What is Colocation Hosting? Is it Right for Your Business?

What is Colocation Hosting? Is it Right for Your Business?

Finding the right and reliable web hosting is an imperative decision that businesses have to make. However, it can become a daunting task to pick the best web hosting with several service providers available. So, you need thorough research before choosing the right one for your website. Look for the features the web hosting plan offers. Now you will learn what colocation hosting is and whether it is right for your business.

Companies want to change their web hosting providers and plans because of many different reasons. Some want more storage space or bandwidth, and some do not like the customer service they are currently getting. Choosing web hosting is easier said than done. But it is not as challenging as it may look.

Let’s dive into details about colocation hosting and what it offers.

What is Colocation Hosting?

It is a type of hosting service that is offered by a data center, in which you rent the space and get the house for your servers. The servers are usually owned by the clients and have complete authority over software and hardware. However, the storage provider provides you with a secure server environment and maintenance.

The services of colocation hosting are different from other services. In colocation hosting, the clients own the hardware and rent out space. You should not get confused between colocation and managed dedicated hosting services. Moreover, the data center has more control over the servers with all the management and maintenance as their responsibility in the dedicated web hosting.

In colocation hosting services, the clients are responsible for supplying, maintaining and managing the hardware and servers with full control.

The hosting company will provide you with the storage space, internet connection, electricity, cooling and security for your servers and hardware. Using colocation hosting for your business will help you save money. If you own web servers, you will have to spend money you cannot avoid. Such costs involve getting a space for an in-house data center, upgrading the internet to optical fiber, installation of air conditioners and security for the center. Moreover, you will have to upgrade the electrical circuits so that they can support the increased power usage.

So, you will need to spend thousands of dollars on it. Therefore, colocation hosting is the best option to just rent out the space from data centers and services, which is more cost-effective.

How Does Colocation Hosting Work?

To get successful maintenance and management of servers, you need an environment that lets you work at your full potential. However, this is one of the main problems that many businesses need to deal with. If organizations are not capable of fulfilling the responsibilities in-house, they search for a data center that offers affordable and reliable colocation services.

Therefore, colocation web hosting is the perfect choice for companies that already have hardware and software but do not have enough space and conditions to store them. So, clients lease space from service providers, offering storage for hardware and management. They get space and move the hardware to storage in the data center, where they set up and configure their servers.

There is not any physical contact between the hardware and the storage provider unless they get a specified request for additional assistance.

The following are the main responsibilities involved in colocation hosting.

1. Security

In colocation hosting, the service providers secure and authorize access to the location of servers. However, the security services include the installation of equipment such as biometric locks, security cameras and personnel identification. So, clients are only responsible for securing their servers from cyber-attacks or hacking. The provider will only ensure your hardware and servers are not touched by unauthorized people.

2. Power

You will get the full power capacity you need to run your servers from the data center. It includes power backups such as generators if there is a power outage. So, it is a key component to get and use power efficiently to run servers at their full potential. Some best providers also ensure the highest uptime.

3. Cooling

The hardware, network equipment and servers generate a massive amount of heat that needs to be cool down to avoid damage. So, the host provides a robust cooling system to run everything in an optimal environment. Cooling will prevent your hardware and servers from damage, and it even extends their life.

4. Storage

The data center gives storage space for your servers. However, you will get to choose any of the three storage options, that are:

  • Stand-alone cabinet: The cabinets can give space to several servers. However, the providers generally lease the entire cabinets, and some may give you partial cabinets based on your requirements.
  • Cage: It gives you separate and locked areas where server cabinets are stored. Cages isolate access to the equipment stored inside.
  • Suites: Suites are secured and fully enclosed rooms provided by the data centers.

5. Disaster Recovery

It is important for the host to devise a perfect disaster recovery plan. The data center needs to be quite far away from areas that may cause disaster. It means reinforcing the data site against any disruption. Hosts can use the backup generator when the power is out, or they can even take help from other providers to go up and keep providing the services whenever there is an issue.

6. Compliance

A host needs to follow particular compliance rules for health facilities, financial services and other operational processes that deal with sensitive information. They must have unique configurations and systems in place aligned with the official rules and regulations.

Benefits of Colocation Hosting

Colocation hosting services are the best solution for an organization that already has servers. However, some clients can benefit more than others. With such hosting, small and mid-sized companies have more chances to achieve their business goals. It allows the organization to play fairly with the technology and compete well in the industry.

Let’s see how colocation hosting benefits your business.

