networks from mobile devices. With backend-as-a-service offerings, both web and mobile applications are allowed to link to backend cloud storage hosting services. This allows for everything from efficient push notifications to easy integration with social networking platforms.

As a result of the changing service models of data centers as a service provider, data center architects are being asked to oversee a greater amount of service management. These providers are now required to monitor and manage the physical infrastructure of the data center, the heating and cooling needs of the staff and hardware and an extensive network of disaster recovery protocols. As a result of these adapting needs, a few notable changes have taken place in data centers. These include changes to the layout and appearance of data centers, improved heating and cooling technologies, new applications and workloads, and a newly invigorated focus on business continuity planning. Data center-as-a-Service providers manage all of the above from a single center at a single, fixed price for consumers.

Finding service provider

Companies looking to migrate all applications, network systems, and security measures into a single machine are advised to research local providers before contacting these providers to inquire as to the specifics of their service offerings. Data-as-a-Service providers have moved from providing the basic infrastructure for data center hosting to offering clients the ability to turn all IT needs over to a single enterprise.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row bg_type=”bg_color” bg_color_value=”#e8e8e8″][vc_column][vc_column_text]

Increasing hosting bandwidth with virtualization


While cloud computing is the current topic of focus for IT blogs and articles, data center virtualization offers businesses an inexpensive way to increase bandwidth, reduce costs, and take advantage of a number of increased management services. At its core, data center virtualization is a system for using a single, physical server to run a number of remote, virtual machines. Each of these machines run through the physical server’s operational system and eliminates hardware and staffing requirements. Companies looking to increase bandwidth capabilities are starting to turn to data center virtualization services.

What Is Data Center Virtualization?

Data center virtualization refers to the ability to take a single server and divide it up into multiple virtual hardware subsets. This is done as a method of separating physical hardware to create a number of fully operational virtual systems. Once these virtual hardware subsets are created, the goal is that each operates in a similar fashion to a traditional, physical server. Each subset is referred to as a Virtual Machine (VM) and is outfitted with virtual hardware that allows a client to install an operating system and applications as though it were a physical server. The last decade has seen a significant increase in the number of businesses turning to data center virtualization services. The reason for this increase lies in the three primary advantages of virtualized data centers. These include reduced costs in infrastructure, increased availability and management services, and better-optimized hardware utilization.

How does data center virtualization differ from shared servers?

The difference between virtualized data centers and traditional shared servers is an often-misunderstood concept. The confusion revolves around the fact that virtualization is a key component of shared servers. All shared server systems offer virtualization services to clients, and these services are what allow the server to operate effectively. The key difference lies in the difference between hardware and services. Virtualization refers to software that has the capability to manipulate a server’s hardware. Cloud, or shared, servers refer to the services that result from this manipulation.

How does hosting bandwidth increase with virtualization?

 The primary reason for the increase in bandwidth availability with virtualized data centers lies in the shared nature of the servers. Since each of the virtual machines is connected to a single physical server and share this server’s capabilities, you eliminate the need for multiple servers with multiple traffic flows and application installation. The result is increased bandwidth availability. Furthermore, virtualization of servers works to automatically reduce bottlenecks in input and output traffic to ease flow and increase speed. The elimination of bottlenecks gives servers the capability to better utilize their bandwidth and get more for their current levels. Lastly, ongoing and automatic traffic analysis tools prevent network overloads and switch failures by providing long term usage projections. These projections give business owners the ability to predict future traffic flow before it creates a bottleneck.

Locating a virtual data center

Businesses looking to increase their hosting bandwidth are increasingly opting for virtualized data centers. If your business is struggling with the need for increased bandwidth capabilities or is looking to lower the costs of IT hardware, contact a local virtualized data center to speak with a customer service representative today. These professionals can walk you through the service offerings and help assess whether virtualized data center services are right for your business.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]

The Importance of High Bandwidth and Page Speed

For any given industry, there are thousands of related websites. A decade ago, businesses needed only to create and advertise a website to see a direct impact on revenue. Now, with the ease of website creation and the increasingly technology-reliant consumer base, businesses are required to have websites that stand out, are user-friendly, and are optimized for conversions. High bandwidth hosting and page speed are two crucial aspects to managing a website that outperforms the competition and produces direct and noticeable increases in revenue. In this article, we will explore the importance of high bandwidth hosting and page speed.

