A colocation (colo) is a data centre facility in which a business can rent space for servers and other computing hardware.

Colocation allows you to place your server machine in someone else's rack and share their bandwidth as your own.

Typically, a colo provides the building, cooling, power, bandwidth and physical security while the customer provides servers and storage. Space in the facility is often leased by the rack, cabinet, cage or room. Many colos have extended their offerings to include managed services that support their customers' business initiatives.

Colocation (sometimes known as “colo”) is the practice of renting space for your servers and other computing hardware at a third-party provider’s data centre facility. Typically, colocation services include the building in which everything is housed, as well as networking, physical security, redundant power and redundant cooling components, which then support the servers and storage provided by the customer.

In dedicated hosting, customers rent servers as well as the infrastructure needed to house and maintain them. In colocation hosting, companies own their own hardware, but are looking to augment its usefulness by renting server space in a data centre, which provides benefits like improved Internet bandwidth, server cooling systems and climate control, and reliable power. 

Colocation Hosting for Security & Total Control:

A top reason most companies employ colocation hosting is for the security it provides. While many former colocation users have made the move to cloud technology because of its ease of use, endless resources, and competitive pricing, there are some things cloud cannot do, according to Who’s Hosting This; primarily, it’s the level of control you have over your server compared to cloud.

Additional Benefits of Colocation Hosting

With colocation hosting, a small-to-midsized company can achieve a reasonable facsimile of enterprise-level hosting capabilities thanks to the shared hosting environment and on-site support. This can allow your company to play on a fairly even field when it comes to technology, even if it is a fraction of the size of the competition.

Additional benefits include:

High bandwidth and low latency:Your server is plugged in to the colocation hosting provider’s network, giving it access to industrial-strength connection speeds. Additionally, you can contract with third-party providers like Spectrum or CenturyLink for even more connectivity options.

Unlimited power: No hosting situation is 100% free of risk, but you’re transferring the safety of your server from your office to a location built to prevent loss of electricity. A colocation hosting facility has access to steady power supplies, battery backups, and generators.

On-premises monitoring: Most data centers will employ security professionals or support technicians who monitor the premises 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and 365 days a year for unauthorized visitors. They control who has access to the data center.

Advanced climate control systems: Maintaining the perfect temperature and humidity requirements for servers to operate at optimal efficiency can be a tricky balance to achieve. A colocation hosting facility will have tailored climate control systems that allow the data center managers to properly maintain ideal environmental conditions.

Live monitoring of equipment: In a typical office, your first indication that hardware is in need of maintenance, update, or replacement is when something fails, slowing or stopping your employees’ production. With colocation hosting, IT professionals are monitoring your equipment constantly to ensure it is performing optimally.

Better management: In your own brick-and-mortar location, your servers might be managed by a contract IT person, a part-time worker, or a full-time employee who wears several different hats.

Upgrading or downloading your server’s capabilities in this environment involves lots of moving parts. When using a colocation hosting provider, a simple email or phone call will perform the same work, without adding to your budget or reducing employee productivity.

All data center are purpose built facilities, benefiting from multiple Tier carriers and peering links to multiple exchanges with diverse power feeds and backup solutions. Above all our services are backed by our 99.9% Uptime Commitment so you know you can expect super-reliable performance.

Still have some questions? Just ask our 24/7/365 Support Team. Always available to help.

You May Also Like To Read: UK Colocation Server Provider