7 key differences between data center and server co-location

When do you need a dedicated data center and when do you need co-location? You must be trying to find out which system is going to work best for you. To ease out the confusion, presented here are seven key differences between having a co-location service and a dedicated data center.

Colocation

1. The difference between owning and renting: In a colocation center, you own the equipment and in a dedicated data center you take the server equipment on rent from a service provider. In both the systems, you will have to get in touch with a server service provider and have a consultation to determine what kinds of server facilities are on offer.
2. Responsibility: Ultimately it is an issue of responsibility. When you own the equipments, it is primarily your responsibility. When you rent the server space, you outsource the responsibility of maintenance to the server maintenance professionals.
3. Affordability: The expenditure varies in both the systems. In a data center colocation you are paying only for the server space and server accommodation facilities (like temperature control, humidity control, fire suppression etc.) In dedicated datacenter solutions, you are paying for the server accommodation as well as for the management of the server systems. You are not paying for server maintenance on a collocation server; you have your in-house team for that. However, even for co-location, you will need some extent of server maintenance. So, while deciding between data center co-location and dedicated server, you will have to see the extent of maintenance that is required and provided in each scenario. Both have their advantages and disadvantages and it depends upon your needs and requirements which one will be the best for you.
4. Manageability: The manageability of the equipment is a major issue of difference. At a collocation server, you have to manage the systems yourself, while in a dedicated server, the maintenance is carried on by the dedicated staff of the server service provider. If you think, you can manage well by yourself, only then you should opt for data center colocation. Otherwise dedicated servers are better options.
5.  Security: Security is a contentious issue while deciding between the types of hosting. Some network administrators are of the view that it is more secured to take care of the server system in a co-location server, while some prefer to leave the matter to a good dedicated datacenter solutions.
6. Speed: Like security, speed discussions are also contentious. You have to ultimately decide on the type of server hosting that can provide you with maximum speed. While dedicated data centers have a fixed bandwidth, in co-location servers, you are the master of your own speed.
7. Redundancy: For server redundancy management, you need to have experienced professionals who can tell you when a particular component needs replacement. For dedicated data centers, it depends on the professionals who maintain your services, but in a colocation center, you need to perform regular checkups with your in house team to decide on replacement of any component. 

5 things to figure out before opting for Cloud solutions

You’ve pretty much decided that you would prefer cloud solutions to host and manage your websites. But have you really done a background check. With a large number of companies scurrying for space, the cloud services marketing is packed to the gills. We’re jotting down 5 things to figure out before option for cloud hosting below for this very reason:

Cloud Hosting

1. Cost: Ask any business owner, and he/she will be upfront to tell you how effective cost management means lower stress levels. The cost of the service is without doubt what you must check and compare with other providers before you jump the gun for cloud server hosting. Analyzing the contract and going through the fees that range from one-time, monthly, etc., are a must. 
2. Technical know-how: The fact that seamless connectivity to cloud server goes without saying makes it all the more necessary for your provider to be right on top of its game as far as technical proficiency is concerned. Your host must be capable of keeping your business running and connected at all times, minus any interruptions or lags. Complementing this feature is the assurance of uptime from your service provider. You must know beforehand the frequency of an outage your online business is likely to face, even if not accurately. Go through customer feedback before you opt for a cloud host as far as this factor is concerned.
3. Migration and other tools: Transferring processes, data and applications is more often than not a tedious job. Before you decide to go in for a cloud host, ensure that your provider offers you enough backup and support to ease the entire migration process. Alongside, you should have also checked the tool set packaged by the company on the whole. Is security covered? How does data management with the host work? What are the analytics that can help you keep your IT costs to bare minimum? All these questions should have been answered.
4. Performance and Security: Don’t just nod in to particular cloud solutions solely on the basis of uptime assurances. Everyday performance is also what must be kept in mind. You must be in the know of a guarantee by your provider for performance. Inspect the server, different types of processors involved, network bandwidth, disc access speeds much in advance. Accessibility of SSDs is another pointer that should feature on your checklist. There’s really no reason why you may want to ignore security, if you’ve kept a tab on everything else. It is by and large the provider’s duty and responsibility to safeguard not just your data but also the applications you employ. Complete security on this front is a must.
5. Customer Support: One of the most important factors that you must check all through before making a pick from among the various cloud service providers in the market. What happens when your system or online business has crashed down? Will your service provider manage a debilitated application? There’s a reason why 24*7 customer care all-round the year is so precious.

Read through reviews on the web and ask questions on various cloud hosting forums to ensure that you don’t make the wrong choice and regret it later. After all, a good provider does mean that the backbone of your online business is going strong.