May 23rd, 2023
When it comes to managing the server requirements of a business, you might find yourself at a crossroads: should you lease a dedicated server or opt for server colocation? While leasing a dedicated server from a data center has its advantages, server colocation often provides a more cost-effective and flexible alternative, especially for growing businesses.
Moreover, contrary to popular belief, you do not need the data center to be in close proximity. With today's technological advancements, you can easily ship your server to a data center of your choice, and their support staff can handle the racking and troubleshooting tasks remotely.
The Case for Server Colocation
Server colocation is essentially the process of housing privately-owned servers and networking equipment in a third-party data center. Instead of keeping servers in-house, in offices, or at a private data center, companies can colocate their server by renting space in a colocation center.
Here are a few compelling reasons why server colocation may be a better idea than leasing a dedicated server.
Enhanced Connectivity and Redundancy
One of the major benefits of datacenter colocation is the superior network connectivity and redundancy it provides. Colocation data centers typically offer a more reliable connection with a higher bandwidth speed, lower latency, and guaranteed uptime. This superior connectivity leads to better performance, reliability, and speed for your hosted applications and websites.
Cost-Effectiveness
Server colocation is often more cost-effective than leasing a dedicated server. When leasing a server, costs can rapidly escalate due to hardware rental, licensing, upgrades, and maintenance. With colocation, while you still have to purchase your own hardware, you have a fixed monthly cost for your rented space, power, cooling, and connectivity. This can make budgeting easier, and in many cases, cheaper.
Increased Flexibility and Control
Unlike leasing a dedicated server, with server colocation, you retain full control over your server hardware, software, and configuration. This flexibility allows you to customize your server to your exact business needs. You can upgrade or modify your hardware or software at any time, without needing to go through your provider or pay additional costs.
Scalability
As your business grows, your server needs will likely increase. Server colocation allows for easy scalability. You can start with a small space and then expand as your requirements grow. This is much easier and less disruptive than with leased servers, where major upgrades could require server migrations or extended downtime.
Geographic Proximity: A Non-Issue in Server Colocation
With advancements in remote server management technologies, the physical location of your data center is no longer a critical concern. Even if the data center is hundreds or thousands of miles away, it doesn't present a problem. Here's why:
Remote Hands Support
Modern data centers offer a service commonly referred to as 'remote hands.' This support team acts as your physical presence in the data center. They can perform a variety of tasks, from resetting servers to replacing components, meaning you don't need to be nearby or send a technician.
Shipping Servers
In case of hardware upgrade needs or server replacements, the equipment can simply be shipped to the data center. They will unbox and install the equipment for you, and the old hardware can be shipped back.
Remote Server Management Tools
With remote server management tools, you can efficiently monitor and manage your server from anywhere. This makes the geographic location of the data center less significant.
Server colocation offers a robust, cost-effective, and scalable solution for businesses looking to maximize their server potential without the geographical constraints. Despite the initial setup effort, the long-term benefits of improved connectivity, redundancy, control, and scalability make server colocation an attractive alternative to leasing dedicated servers.
Environmental Control and Security
Apart from superior hardware control, colocation facilities also provide optimum environmental conditions for your servers. The infrastructure includes cooling systems to manage heat generated by servers, thereby mitigating the risk of overheating.
Moreover, these data centers have multi-layered security measures including, but not limited to, CCTV surveillance, biometric access, and 24/7 on-site security personnel to ensure your servers are well-protected. In contrast, when leasing a dedicated server, you have less control over these environmental and security factors.
Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity
When you colocate your server, you have the added advantage of robust disaster recovery and business continuity planning. Colocation providers often have dedicated backup systems and redundant power supplies, including generators and uninterruptible power supply systems, to keep your servers up and running, even in the event of a power outage or a natural disaster.
These features not only provide peace of mind but also save you the considerable expense and resources it would take to replicate these safety measures on-site when leasing a dedicated server.
Final Thoughts
By harnessing the power of server colocation, businesses can leverage the benefits of high-performing, secure, and resilient infrastructure without significant capital investment and management overhead. This makes it a compelling alternative to leasing dedicated servers.
Geographical proximity, once a key consideration when choosing a data center, has become largely irrelevant due to advances in remote server management and 'remote hands' support offered by colocation providers.
Whether you are a small business looking for cost-effective server solutions or a large enterprise aiming to boost performance and scalability, server colocation presents an opportunity to enhance your digital infrastructure strategically.
So, when it comes to selecting your server's home, remember this: server colocation offers flexibility, control, and scalability without the constraints of geography. It might just be the solution you've been searching for.
Reach out to Sectorlink today and embark on your server colocation journey.