The document discusses the top 8 reasons businesses should consider colocation services in their data center strategy. It describes how colocation provides scalable solutions that allow companies to instantly scale their infrastructure as needs grow. Colocation facilities also provide redundant infrastructure like power, cooling, and bandwidth that is designed for high availability. Colocation providers maintain secure facilities with the latest security features and certifications to protect critical systems and data. Colocation is also presented as a risk management strategy that protects against disasters by storing data offsite with providers that have recovery plans and procedures in place.

1. RECALL’S COLOCATION TIP SHEET 1
Copyright 2015 Recall. All rights reserved.
Top 8 Reasons Businesses
Should Consider Colocation
Services in Their Data
Center Strategy
As IT budgets remain static, despite growth
increases in data volume and infrastructure
demands, many planners are searching
for options to handle additional volume
needs. This becomes exceedingly difficult
when in-house hosting is nearing capacity.
Before investing in a new data center, IT
leaders should consider these top reasons
to include Colocation services in their
strategic plan.

2. RECALL’S COLOCATION TIP SHEET 2
Copyright 2015 Recall. All rights reserved.
Scalable Solutions:
The idea of building a data center these
days is unlikely, especially for midsize
companies, as the costs to do so can be
quite expensive. Estimating the project
scope and capacity needs a new data
center would require is very tough to
forecast, and fraught with challenges.
Build too much and commit capital
expenditures prematurely? Under plan
the future and have growth outpace
the facility? This is the sweet spot for
Colocation services, providing instant
scalability when internal resources reach
capacity. Many Colocation providers are
prepared to on-board services in just
a few days, bridging the gap between
current limitations and long-term
expansion plans.
01Infrastructure:
Colocation facilities are a perfect match
for companies experiencing rapid growth
and the need to bring instant capacity
online. With the advantage of having
pre-built facilities in place, complete
with power, security, climate control,
and back-up generators, there is no
need to recreate these conditions or
hire staff to monitor the new location.
Maintenance and upkeep of systems
and infrastructure is included as part of
the service. Adopting such an approach
allows outsource providers to offer short-
term agreements for space at low costs
and allowing companies can expand as
needed.
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Copyright 2015 Recall. All rights reserved.
Redundancy:
Just as security controls are viewed as
a minimum requirement for conducting
business, redundancy of infrastructure
is rated equally important by IT leaders.
Most Data Centers are built with N+1
redundancy specifications particularly for
power, networks, bandwidth and cooling
systems. Designed specifically for higher
levels of redundancy, data centers are
better suited than in-house office locations
to efficiently manage costs. In fact, many
office environments are not designed
for this at all, and those that can handle
redundancy demands will likely result in
much higher costs to support. Additionally,
data centers accept connections from
multiple sources, thus rely on larger
bandwidth throughputs, which would not be
available in an office setting.
Security:
Let’s face it, without proper security
controls in place, Colocation or any other
outsourced IT arrangement would be
a non-starter for many companies. IT
leaders will not jeopardize their critical
systems and confidential data by placing
them in non-secure external locations.
Yet, many businesses routinely use in-
house solutions in office settings or the
basement of the corporate headquarters.
These environments often do not have
the security measures in place that would
be expected for an outsource provider.
Colocation providers, by leveraging cost
over multiple tenant relationships, maintain
the latest, state-of-art security features.
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4. RECALL’S COLOCATION TIP SHEET 4
Copyright 2015 Recall. All rights reserved.
05Risk Management:
A common scenario for users of Colocation
services involves risk management factors.
Offsite storage of data is a strong disaster
recovery technique to protect against major
events that may occur in an office. Protect
your business from risk by isolating primary
and backup storage into separate locations.
Businesses that plan for outages and have
documented procedures to recover data from
offsite systems are considered more agile and
ready for the unexpected. Some businesses
are required to produce documented disaster
recovery plans of how they will recover data
for their customers or regulatory agencies.
06Compliance / Certifications:
To keep up with constant changes to
regulatory specifications is a fulltime job
and ignorance of the law is no longer an
excuse. Data management language
within SOC, SOC II, PCI, HIPAA, Hi-Trust
and Safe Harbor are examples of precise,
often contractual requirements, where
clients insist a data center have updated
certifications. A business hosting client
data must demonstrate their procedures for
managing and protecting data, with audits
to enforce compliance. Colocation service
providers are aware and fully compliant
with certifications, saving businesses time
and money from costly audits and non-
compliance fines.
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5. RECALL’S COLOCATION TIP SHEET 5
Copyright 2015 Recall. All rights reserved.
07Experienced Partners:
When combining in-house hosting
environments with Colocation services,
users occasionally request providers
include management service support
for troubleshooting issues. Colocation
professionals have deep experience in
multiple technical areas and can serve as an
extension of a businesses’ core team. Most
providers include around the clock support for
IT needs as part of the standard Colocation
arrangement, and add management services
for additional areas as needed.
08Cost:
The entire design and concept of Colocation
services is focused on reducing CAPEX
and providing low-cost alternatives to in-
house hosting or backup. Developing and
maintaining a data center is expensive
and restrictive IT budgets have little room
for these costs. Whether current capacity
constraints are the issue, funding for a new
data center is not available, or disaster
recovery plans are needed to fulfill a client
requirement, Colocation services solve the
needs of growing businesses today. Instant
service availability makes on-boarding a
quick and easy process, without lengthy,
complex project planning.
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6. RECALL’S COLOCATION TIP SHEET 6
Copyright 2015 Recall. All rights reserved.
To learn more about
Colocation with Recall,
please call 1.888.RECALL6