A Data Center is not just a facility to place your critical IT workloads, whether you are planning on self-built or leasing a Colocation Data Center, it will also be a valuable asset for the sustainability and development of your digital business. So, it is only natural that you want to make sure that the Data Center you have is highly reliable. 

However, with so many options available, how to ensure you choose the right Data Center?

Characteristics of the Right Data Center

To help you choose a reliable Data Center option, here are the key characteristics of the right Data Center for your business.

1. Strategic Location

The location of the Data Center is an important factor that affects the accessibility of the company’s IT team to visit the Data Center for the purpose of maintenance and system updates. A location close to the company’s office will allow the IT team to quickly and easily perform the necessary work without wasting a lot of traveling time.

In addition, location can also determine the availability of internet service providers (ISPs). A Data Center located near a high-density Internet Exchange is likely to have more ISP options for customers.

Read more:  5 Reasons to Choose Data Center Located in Downtown Jakarta

2. Reliability

The second thing we need to consider is a Data Center’s reliability. To determine its reliability, we can check the Data Center’s system and infrastructure redundancy. Then, make sure there is an emergency backup procedure if ever a disruption occurs in the Data Center. Another thing that must also be taken into account is the dependable cooling and humidity control system, as this factor is very important to guarantee that your server equipment can operate optimally.

A study by the Uptime Institute concluded that the cost of handling Downtime on servers continues to increase. A 2021 survey found that 6 out of 10 large-scale Downtimes cost up to $100,000. Such costs can certainly affect a company’s potential revenue and cash flow. 

Choosing a Data Center with industry leading SLA (“Service Level Agreement”) can be a good step to assure the reliability of the company’s IT operations.

3. Security

The next characteristic is Security. It is an important factor in a Data Center that can impact several aspects, including data breach and financial loss of the company. According to darkreading.com, the average cost of dealing with data breaches can reach $4.4 million worldwide, while in the US it ranges from $9.4 million.

In terms of security, there are at least two things to consider, the software and technology used, as well as systems for securing the hardware or physical infrastructure. We should also ensure that the security system implemented by the service provider does not interfere with the day to day running of business.

4. Scalability

Based on the experience from COVID-19 pandemic, the adaptability of a company is crucial in determining how capable they are in managing business continuity. Furthermore, most digital businesses need scalable IT Infrastructure that can support the growth of their businesses. To overcome these challenges, it is important to choose a Data Center that has scalability and can support the growth of a company’s digital business in a precise and fast manner.

To ensure scalability for your future business needs, you should also evaluate the Data Center’s capacity in terms of space and power against your projected growth of IT workloads.

Choosing a Colocation service is a suitable alternative to give you more control over future capacity needs. Because Colocation Data Centers tend to have larger scalability in view of supporting their customers’ expansion and growing requirements. 

5. Reputable

Reputation is another key word that can be used to find the most suitable Data Center for your business. To see the track record of each Data Center, you can start looking for testimonials from other customers, read reviews on the internet, or references from trusted IT peers.

Take some time to filter each Data Center that is on your list, and don’t hesitate to ask the relevant parties if you find something that makes you doubt.

Each business does have different needs, as well as the type of Data Center required. Nevertheless, the five characteristics above are the ideal keywords to find the right Data Center for your business.

To find out more about the best options for your business, contact the EDGE DC team. We are ready to provide the best solutions for your IT infrastructure.