Colocation & server housing providers compared

For large company networks or extensive and special web projects, operators often prefer to use their hardware instead of using leased equipment. To optimally connect your server hardware to the Internet, the server housing and colocation providers from our comparison offer their customers the opportunity to use the data center including the entire infrastructure of the provider.
What is server housing and colocation?
The terms server housing and UK colocation mean the placement of your hardware components of any size in the data center of a hosting provider, where the connection to the Internet is also provided. Server housing and colocation allow small, private users as well as large companies to make their hardware accessible online at a low cost. It does not matter whether you use your server as a reseller hosting, maintain a game server, or run other online services such as an online shop.
The fact that several customer servers and the provider's systems use the same infrastructure means that the individual server housing customers only incur low costs. The fees usually consist of a fixed monthly amount, depending on the size of the parking space and variable costs depending on the power consumption and traffic used.
Advantages of server housing and colocation
For our customers, placing our server hardware in the data centers of the server housing and server colocation UK providers brings numerous advantages from our comparison. For example, the entire professional infrastructure of the provider can also be used for packages is used. Special air conditioning technology for temperature control in the rooms, special security systems against unauthorized access or fires as well as the redundant connection of the network to various Internet service providers are usually associated with very high costs that a company or a private person does not need to connect their server to the Internet can carry. Also, both the hardware and the infrastructure must be monitored around the clock, and specialist staff must be on hand if manual intervention on the network becomes necessary. With colocation, the customer can take advantage of all these services and only pays a relatively small monthly amount.
What are the options for server housing and colocation?
Depending on the infrastructure and design of the provider's data center, your server Hardware can be given in various forms for colocation. So-called blade servers are usually used, which can be easily installed in the racks of the data centers. A rack is a rack for electrical devices with a standardized width of 19 inches. The standard racks used in a data center are usually around 2 meters high and have an outer width of 60 cm. The depth can vary between 60 cm and 120 cm. A normal rack consists of 42 height units (HU). One U is 1.75 inches high. Depending on the scope of their hardware, customers can rent individual RUs or an entire rack to accommodate the server. Some server housing providers can also accommodate simple tower housings in the data center, while others only accept blade servers. The desired design should be clarified with the provider in advance.
What criteria should a data center meet?
The most important thing when accommodating your server with a server housing and colocation provider is the data center in which the hardware is connected to the Internet. Here it is worth comparing the offers of the different providers before deciding. We would now like to introduce you to the most important criteria that should be considered:
Safety
The physical security of the data center is an important factor. A multi-level security system from restricting access to the entire building to securing individual racks in special cages should protect the hardware components against unauthorized access. Access should only be possible for authorized persons, a video camera surveillance system and a security service for object surveillance should be available around the clock.
o Access system
o Video surveillance
o Property surveillance
Fire protection
Precautions to detect a fire early and fight it effectively are extremely important. For this, highly sensitive fire alarm systems should be used, which are directly connected to the local fire department. Individual, separate room sections should prevent a fire from spreading throughout the building. In the event of a fire, the components should be carefully extinguished, for example with special gas extinguishing systems, to avoid damage to the hardware of the colocation customers as far as possible.
o Fire alarm systems
o Fire compartments
o Gas extinguishing systems
Air conditioning
A state-of-the-art air conditioning system is necessary for the effective and efficient cooling of the systems. Constant temperature and humidity should be guaranteed. Construction measures such as cold and hot aisle separation can also contribute to more effective cooling of the data center. The system should also be monitored around the clock so that any problems in the cooling circuit can be reacted to immediately.
o Redundant air conditioning systems
o Cold / hot aisle separation
o Temperature monitoring
Power supply
The data center and the entire infrastructure of the building should be powered redundantly by connecting them to separate power grids. In the event of a failure, battery-backed UPS systems should continue to operate the hardware. In the event of prolonged power failures, a diesel generator can be used for active power generation.
o Redundant power grid connection
o UPS systems
o Diesel generator
Network connection
To ensure optimum availability and speed, the connection of the data center to the Internet is a particularly important point. A redundant fiber-optic connection to various Internet service providers should be used for the external connection. Also, the data center should be connected to the most important Internet nodes. Depending on the provider, the customer servers can be integrated into the network via up to 10Gbit connections. It is also necessary to monitor the network infrastructure around the clock.
o Redundant carrier connection
o Connection of the customer server
o Network monitoring
Conclusion
If you want to connect your server or the entire IT system of your company to the Internet, then the solutions of the server housing and colocation providers from our comparison are ideal for your project. With these offers, you benefit from a professional and efficient infrastructure that you can fully use for a small monthly fee. In the list below you will find a list of server housing and colocation providers that you can compare to find the right offer for your needs.