Data centres are a top priority when it comes to IT infrastructure requirements. Data centres are now seen as a primary business feature, and not as an external storage facility for information and business models. They have become important for a large business company to work very well. Unless you don’t have an effective backup plan, any interruptions in your data centre operations will literally bring the company down to its knees. This was exemplified last year when New York data centres were destroyed by Hurricane Sandy.
What is a Data Centre?
The data centre is a centralized location that is rendered with computing resources and essential telecommunications – including servers, storage systems, databases, devices, access networks, software and applications. Such issues are managed by highly skilled workers for the use and management of resources from industry, Government and business. A few years ago, with its insane power consumption and skyrocketing operating costs, the data centre was considered one of the biggest villains of the world.
The situation today, however, is a lot different. The data centres of the modern century are a lot smaller and more scalable. This is the major entrepreneurial phenomenon, modular development. They’re still going through a long life cycle, but the expansion seems modular. Even as companies strive for the modularity of the mainframe system, so does the data centre.
How do Data Centres Function?
As with how two computers are connected via a local network, Internet servers use network communication to relay information to web browsers. Until transmission, the data stored on a data centre server is distributed into packets and sent through routers that decide the most suitable path to advance with that data.
It then uses a combination of wired and wireless networks to reach the Internet service provider of the user and at last arrive at the device of the end user. Any time a Web address is keyed into a browser, a server will automatically request information. When the end-user needs information stored, therefore the procedure will be reversed.
Data Centre Types
With how data centres are indispensable in running large companies, and even small and medium-sized businesses joining the trend, it is important to choose one to suit a business model. Data centres and business models come in various forms.
Here are four main data centre types:
Managed Services Data Centres
Instead of the company, these data centres are run by a third-party company or a Managed IT Service Provider. To cut expenses, the company leases the equipment and facilities.
Cloud Data Centres
Cloud data centres are a type of off-premises data centre. Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft (Azure), and IBM Cloud are the most commonly used cloud computing systems.
Enterprise Data Centres
Enterprise data centres are set up, managed, and operated by corporations. Such data centres are run for one reason and this streamlined service is for their end-user customers. Enterprise data centres also find themselves within corporate structures.
Colocation Data Centres
Colocation data centres or more often referred to as “colo” is an organization that leases space within a data centre, they do not own and is located outside the premises of the company. Among others, the colocation data centre offers facilities such as the building itself, cooling, bandwidth and security. Also, the company manufactures and maintains the components which include servers, storage systems, and firewalls for security.
Why Data Centres are Necessary for Enterprise Businesses?
Data centres have gone beyond only being supplementary storage facilities. In fact, they have emerged as a key parameter in the market. Here’s why corporate companies need data centres.
Data Storage and Management
An enterprise’s data storage needs are steadily increasing and keeping pace with the demand surge, data centres continue to push the horizons of tangible capacity. Data centres are developing creative methods of data processing and storage that instigate more businesses to branch out into the use of cloud computing. Both data centres and companies are focused on meeting data storage requirements which incorporate both cloud and physical storage capabilities. This technology shift is at the cusp of driving M&A activities leading to exponential growth in data collection and collaboration which further enhances the need for data storage.
Better Growth Opportunities
Upon realising the vital role data plays in the growth of their businesses, most organizations adopt data centre solutions. Data centres are taking both the business and technology realm with their development. Yet businesses are becoming increasingly aware of running their business from the possibility of recruiting more employees to leverage high demand yet growth opportunities. Your company will exploit the size, with the assistance of a professional data centre provider, to dominate the market. All you need is a professional provider who can provide you with a comprehensive infrastructure to track and govern your data by automating and integrating Data Centre management.
Reduced Barriers
Companies have so many aspects and it’s very difficult to handle every part of the industry. With the common goal being the customer, each enterprise segment shares the same business processes, ideologies, investment plans and capital spending. But the company is also distributed in terms of location, goods and services because of its enterprise existence. This results in a lack of customer engagement across the company’s various operations. You will reduce barriers to internal operations that impact customer service with an effective data centre solution for enterprise business. Managed hosting services provided by an experienced provider, with easy data storage and flow, can help you improve your ability to engage the customer during your operations.
Safety
Data security has become the top priority of any company given the sheer amount of data collection and transactions in today’s competitive climate. It has become imperative for each organization to put in place efficient systems which are not only frequently modified but also, constantly monitored. Constant monitoring of the systems helps you to maintain protection, as potential threats and attacks are identified as soon as possible. For this purpose, businesses rely on third-party data centre solutions with experience and monitoring processes to identify threats and violations within the appropriate timeline in order to be able to deal efficiently with them. Many vendors provide multi-tier network configurations to efficiently protect enterprise valuable data. In addition to data technology security, vendors also emphasise data centre physical protection, ensuring control, access management, intrusion alarms, and physical security systems. In addition, in times of environmental disasters, quick recovery processes and data retrieval in the shortest turnaround period are also provided.
Consolidated Leadership
As an organization, you have to understand the ability to lead, operate and maintain your company. Therefore, you should find the enterprise level of infrastructure provided by a potential data centre service which helps your enterprise in different parts of the business with lesser improvement. This results in unified leadership, centralized management and a consistent approach to governance to enable improvised business decision-making for the betterment of the entire company.
Higher Margins
Increasingly, businesses understand the rising value of a data centre. Investing in a tactical data centre solution will help companies access cost scale, data security and efficiencies in service. Data centre service providers allow companies to customize solutions according to local requirements without sacrificing the core business process elementary course. For market growth, companies have to take additional capital into consideration. But with data centre solutions, you can make prompt and cost-effective use of the technical resources. Additionally, if you require fewer systems or less storage, your provider will simply cut down on implementation as required. This is one of the key reasons why businesses go for vendors selling services, with costs incurred by their use of the service.
The only way to protect what you’ve worked hard to build is to be vigilant when it comes to cybersecurity. If you’d like to know more about how your business can benefit from managed services, just give us a call, we are here to help.
A data centre is a network of computing and storage resources enabling the delivery of shared software applications and data.