colocation FAQs

General

What is colocation?

Colocation is where a company's equipment is hosted in a third party facility which provides a secure environment with stable power, cooling and Internet connectivity.
 

What is a data center?

Wikipedia defines a data center (or datacentre) as a facility used to house computer systems and associated components, such as telecommunications and storage systems. It generally includes redundant or backup power supplies, redundant data communications connections, environmental controls (e.g., air conditioning, fire suppression) and security devices.

It is sometimes referred to as a server room, carrier hotel, telehousing suite or a computer closet in some organisations.

 

What is a rack unit or "RU"?

A rack unit, frequently abbreviated as "RU" or just "U", is a standard size measurement for equipment to be mounted in 19-inch racks of the kind used in almost all data centres worldwide.

Individual pieces of rack-mountable equipment such as servers, switches, routers, blades and so on can vary in size. Racks typically accomodate equipment 19 inches (482.6 mm) wide. So the size variance is sometimes a matter of depth; for example some simpler switches and routers are relatively shallow devices compared to a typical server, though are still the standard 19 inches wide.

The main significant variance, however, is the height of the equipment and this is where the RU comes into play. The height of rack-mount equipment is standardised as multiples of 1.75 inches (4.445 cm) and this is what is known as a "rack unit", "RU" or "U".

RU sizing and colocation pricing

The RU size of a server or other piece of equipment in a data centre is one of the factors affecting the cost, since a larger server will take up more rack space which is often at a premium. (The other main components of the cost of colocation are power and bandwidth.) Consequently, it is usually best to use the smallest possible server that meets your requirements. Often it makes financial sense to pay a premium for better, more compact servers due to the ongoing savings in rack space over the life of the server.

Sizing of equipment and racks

A server may be described as "1 RU" or "1 U" if it occupies a single rack unit. A full rack of equipment typically accomodates around 42 RU, heights vary between models and manufacturers and some racks may be somewhat shorter or taller than this.

What are the advantages of colocation?

There are numerous benefits however the main ones are:

  • High capacity and quality bandwidth
  • Stable and redundant power and cooling
  • Better security than regular office
  • Advanced fire detection and suppression
  • Improved uptime of services
  • Greater availability of a range of services
  • 24/7 access to experienced IT staff


 

Are there any disadvantages to colocation?

In some instances colocation is not the best solution for your business. The reasons for this are numerous but some examples are; hardware costs, lack of sufficient IT skills, costs not feasible and so on.

Alternatives include virtual hosting, content delivery services (CDN), virtual private servers (VPS) and dedicated or managed servers.

Sublime IP can provide all of these services and more to meet your IT needs.

 

What is the difference between a colocation and dedicated server?

Colocation is where the hardware remains the property and responsibility of the company or customer. The host provides secure environment with stable power, cooling and internet connectivity.

In the case of dedicated or leased hardware it is the property of the host and the customer pays a fixed fee to lease the hardware. Any problems with the physical hardware are the responsibility of the host.

 

Do you lease space by rack units (RU) or only full cabinets?

We lease everything from 1 rack unit (1 RU) up to full racks, floor space and cages.

What services does Sublime IP offer?

We offer services such as data center space, connectivity/data, remote hands, remote installation service, server monitoring, assistance with international shipping of equipment, etc.

Do you offer managed services?

We offer a range of managed services from backups, server management, firewall services, hardware maintenance and so on.

Please contact us so we can provide a proposal that meets your individual requirements.
 

Does Sublime IP offer 24/7 support?

We have 24/7 phone support with a number of local numbers that can be called. In additional email is monitored regularly and we have monitoring setup for our sites which provide alerts.
 

Do you provide SLAs?

In most of our locations we can provide SLAs and we work towards 99.99% uptime for power and network outside of scheduled maintenance for all sites.
 

Global Locations

Which global colocation locations does Sublime IP offer?

Sublime IP offers colocation and related services in over 60 countries spanning North and South America, Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia and New Zealand. In each region we typically offer colocation in the business capitals of each country. We can also provide telehousing in smaller business centers however connectivity and services are typically better in the major cities.

See our list of global colocation sites for more details on specific locations.

Where should I colocate my server?

It depends on various factors such as proximity to customers/end-users, whether you need regular access to your hardware, or if you have special telehousing or data needs. While some locations may be cheaper than others it doesn't mean it is the best place to host your equipment.

Why does the cost of telehousing change between countries?

