When you first hear the term Data Center Interconnection, connectivity is probably the first thing that goes through your mind. The simplest explanation for the term is just that. It allows interconnection among data centers.
Connectivity is vital in today’s world, and without connectivity, we would hardly have the simplicity of the modern world. Just think back to notebooks full of phone numbers, land-line phones, and trips to the library for information. The Internet is what allows this incredible level of connectivity. Without the Internet, life as we know it would stop. So how does the internet do that? There are two parts required for Data Center Interconnection, and we’ll cover both in this article.
What is a Data Center?
Nowadays, we live in an intensely connected world. From the phone in our hands to our TVs, ACs, and security systems, almost everything we use connects to the Internet in one way or another. This generates massive amounts of data, and in some cases we have to manage and distribute it globally. Just think of all the information your Facebook page contains, then add your Netflix preferences, YouTube, and Spotify. All these applications store your information in the Cloud. Well, the Cloud isn’t a cloud in the sky from which rain pours down when it’s too heavy with humidity. Instead, the Cloud is a physical place, an actual location where all this information lives. People also call the physical Cloud a Data Center.
Businesses use data centers to house data and applications. They store various business applications somewhere else to save up on the equipment necessary in a data center. Unfortunately, many companies lack the budget, technical know-how, and physical space to run their own data center. That is why data center facilities sell storage space to them. A data center facility runs on an infrastructure of routers, switches, firewalls, servers, storage systems, and application delivery controllers. This network of storage resources and computing technologies delivers shared applications and data to the customer.
What is Interconnection?
With the development of data center facilities, the reliance on the physical infrastructure of each such facility became vital. Just imagine if Google stored all its information in one data center and the electricity went out. That would mean that all the information supplied by Google would be inaccessible. For that not to happen, one could say that data centers evolved. Nowadays, finding a data center that has the element of interconnection is a necessity for big corporations.
Initially, each data center facility served one function and handled one type of data. When a company wanted to enhance its IT capabilities, it had to build another data center to serve that function. Today’s connectivity needs to change that model through the data center interconnection technology. This innovation allows for two or more data center facilities to share resources and storage space amongst them. That way, if one data center fails, another can take up its load and keep each company’s services running. This requires a physical connection.
Data Center Interconnection and its Role
Now that we understand data centers and interconnection, let’s look at Data Center Interconnection (DCI). Then we will see what role it plays in today’s connectivity. The need for connection is more significant than ever, and technology found a way to answer the growing demand. However, we rely on technology so heavily that losing access to information seems almost apocalyptic. Data center interconnection solves that. Multiple DCI providers share their resources, so they can communicate and transfer data simultaneously.
These DCI can sit close to each other. They can also reach distant DCI’s through distributed exchange points in carrier-neutral colocation data centers. These DCI’s can connect through VPNs (virtual private networks), direct fiber lines (optical cables), or the public internet. The first two options give companies stronger security and lower latency risk, but they cost more. These master connections let users access IT resources from any DCI in the network.
Not all DCIs are identical, and not all of them follow the same protocols. Because of this, it is vital to take some important DCI network considerations into account when browsing for DCI providers. These critical elements of their infrastructure, protocol and services offered can make a difference in your company’s success or failure.
Distance
The distance between interconnected data centers can impact the latency of packet transmission. To improve your network’s performance, always look for a low latency connection. This usually means choosing data centers in close proximity. That is because low latency comes from the shortest physical distance and the right type of cable. For example, fiberoptic is faster than UTP and so on.
Capacity
DCI connections let data centers share workload and storage space. However, that does not mean every data center has the same capacity. A data center with limited storage or no room for traffic spikes can slow down an entire DCI ecosystem.
Security
Living in the age of information, security is always a priority. Data breaches can be the end of any organization giving the nature of information online and the GDPR. This is why IT personnel protect data whenever it moves from one data center to another. In addition, any in-transit data in a DCI connection must follow strict encryption protocols and strict access rules.
Operations
A DCI network uses an astronomical number of protocols and open APIs. They keep data moving rapidly between workloads and across applications. These protocols and open APIs act as automatic key systems that remove human error and increase transmission speed. IT personnel implement these protocols. Once in place, they work continuously and free the team to focus on more important tasks.
Cost
At first, companies built their own data centers, but an up-to-date facility is a massive undertaking. Nowadays, most businesses choose third-party data centers for colocation solutions, also known as data center providers. Through DCI networks, multiple companies can use their resources collectively to increase the data centers’ capacities. Like this, businesses get all the benefits of using a data center without the capital investment required to build one.
Types of Data Center Interconnection
Depending on the specific needs, different types of data center Interconnection include the following:
Cross Connect: A cross-connect is a physical link (usually a patch cord) that connects that connect separate units of the facilities within a data center. A cross-connection is a direct point-to-point link between two hardware assets in a data center. Cross-connects link different services, customers, or applications and add an essential point of flexibility to the physical network.
Peering Exchange: A peering exchange is a marketplace where ISPs connect and exchange IP traffic for their mutual benefit. This avoids the expenses that third-party networks charge for guaranteed connectivity. It also helps in improving the end-user experience due to the shortest and best network route.
Inter-Site Connectivity: This type of connectivity links two data centers physically or virtually. It reduces link failures and traffic congestion, and it balances the load.
Blended IP: Blended approach ensures optimal traffic routing while mitigating network congestion. This option combines several connectivity options of ISPs to provide a single reliable and redundant connection. Blended IP providers give firms one redundant Internet connection without negotiating with several providers. This helps to get the highest speed of data transfer as compared to a single provider.
Benefits of Data Center Interconnection
After analyzing the section above, we can clearly see the main benefits of using Data Center Interconnection. We live in an age of Artificial Intelligence and data that moves from one corner of the world to another. Data Center Interconnection ensures security in an age where hacking has become the world’s biggest threat. It also allows companies to ensure the quality of service policies, among others, to guarantee performance under any circumstances. Data Center Interconnection gives businesses and organizations access to multiple types of connections. As a result, they can choose how to distribute and prioritize workloads.
If those perks aren’t enough, consider this. Data Center Interconnection lets providers pool their resources and tap into the physical and virtual resources of connected data centers. Doing this will enable them to balance their workload so their network infrastructure won’t oversaturate with protocols and packet transmissions.
Conclusion
For a deeper technical reference, see the Uptime Institute’s Tier Standard, which outlines how interconnection and redundancy affect facility certification.
Through Data Center Interconnection, organizations can use their own resources to increase their IT functionality and versatility. Companies of any size no longer need to spend large amounts of capital on their own data centers. This is because data center providers offer those services at a fraction of the cost of building one. In addition, these service providers have multiple functions. If that data center does not cover the function you need, other interconnected data centers can cover it.
More capacity and processing power is one interconnection away. That frees data centers to focus on innovating their products and technologies. Otherwise, they would spend their profits on building new infrastructures all the time. In addition, this technology simplifies IT departments worldwide and reduces maintenance and personnel costs. It also ensures a more secure method of data transmission from provider to the end-user.