Understanding Page Speed and Page Load Speed

Page speed simply refers the amount of time it takes for a website or media file to download from a hosting service and display on the appropriate web browser page. Page load speed refers to the time it takes for the entire content of the link to be displayed on a web browser page after a link is clicked. While both are fairly simple concepts, they both have profound impacts on the user experience and profitability of the website.

Why are page speed and page load speed important to a business’s website? The answer lies in the algorithms used by search engines for ranking. Each search engine utilizes a highly specific algorithm to determine page rank. One of the top factors in this algorithm is page load speed. Website pages that are slow to load simply will not rank high in search engine results. Studies have shown that one in four visitors will abandon a website if it does not load within four seconds. Furthermore, 46% of users will not return to sites that have poor page load speed. This means that businesses with slow loading pages are turning away almost 50% of potential customers.

High Bandwidth Hosting

Bandwidth refers to the amount of data that can be transferred or downloaded from a website. The speed of the networks, connections, and applications running on a hosting center’s server increases in direct proportion to the amount of bandwidth being utilized. Determining the amount of bandwidth a website needs (and will need over the years) is based on the following three factors.

Companies with fewer than 500,000 visitors a year are not likely to need increased bandwidth availability. For larger businesses, understanding the correlation between high bandwidth hosting and page load speed is the key to choosing a web hosting provider that will efficiently meet a customer’s needs.

Finding High Bandwidth Hosting

Beware of hosting services offering “unlimited bandwidth” options. For many businesses, this is simply unnecessary. Instead, contact the hosting services in the desired region and speak with a customer service provider. These experts will be able to provide a simple calculation for determining the amount of bandwidth needed to achieve optimal page speed and website performance. From there, choosing a bandwidth hosting service is a matter of simply finding the service that offers a package with the required bandwidth availability.

Understanding data center tiers and the importance of tier IV

The need for a globally recognized set of Tier Performance Standards became unavoidable in the mid-1990s. The data center industry was growing at an unprecedented rate as the number of businesses with significant Internet needs skyrocketed. In response to this critical need, the Uptime Institute developed a Tier Classification and Certification System for data centers. This classification system was designed to be used as a standard, globally recognized methodology for measuring data center performance. In this progressive system, each tier adds to the previous level’s requirements. Therefore, Tier II must meet all Tier I requirements before adding to the capabilities.

Choosing the data center tier most suited for a business’s data center necessitates an understanding of the Uptime Tier Classification System. The four tiers are outlined below.

The Uptime Institute’s Tier Classification System

  1. Tier 1 / Basic Capacity. A Tier I data center is the most basic of the tier capabilities. Best suited for small businesses and blog hosting, Tier I data centers operate with a single uplink and server. The center provides businesses with a dedicated space for IT systems, an Uninterrupted Power Supply (UPS), cooling equipment, and an engine generator to meet basic backup needs in the event of system failure.
  2. Tier II / Redundant Capacity Components. Tier II centers add redundant capacity components to the basic capabilities of a Tier I center. In Tier II centers, businesses are provided with redundant power and cooling capabilities that include UPS Modules, chillers, pumps, and energy generators.
  3. Tier III / Concurrently Maintainable. A Tier III center builds upon the Tier II module by adding a redundant delivery path for power and cooling. This enables every component of the Tier III IT system to be shut down for maintenance or repair without impacting the overall IT operation.
  4. Tier IV / Fault Tolerance. Tier IV data centers are recognized as the most reliable and secure centers for businesses with high availability requirements. Tier IV data centers build upon the requirements of Tier III centers by adding the concept of Fault Tolerance to their capabilities. Fault tolerance capability means that, in the rare event of an individual system failure or path interruption, the effects of these disruptions do not reach the IT operations. Single or concurrent system or pathway failures will not result in downtime to the entire system.

Choosing data center tiers

Choosing the most suitable data center tier for a business depends primarily on two factors – availability and security needs. Businesses with high availability requirements are best suited for the offerings of a Tier IV Data Center. E-commerce, financial settlement companies, and large-scale corporations are generally ideal candidates for Tier IV Data Centers. For businesses in the process of choosing a data center tier classification, a brief explanation of the importance of Tier IV Data Center capabilities on your business’s health is provided below.

