Colocation Hosting: What is it and do I need it?

It may sound like a mouthful, but colocation hosting is a phrase you’ll probably hear more often in the coming years. It’s essentially a place for storing all of your bulky hardware, servers and networking equipment, off-site in a secure facility.

It’s a great solution for mid-size companies, and those who don’t have the space to store an ever-growing supply of servers and IT equipment.

It takes away the hassle of having to pay to run everything on site, and what’s more, colocation hosting is purpose-built, meaning your equipment will be safely protected, backed-up and stored in specially designed cabinets.

What’s the benefits of using colocation storage?

Everything is kept off-site, which means that should anything go wrong in your office, you’ll still be able to access all of your information off-site.

It’s also more secure, with CCTV, manned security and other systems in place to keep the building and your data safe. Plus, some hosts offer fire protection and temperature controls to ensure your systems aren’t destroyed by any changes in the climate.

Surely there’s downsides too?

Investing in a colocation host doesn’t mean that your network and servers can simply be forgotten about. It’s simply a secure place to store everything off-site and as such, if you need to upgrade, maintain or repair any of your equipment it comes down to you to do so.

That said, if you have a devoted IT team then this shouldn’t be a problem – it simply means that they will have to travel to the colocation site should they need to amend anything.

How do I get colocation hosting?

You should be mindful to choose a company that has centres situated within easy access to your company’s location, simply because it makes it easier to maintain your hardware.

There are a number of costs associated with colocation hosting too, so depending on what you need this is something you’ll need to weigh up. Costs will usually cover rental of the floor space, power fees and a fee for how much data you use. Additional costs such as the maintenance of the firewall and backup costs will also need to be considered too.