To make collocation centers work efficiently, there are basic features or special characteristics that should be considered. This is very important so that clients are assured of the performance of said center, as far as protecting their client’s interests.
Fire protection – A collocation center should be backed up by reliable fire protection systems to prevent accidental fires. The systems include active and passive design elements and the implementation of a program for fire prevention. Clients should consider this basic feature before signing any contract for collocation services. Remember that you are entrusting your data and other business applications to a privately-owned servers. Therefore cautions should be in the priority, whether the company can deliver client expectations.
Usually, a smoke detector is being installed to easily give warning if a fire is developing to prevent the development of flame. There is also a fire sprinkler system which can help control accidental fires from developing further damage. The system also includes the installation of fire walls and clean agent fire suppression gaseous systems which can suppress a fire earlier than using the fire sprinkler systems.
19-inch racks – This is also another feature you should consider. A collocation center must provide at least 23-inch rack for telecommunications equipment, cabinets and other cages for the tenants’ physical access, cable racks or tray for power cables and fibreguide.
Air conditioning – To control the humidity and temperature of the place, air conditioning must be excellently working. There are recommended humidity and temperature range for the so-called optimal electronic equipment conditions. This is also a very important feature we should see in collocation centers. If they don’t have this system operating efficiently, then their services may have some problems. Therefore, you should also check this as part of the most basic and safety features we can get from these centers.
However, there are also agencies in the country auditing and checking the conditions of collocation centers, whether these centers live up to certain standards, reliability. The most common here is the tier system used by the Uptime Institute and also SAS 70.
Most collocation centers have generators running on diesel fuel so that in cases of power curtailment, they can easily back the servers. These generators have battery back up systems so that the centers can operate 24/7 to secure the client’s data and other business applications.
This is the main reason why clients should carefully understand the basic features and characteristics of collocation centers before they hire their services. It is only a matter of practicing caution since there are now lots of collocation centers in the country.
Author is an AT&T master solution provider from Digital Management Solutions who specializes in helping customers make the most out of their communication and network needs. He works tirelessly to provide powerful, efficient and cost effective solutions, such as datacenters and collocation, to address clients’ communications needs.
Author: Rob Pennington
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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