Colocation Selection Guide. Workspace Technology Ltd

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Colocation Selection Guide

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Rack Colocation Selection Guide.

Workspace Technology

Energy Efficient Rack Colocation Services

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Rack Colocation Selection Guide.

Energy Efficient Rack Colocation Services

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1 Guide to Selecting a Colocation

Data Centre Partner

Demand for public and private Data Centres is growing as companies deploy more and more storage and applications into purpose built facilities for security, availability and the benefits of virtualisation and cloud computing. Cloud Computing companies, Systems Integrators and Service Providers are in turn faced with a number of options where they can potentially locate their ICT equipment.

Future proofing is crucial as I.T requirements can change rapidly in line with business demands. Selection of the right Data Centre can save many thousands of pounds over the term of the contract and help maintain levels of reliability and performance.

The following highlights a number of considerations that are typically made when selecting a colocation Data Centre partner. The choice and trade-offs between location, power, availability and network are extensive and organisations will make decisions based on their own unique requirements.

Location

- Location is typically at the top of a customer’s list when selecting a colocation

Data Centre. Having colocation nearby helps reduce road mileage and associated travel time making it more convenient for engineers to access equipment.

Other location factors to consider include:

Physical Threats - These include environmental threats such as flood, fire, flight paths main trunk roads etc.

Access - Is there easy site access? Is it possible to drive there with equipment or spares? Once on site is there parking?

Diversity and separation - Is the colocation data centre far enough away from existing facilities to ensure that sufficient resilience is maintained?

Workspace Technology’s DC1 is located in Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands. This provides an excellent facility for those who require rack co-location services within the Birmingham and greater midlands area.

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Rack Colocation Selection Guide.

Energy Efficient Rack Colocation Services

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the M42. With onsite customer parking and loading bay facilities DC1 provides excellent customer convenience.

Power

– Any data centre should deliver sufficient power for both current and future I.T

requirements. The power architecture should be flexible and have the ability to support a range of rack kW power densities. The data centre should therefore have sufficient power capacity and easy access to the grid.

Other power considerations include:-

Power Architecture - Is the power sourced from separate sub stations, does the facility have resilient UPS systems, generator backup and 2N rack power?

How many steps are there between the power station running and the DC? Each step down is a potential weak link.

Power Tariffs - Does the facility offer flexible models without insisting that increased power requires the rental of an additional equipment rack?

Workspace Technology’s DC1 colocation facility is adjacent to the local HV ring which is feed from two independent sub stations. The HV installation has remotely monitored Ring Main Units (RMU’s) enabling power restoration within 90 seconds of ring failure. The facility is 400 meters away from the main substation which is in turn is feed directly from the local power station in Hams Hall.

The initial design capacity is 1MVA however a 2MVA transformer has been installed with associated switchgear allowing the power capacity to be doubled to facilitate any increase in customer power demands. The utility power is supported with standby backup generator systems and 48 hour shared fuel reserves fitted with fuel polishing technology. Critical power circuits are supported via distributed modular “hot swap” Schneider Electric /APC UPS systems and independent 2N “A” and “B” 32A power supply’s.

Network Connectivity

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Does the data centre operate its own “Open Access” network which provides any carrier with circuits across diverse network connecting the building to key Internet Exchanges.

Key network factors to consider are:

Can you connect to your chosen carrier and/or Internet Access provider?

How flexible is the bandwidth available? Can it cope cost-effectively with bandwidth growth?

Can you select a different provider for DC to DC connectivity ? Is the facility Carrier Neutral?

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Rack Colocation Selection Guide.

Energy Efficient Rack Colocation Services

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flexible peering arrangements and ISP access. As an independent colocation data centre provider we are carrier neutral.

Security

Building security is important and there are many standards and a host of devices such as biometric scanners, IP CCTV and man traps. Data Centre security procedures should be given high priority to ensure security standards are maintained.

Does the data centre follow procedures?

Do you need to be certified to a particular standard and what does this mean for your colocation data centre?

Do you need the data centre to be accessible and manned 24/7 or can you accept a “dark” DC if you can gain unescorted access?

