Thursday, August 29, 2013

Why Data Centers Have to Keep Running and Operational

Corporations and business enterprises create information that needs to be stored every day. They need more power to continue to store as much data as possible and keep operating. It is not enough to store information inside the actual location which is why collocation of data center hosting solutions is critical. It is doubly important to have data center facilities that can meet increasing demand and the high density of data being processed.

History of Data Centers & Data Center Hosting

The simplest way to explain what data center hosting is think back to the computer rooms that most enterprises require. When data centers first became necessary they required people working on them 24/7 because they were so complex, and these systems needed special environments and webs of cable that connected various components. Companies needed to create methods to organize cables like putting up mounting equipment, cable trays and building elevated floors.

Old computer systems also required a lot of power to run, and this power would raise the temperature which had to be watched so that it did not go up past a critical point and cause overheating. In addition to all that technical stuff, data needed to be protected and in extreme cases where stringent security measures had to be adopted a lot of processes would be entangled in guidelines and security clearance levels that could make a data center work like vaulted, safety-security boxes like the once you would get in a secure Swiss bank. As the use of computers became prevalent, it made these old data rooms impossible to manage.

Business enterprises became aware of client-server computing in the 1990s with the introduction of servers. These reduced the sizes of computer data rooms and allowed for networking equipment and cabling that led to servers being hosted in data centers inside a company and eventually in remote locations. Data centers became a word used to describe computer rooms. The boom of remote data centers has grown significantly since the dot-com era which tanked. The internet pushed businesses to have servers and data centers that would never shut down but be able to give out different kinds of information whenever data queries are made. Data center hosting is not always a viable option to have in-house, and this has created an opportunity for smaller companies to build large facilities that only handle data for various companies and these are called Internet data centers that have a wide range of solutions for operations and system deployment.

The Benefits of Data Centers in Business Continuity Even When Data Center relocation has to happen:

A data center keeps data safe from unauthorized usage and malicious attacks. With hacking being so prevalent, the value of deploying security systems to keep data safe is necessary. For small businesses, the security measures might not be as extensive, but a data center can provide techniques to test and identify network vulnerabilities. The most significant thing, however, has to do with a data center providing continuity in case of network failure and unforeseen disasters. Minimizing disruption and operational losses builds investor confidence, sets your brand to be a reliable brand that customers and stakeholders will appreciate even if data center relocation has to happen. Data centers ensure continuity which is essential to make sure a business remains competitive in an industry that can be volatile. The smooth retrieval of data through a data center ensures business continuity and reliability in the face of challenges that are known and unknown.

Data center offer leading services such as:

Dedicated hosting services
Collocation services
Cloud computing services
E-Commerce Portal Hosting

Data centers helps businesses focus more on their core activities by facilitating greater agility and flexibility of technology operations will help enterprises maintain continuity regardless of the challenges it might face regarding storage and retrieval.

Any enterprise that uses the services of a data service company can operate without having to worry about the safety of data and ensures that the company continues rendering services without having to worry about the integrity of its computer system. If your company has to move, data center relocation does not become an issue.

Saturday, August 17, 2013

Data Centers - We Can’t Live Without Them, and Can't Disrupt

Data Centers - We Can’t Live Without Them

In today’s high-tech world of information and technology it would be impossible for most of us to function in our day to day lives without some form of information interaction  that is digitally transmitted and stored in any number of locations.  Data centers are an integral part of virtually every business these days as they rely heavily on massive amounts of data being stored and made available for daily business functions.   From emails to on-line banking or accessing a form from the workplace network to operating a telecommunications center, virtually everything we do or use today somehow interacts with digital data being transmitted, stored and made secure in a data center.

However, data centers are much more than just a place to store data; this is just one of the many components that make up a data center.  Data centers are run by computer systems that make the data they store useful to whom or whatever has access to the data.  These systems can be quite immense depending on the size of the business or corporation.  The various ways in which the data is being accessed and used dictates what type of infrastructure is put in place to move, save and protected the stored data.  There are the data storage systems themselves that typically are paired to ensure storage redundancy and then you must have the hardware and software in place that makes data connectivity possible.  Telecommunications of course is necessary for the transmittal of data and each data center typically has a primary and back-up power distribution system for ensured reliability.  These are the main components that make up a typical data center.

Data centers play such an important role in our everyday lives that extreme measures are taken to protect the stored data.  Aside from routine back-ups and virus protection software, data centers are also commonly protected by both electronic data security and physical security systems as well.  Fire suppression and environmental control systems are also a vital part of most large data centers.

For a typical example of how a data center interacts with our everyday lives, let us take a quick trip to the electronics super store.  Suppose you are unable to find an advertised sale item you wish to purchase.  You flag down one of the store’s sales associate who punches in the information on your item into one of their sales terminals.  The information is then transmitted to the stores corporate data center where an inventory check locates your item at a store 55 miles away.  With a swipe of your credit card, the electronic wheels are set in motion.  Through applications, that are part of the data center, your credit card information and sales amount is transmitted to your bank for approval and then back with confirmation of payment.  Another application, that is also part of the data center, then electronically removes your item from the store’s inventory, tags it for re-order and transfers the item to the inventory of the store that you made the purchase from.  Last, through yet another application that is part of the data center, the item is electronically marked to be shipped on the next truck heading to the store of purchase.  All of this takes place within seconds from the sales associate hitting the ‘enter’ key.  A few days later, you receive an email and a text message, through yet another application that is part of the data center, alerting you that your item has arrived and is ready for pick up. 

And to think when a company performs a data center relocation, when done correctly no one has any idea it have been relocated to a new environment.  Companies have millions of dollars on the line, and loyal clients... this well balanced system cannot be disrupted when performing a data center relocation.