Tier IV Data Centers have capability levels that are designed to host “mission critical” servers and computer systems. Data centers in this tier are nearly equivalent to the data centers used by the United States government. The outstanding characteristic of Tier IV Data Centers is the concept of Fault Tolerance. In a Tier IV Data Center, every single component of an IT system is dual powered. This means that everything from servers to HVAC systems are operated on multiple distribution pathways. These pathways have the capability to serve each of the components of a site’s computer equipment simultaneously while allowing for complete redundancy in operation and backup. In the unlikely event of a system or pathway failure, the system will automatically respond to prevent future failures at the location. Furthermore, Tier IV Data Centers offer 2N+ Redundancy. This means that each Tier IV Data Center contains two times the amount of power capabilities needed to operate, plus an additional backup generator. As a result of these redundancy capabilities, Tier IV Data Centers offer less than 27 minutes of downtime a year – with each of the downtime events lasting less than a fraction of a second.

Choosing the ideal data center

When it comes to choosing the ideal data center for a business, the primary consideration is the need for data availability and the ability to tolerate downtime without significant impact on the business’s operations and vitality. For small businesses, a Tier I Data Center will provide the basic IT components required to successfully function. For large-scale corporations dealing with high availability and increased security needs, a Tier IV data center is the recommended option.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]

The importance of INERGEN fire suppression in data centers

On average, a 14,000 square foot data center moves a 2,400kW electrical load and 700 tons of heat every single day. This places incredible electrical and mechanical pressures on circuits and opens a data center up to significant fire risks. To compound this problem, data centers pose unique challenges for fire suppression systems. Up until the mid-1990’s Halon 1301 was the primary substance used for fire suppression in data centers. While this chemical did not produce water damages to the center, it was highly damaging to the environment. As a result of the negative impacts on the environment, Halon production was halted in 1987 with the signing of The Montreal Protocol. Since then, inert gasses like INERGEN have replaced Halon as the go-to fire suppression agent in data centers.

Fire suppression challenges in data centers

Data center fire suppression offers a host of unique challenges. The majority of data centers are comprised of hot and cold aisles. Each of these aisles is separated from one another in an effort to contain the space’s airflow. As a result, data center fire suppression systems must be able to effectively prevent and extinguish fires in each of these contained spaces, often at the same time.  Furthermore, data and telecommunication centers are full of personnel and, thus, require non-toxic suppressive gasses to ensure each worker’s brain and respiratory functioning is kept at a level optimal for evacuation.

The critical nature of INERGEN fire suppression in data centers

The goal of fire suppression in data centers goes beyond putting out fires. Data centers are regarded as “mission critical” facilities. This title refers to the need for these facilities to run 24 hours a day, every day, without interruption to service. As a result of this “mission critical” status, a single day of downtime for the center can have global implications. In fact, the National Archives and Records Administration reports that 93% of companies that suffer a loss of data for ten days or more (often as the result of a fire) file for bankruptcy within the year. A fire suppression system that is suitable for data centers must go beyond extinguishing fires. The system must be able to get a data center back up and running within hours. Extended downtime can result in losses in productivity, customer disruption, reputation damage, and repair costs, loss of data and records, and lawsuits. INERGEN fire suppression has become the longest surviving Halon replacement currently on the market.

What is INERGEN?

What is INERGEN fire suppression and how does it work? On the most basic level, INERGEN fire suppression uses inert gasses to lower a room’s oxygen concentration below combustion level.  INERGEN is a blend of nitrogen, oxygen, and carbon dioxide that works to extinguish and prevent re-ignition of a fire without putting personnel, equipment, or the environment at risk. INERGEN gases go beyond being non-toxic – they actually improve the physical and mental functioning of staff by increasing the levels of carbon dioxide in a room from 1% to 4%. As a result of this carbon dioxide increase, individuals within the data center experience increased respiration rates and increased ability to absorb oxygen into the bloodstream.

Types of INERGEN Systems

There are three types of INERGEN fire suppression systems. They are as follows.

  1. INERGEN Premier Gaseous Fire Suppression System. An inert gaseous fire suppression system suited for large “multiple area protection.”
  2. INERGEN Conventional Gaseous Fire Suppression Systems. An inert gaseous fire suppression system best suited for medium-sized “business critical areas.”
  3. INERGEN Direct Orifice System Gaseous Fire Suppression. An inert gaseous fire suppression system designed specifically for very small, “business critical areas.” The Direct Orifice System is currently the most cost-effective solution for facilities with valuable and sensitive electrical equipment.

INERGEN fire suppression systems are best suited for laboratories, telecommunication centers, data centers, control rooms, and archives. While installation and maintenance, costs can run higher than the alternative fire control systems on the market, avoiding the astronomical costs of prolonged downtime after a fire quickly negates those costs. Data centers in need of fire suppression system installation are advised to contact a reputable INERGEN fire suppression installation specialist today.

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