Colocation services are a cost-effective and scalable way to house your IT infrastructure. When choosing a colocation provider, make sure to look over their uptime history as well as the quality of their IT infrastructure. They should also provide an array of options for networking and offer scalability as your business grows.

Colocation providers operate data centers, buildings that are designed to protect IT equipment from theft and unauthorized access, as well as environmental dangers. These facilities have security guards and are equipped with surveillance Bluehost vs HostGator cameras, locking systems, access controls and access control systems.

Signing a contract with a colocation provider will grant you the space to set up your IT equipment and power in the datacenter. The company will usually assist you set up your equipment however, this isn’t always required. They also offer uplink ports that connect your equipment with their network and the Internet. They will provide redundancies in connection and may allow you to select your own provider, or use theirs.

In addition to providing storage, a reliable colocation provider will offer a wide range of alternatives for networking, such as dedicated private connections to carriers, content delivery networks and cloud services. This will allow you to spend less time managing bandwidth, increasing speed and ensuring compliance. A local colo service offers the benefit of having live experts who are able to answer questions in person, instead of relying on support teams located far away.