Workspace Technology is experienced at designing and implementing data centre solutions for organisations that include defence and blue light services. DC1 is no exception with high levels of physical security backed up with procedures and technology including IP CCTV, access control and mantrap facilities to ensure high levels of access security.

DC1 supports 24/7 access via remote managed access services. It is planned for DC1 to accommodate Workspace Technology Technical Support Centre (TSC) which provides 24/7 data centre monitoring for DC1 and other customers across the UK.

Future Proofing

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What if your power and cooling requirements double over time will the data centre cope or will you be faced with a substandard DC for the remainder of your contract? Will the facility support the deployment of additional equipment racks ?.

DC1 has been designed with flexibility in mind. We have planned ahead and are able to support modular power and cooling capacity expansion.

At Workspace Technology’s DC1 we also have reserve space that will enable the colocation facility to double its rack count following take up of the primary phase 1 area.

Flexibility

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Examine each of the critical services provided by the data centre. Is it possible to increase power, cooling and bandwidth? If so at what cost?

Can you add more rack space and connect it cost effectively to your existing racks? Are you able to spread your power commitment for example 40kW over 10 or 15 racks

flexibly or are you restricted to a committed level of power per rack?

Workspace Technology DC1 is designed to support double the initial rack, power and cooing capacity. Core switchgear and service infrastructure has been built into the facility from day 1.

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Rack Colocation Selection Guide.

Energy Efficient Rack Colocation Services

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offers flexible tariffs which can be balanced across a group or groups of racks to enable simple power planning.

On-site Support

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It is important to ensure that the colocation data centre provides adequate support services for the mission critical infrastructure. It is also important to ensure that mechanical and electrical plant is regularly services by trained technicians and that spares are at hand should faults occur.

At Workspace Technology you can be re-assured that infrastructure housing your equipment racks is covered by a comprehensive 24/7 service, support & optimization plan. Workspace Technology’s Technical Support Centre and core Engineering & Support services team is co-located at the DC1 premises.

The data centre infrastructure has been deployed with onsite energy management, Data Centre Infrastructure Management (DCIM) and environmental monitoring.

Our infrastructure is regularly maintained and backup with a 24/7 emergency callout. Our site facilities team deliver:

Effective Maintenance Programmes

Maintain Uptime through a combination of Callout and Planned Preventative Servicing Optimization of mission critical infrastructure to help improve energy efficiency of data centre assets.

Help Identify and release stranded capacity Provide Ongoing Moves Adds & Changes

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Rack Colocation Selection Guide.

Energy Efficient Rack Colocation Services

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Data Centre Infrastructure Architecture

Flexible Customer Services

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Any rack colocation facility should support a range

of value added services such as part swapping, assistance with fault diagnostics and server installation and build services.

Other requirements my include

Consultancy – Is the provider able to offer consultancy and design services ?

Project Management Services – Does the partner have the expertise and a proven track record for building data centre infrastructure and helping migrate I.T services ?

At Workspace Technology we understand how critical it is for your equipment to be on-line and accessible 24/7. Our engineers are able to offer ‘intelligent hands' for your equipment: Workspace Technology’s Rack Hosting team can provide:-

Part swapping Fault diagnostics

Server installation and racking

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Rack Colocation Selection Guide.

Energy Efficient Rack Colocation Services

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Optimization Services

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Does the facility offer energy optimization services to enable you to get the very best performance out of your equipment / I.T assets. Optimization Services deliver IT system energy usage through in-depth optimization of server utilization for reduced operating costs.

Workspace Technology’s Rack Hosting team through “IT Optimize” software tools helps clients increase utilization of IT assets through accurate, detailed energy consumption profile of server by server and rack by rack. IT Optimize monitors IT asset utilization and power consumption to help reduce costs associated with over-provisioning and underutilization of server assets.

The optimization service provides you with the ability to categorize servers into non-utilised, underutilised and utilised for analysing IT efficiency, remove non-utilized servers to recapture available capacity and virtualise underutilised servers to consolidate resources. As a direct result of the optimisation service we can help reduce energy consumption of your equipment racks reducing the variable element of your rack charging model.

