More and more organizations today seeking to make their IT infrastructure more efficient and secure choose colocation services. Colocation frees businesses of the burden and expenses of having to build and manage an on-premises data center and offers several other benefits, such as easy scalability and excellent physical security. Leasing space in a colocation data center allows access to high-quality infrastructure, security, and reliable power, all of which are maintained by the provider. The benefits of colocation are obvious; however, for those who have yet to experience it, a few things can be less obvious at first glance. Like how do you manage colocated hardware in a data center owned and managed by someone else?
There are multiple possibilities to consider, depending on the case. Rest assured, all potential approaches allow you to retain control over the equipment while leveraging the benefits of colocation.
And now, let’s explore the paths you can take to manage your colocated hardware in the most efficient way for you.
How is Colocation Different From the Public Cloud or an On-Prem Data Center?
All types of data center solutions are different from a management point of view, with each involving different considerations. To better understand the management of colocated hardware, let’s take a quick look at the differences between these solutions.
An on-premises data center facility is built with the purpose of serving one company’s IT needs. This option allows granular control over everything, however, it comes with more responsibility and requires more resources from your team. A colocation data center, on the other hand, is a facility where several companies can rent space, connectivity, and other available resources, with everyone getting their share of the benefits of the robust infrastructure and security.
Public cloud data centers differ from colocation, too, in that they rent out their own equipment and hardware to customers, which is also managed by the public cloud provider’s team. So, the public cloud works on an IaaS basis, where everything is leased by the provider. Customers can’t bring their own hardware, and everything is managed for them by the provider. Managing colocated hardware is different from both on-premises and public cloud solutions because you are responsible for managing your hardware, like in an on-prem situation, however, the data center facility where it’s hosted is operated by a different company.
So, the questions that frequently arise revolve around how you manage your colocated hardware. How do colocation data centers allow access to your equipment? Is there a way to manage your hardware remotely or outsource these duties to someone else? Let’s look at the options.
Ways of Maintaining Colocated Hardware
Colocation providers can have different policies, so it’s important to consult what these are prior to signing. These are the typical approaches used for collocated hardware maintenance.
Personally, at the Colocation Data Center
Sending someone from your team to do the maintenance at the colocation facility is one of the simplest ways to manage colocated hardware. Sending your own employee to do the work allows for the most control over your equipment.
However, it’s important to keep in mind that colocation providers typically have strict policies for letting people in. There might be restrictions on when you can enter and how long you can stay in the facility. These are physical security protocols to ensure that no unauthorized intruders get into the data center to cause damage or tamper with other companies’ equipment. Depending on how your servers are placed in the facility, someone from the provider’s team might have to accompany you to the server room for security reasons. It’s important to consult with your provider about these restrictions.
Also, depending on how far away the data center is, sending an employee to manage your colocated hardware might come with some costs in proportion with the traveling distance.
Getting Managed Services From Your Colocation Provider
Some colocation providers offer only space for rent, allowing their customers to benefit from the robust infrastructure and security of their data centers while leaving all maintenance chores under the customer’s control. Other colocation providers offer managed services to different extents, which allow organizations to outsource (entirely or partially) the management of their colocated hardware. What’s included in managed colocation services varies from provider to provider and can range from just monitoring to handling all aspects of setting up and maintaining hardware. Working with a provider offering extensive managed services can be an efficient way to get management responsibilities done without having to send someone from your team. If outsourcing all maintenance responsibilities is not possible, you might still need to go on-site occasionally. According to many opinions, auditing your colocated hardware from time to time is a healthy practice, anyway.
Through a Third Party Managed Service Provider
Another way to approach the issue is to contract with a third-party managed service provider (MSP) for hardware management. MSPs are companies specialized in remotely managing a client’s IT infrastructure and systems. You can have your infrastructure at a colocation facility and hire a separate MSP to do the maintenance work on your colocated hardware deployments. This can be an advantageous option when sending your own staff would be disproportionately costly or simply because some MSPs offer the same services at a lower price than the colocation provider.
In order to make things work smoothly and without misunderstandings, communicate with your colocation provider and managed service provider about the conditions of accessing the colocation facilities for doing the maintenance work.
Manage Your Colocated Hardware Remotely
Managing colocated hardware remotely is also possible, although it’s obviously impossible to remotely solve issues like replacing hardware. It’s a viable solution, though, for anything that’s operating system or software-related. Remote maintenance presumes a network connection that makes it possible to do the work, like an internet connection. Some providers also offer other solutions for accessing the hardware without a network connection, but generally, you need a connection for remote access.
Find the Best Management Solution for Your Colocated Hardware
Finding the best solution for managing your colocated hardware is important to make operations efficient. This requires understanding your company’s infrastructure and needs and evaluating the options. To make an informed decision, find out whether your colocation provider offers managed services. Or, consider whether you want to outsource the responsibilities to someone else. Finding and implementing a solution that works for you can enhance the reliability and efficiency of your infrastructure and operations and provide you with peace of mind. Staying updated and continuously assessing your management practices to ensure they align with your needs can help you get the most out of choosing colocation.
If you want to learn more about your options for managing your colocated hardware, feel free to contact Volico Data Centers. Call (305) 735-8098, or leave us a message in chat to learn about the options available at our facilities, our managed services, and more. Or, if you want a more immersive experience, schedule a tour to take a look around personally.