1. Cost Effective

With the substantial reduction in networking and power costs, colocation hosting is opted for by companies. Building a robust and hi-tech environment for servers is quite expensive. Therefore, colocation hosting enables you to take advantage of such a facility that is already equipped with everything you need.

Companies can enhance their revenue and invest in other important operations by saving from this. It will help organizations get stabilized.

2. Expert Support

When you move your servers to the facility provided by the host, you will the support from experts. As you know that providers are specialists and experienced because they deal with day-to-day operations, you will feel relieved to know that you are supported by IT professionals. They will handle cooling, power, security and network hardware for you.

3. Scalability

Colocation hosting gives you room to grow your businesses. It helps client scale their needs with flexible resources without making recurring investments. Moreover, it allows customers to scale up their operations according to market growth. So, choosing colocation hosting will help you develop a successful business and generate massive revenue.

4. Improved IT Capabilities

It greatly benefits companies that need large storage space for servers and professionals to manage the functions. If you don’t have an IT department, colocation is the best option because it allows you to take advantage of the space without having to pay extra. You can make use of the IT services you receive with your hosting plan.

5. 24/7 Availability

Customers can always contact their hosts to keep track of the status of their servers. They ensure your data is always available at quick retrieval with consistent uptime. Hosts also provide emergency services that can contribute a lot to better uptime. Although the servers are far from the clients, they still have full control over them. Remote customers can easily access and work on their servers and hardware through the latest management tools and software.

6. Defined Service Level Agreement

The SLA or service level agreement is an essential asset that is signed by hosts and clients, identifying which processes, audits, reporting, and other things are included in the services. Colocation hosting provides you with a clear SLA, and you are open to negotiating your particular terms and conditions.

Difference Between Collocated Hosting and Dedicated Hosting

Most people consider colocation and dedicated hosting the same, but they are not. The primary difference between both is server ownership.

With a dedicated server, the clients are provided with the complete server usage owned by someone else, usually the hosting company. In contrast, collocated servers are owned by the users themselves but placed in a rental space or data centers, with many other servers owned by different companies.

Simply put, in dedicated hosting, you rent the server, and in colocation hosting, you rent the space for your server. Every available option is more cost-effective than purchasing and housing the server independently, but there are some core differences in what you can and cannot do with the available equipment.

In dedicated hosting, the clients get exclusive server access and can update it with any software and applications they want. The sites using dedicated servers also have greater reliability and can easily handle massive traffic than those sites that are hosted on shared servers. The same you will get in colocation hosting because you own the server and get access to it.

The biggest advantage you will have in dedicated hosting is that you only own the data, not the server itself. That’s where you will want to choose colocation web hosting that offers more reliability, access, better management, power and efficiency for your website.

Is Colocation Server Right for Your Business?

Yes, colocation is the best choice for small to large businesses that have no space or environment to place the servers. Colocation providers give you the capacity to enhance your business without any cost of on-site hosting. It helps businesses to reduce the costs of bandwidth and power and improve uptime through robust and efficient infrastructure with high-end security measures.

In colocation hosting, you will get to cooperate with the data center, which can help you with all the management and maintenance of your servers. Hence it makes it the best choice for your business to grow rapidly.

Conclusion

Each website needs web hosting and a reliable plan that can ensure better performance of the site. Collocation is one of the most preferred web hosting for business owing servers, but do not have enough space to place it. Make sure you choose the right web hosting provider for your website and consider all important things while deciding on the one you see fit for your business goals.

Get in touch with experts at HostingMENA for more reliable web hosting services and plans.

 

Frequently Asked Questions

What is colocation hosting?

It is a type of web hosting in which you rent the space for your servers, and everything is maintained by the data center.

What are the benefits of colocation hosting?

The major benefits of colocation hosting include cost effectiveness, expert support, scalability, improved IT capabilities, 24/7 availability of services and support, and a well-designed SLA (service level agreement).

Is colocation the same as hosting?

Both serve the same purpose, but the key difference is that you own the server in colocation hosting and have full control over it. With managed hosting, you don’t own the server.

What is the difference between collocated hosting and dedicated hosting?

In dedicated hosting, the clients are provided with the server resources owned by someone else. In comparison, collocated servers are owned by the users and placed in a data center.

What is the difference between colocation and a data center?

A data centre is a well-designed facility to store, cool, power and manage IT infrastructure efficiently. Colocation is one of the services data centers offer, and it hosts your servers outside of your office in a data center.

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