Quality Rack Space

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The quality of deployed equipment can affect the operation

and installation of you I.T assets.

Does the facility offer a choice of rack types? Does the facility provide adequate build area ?

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Rack Colocation Selection Guide.

Energy Efficient Rack Colocation Services

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Is there appropriate cable management and cable ways to enable rack to rack connectivity.

Workspace Technology’s Rack Hosting data centre is configured with high quality vendor neutral racks manufactured by Schneider Electric / APC. All racks are 1200mm deep which eliminates “cable crush” which is a direct result of inadequate rack depth. All racks are fitted with “ZeroU” PDU’s that fit discretely in the back of the rack maintaining maximum cable management. DC1 offers both 600mm and 750mm wide format with a full array of rack containment and cable management solutions.

Workspace Technology’s DC1 data centre is based on a two tile pitch which delivers 1200mm front and 1200mm back of aisle space. This makes for a comfortable high quality environment for your engineers to work.

All cabinets are fitted with top of rack cable troughs providing easy to access systems to allow for neat inter-rack connectivity. Where rack groupings are split we are able to offer underfloor protected wire ways for reliable system connectivity. Workspace Technology DC1 offers excellent welfare and rest area as well as hot desks and Wi-Fi access. Access to a separate build room enables customers to stage new or replacement equipment at your convenience prior to deployment.

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Rack Colocation Selection Guide.

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any colocation data centre partner is able to demonstrate its expertise and ability to deliver energy efficiency at all points within the data centre.

Workspace Technology has invested in the lasted generation of energy efficient technology enabling Workspace Technology to deliver industry leading Power Usage Effectiveness PUE energy ratings.

With the deployment of state of the art low energy CRAC units combined with external free cooling the data centre offers sub 1.2 PUE energy performance. Airflow & Aisle Containment installations ensure that all of the cold air produced by the air conditioning system is delivered directly to your critical load.

Modular Schneider Electric / APC Symmetra UPS systems maximise UPS efficiency. Schneider Electric energy measurement technology delivers accurate real time energy and PUE statistics. A display within our reception provides an instant view of our PUE ratings detailing daily, weekly and monthly performance.

Summary

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ICT requirements are constantly growing fuelling the need for increased data centre capacity. As a consequence IT and data centre managers are faced the decision to build their own facilities, rent rack space within a data centre colocation facility or outsource to an Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) provider.

There are risks associated with capital expenditure in a dynamic, technical industry like data centres and building and owning a private data centre is not for everyone. Using an IaaS provider restricts the flexibility and choice of equipment and may hamper your ability to easily adapt to changing standards and customer demands.

If opting to select colocation it is essential to ensure that any preferred partner is able to offer high quality energy efficient data centre space with flexible power and cooling. Simply selecting on price alone is short sited and invariably does not take into account the reliability and services that will help maintain availability and quality of service throughout the occupation of the facility.

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Rack Colocation Selection Guide.

Energy Efficient Rack Colocation Services

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Making the difference

Connecting with our clients

Workspace Technology’s Rack Hosting division provides premium rack

space that delivers optimum energy efficiency, resilience, security and

flexibility to safely to host your server equipment. By engaging with you and

taking the time to understand your business and performance related issues

Workspace Technology is able to effectively address the demands of your

business.

Workspace Technology’s Rack Hosting team welcomes this opportunity to connect with you as a valued customer. We would like to share our vision and expertise through a partnership approach. Our ability to deliver integrated, scalable, energy efficient solutions has made us the preferred choice for many public sector and commercial businesses today. Operating throughout the UK, Workspace Technology offers clients an enthusiastic and refreshing approach, combined with teamwork that takes performance and service to new levels of excellence.

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Workspace Technology Limited

Technology House, 5 Emmanuel Court, Reddicroft Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands B72 1TJ

Tel : 0121 354 4894 Fax : 0121 354 6447

Email : [email protected] www.workspace-technology.com

Colocation Selection Guide. Workspace Technology Ltd