There are a number of factors, but the largest is simply due to availability and competition. In less developed countries often data centers and the corresponding carriers are controlled by a handful of telecommunication companies which pushes up prices. Also where infrastructure is lacking the costs are far higher to provide the same level of service in developed nations such as the US.

 

Are all colocation facilities the same?

Generally speaking they vary widely from the high level data centers designed for large corporations down to smaller single room facilities. The main differentiating factors are the quality of the building structure, power redundancy, security, environmental controls, range and quality of internet carriers, technical staff abilities and so on.
 

Does Sublime IP operate its own data centers?

No, we work on a virtual network operator (VNO) methodology.

A VNO is a provider of management services and a reseller of network services from other telecommunications suppliers that does not own the telecommunication infrastructure.

These network providers are categorized as virtual because they provide network services to customers without owning the underlying network. A VNO typically leases bandwidth at the wholesale rates from various telecom providers in order to provide solutions to their customers.

Do Sublime IP facilities have ISO certification or Uptime Institute Tier rating?

Some do have ISO certification or Uptime Institute Tier ratings, but vary between locations. For more details and requirements in specific location(s), please contact us.

Can I get mutiple Points of Presence (POPs)?

We offer colocation in a diverse range of cities and countries and can cater to any companies needs whether big or small. We specialise in providing colocation in different countries such as if a company wants a prescense in North America, Asia & Europe we can for example provide telehousing in New York, Hong Kong & Frankfurt.

If you are unsure which locations would suit your business best please do not hesiate to contact us as we can provide advice to suit your needs.

Please see our list of colocation sites or contact us for more details.
 

Am I able to order my own Internet bandwidth?

In some cases we can offer 'carrier free' telehousing however more commonly we provide space that includes managed bandwidth where we provide IP transit, IP addresses, routing and so on.
 

Connectivity

What is the difference between data carriers?

Some data carriers have better peering, faster connectivity, more redundancy, etc.

Are your facilities carrier neutral?

As our facilities vary between locations we cannot offer carrier neutral services across all sites. A majority of telehousing facilities worldwide are not carrier neutral as they rely on reselling bandwidth as part of their business.

What data carriers do you offer in your data centers?

It varies between locations. Generally, our managed bandwidth product is a mix of quality transit providers and local peering connectivity.

Is data transit priced per Mbps or per gigabyte?

The pricing models varies between locations and depends on the availability of internet transit in that city.

Please contact us so we can provide pricing that suits your requirements.
 

Why does the cost of data transit vary between locations?

The cost of internet bandwidth varies mainly due to the level of infrastructure combined with the level of competition in the market. Generally speaking data costs are lower in developed countries such as the US however there is some degree of price fixing.

Also pricing and quality of data varies greatly even between cities in established markets such as the US. This is because infrastructure tends to be concentrated in particular cities/states (in the case of the US, San Francisco, Chicago & New York) in order to reduce infrastructure costs.
 

Do you provide access to peering points from your meet me room?

We provide access in some locations. For more information on peering, please contact us.

A "meet me room" (MMR) is a place within a colocation center where multiple telecommunications companies can physically connect to one another and exchange data without incurring local loop fees. Services provided across connections in an MMR may be voice circuits, data circuits, or Internet protocol.

Peering is a voluntary interconnection of administratively separate internet networks for the purpose of exchanging traffic between the customers of each network. A peering point is a place where many networks interconnect together to exchange traffic on a peering basis.

Do you offer leased lines or MPLS circuits?

Yes, most locations can accommodate leased lines or MPLS circuits.

A leased line or a dedicated line is a telephone line that has been leased for private use. It is a service contract between a provider and a customer whereby the provider agrees to deliver a symmetric telecommunications line connecting two locations in exchange for a monthly rent.

Multiprotocol Label Switching (MPLS) is a mechanism in high-performance telecommunications networks which directs and carries data from one network node to the next.

Can I get telephone lines POTS/PSTN?

We can offer telephone lines in many of our facilities at varying costs. Please speak to our sales staff to discuss your needs.

 

Do you have mobile GSM reception in your facilities?

Generally yes. Please contact us if specific carrier services are required at a particular location.

Power

How much power do you offer per rack?

It varies between locations and can usually be increased on request to accommodate larger power requirements.

How can I estimate my power (electricity) costs?

Your power costs can be estimated by having a track on the rate of power consumption by servers, air conditioning systems in the server rooms, monitoring systems and power backup systems.

How can I reduce my energy use in the data center?

Energy use in data centers can be reduced by the following:

  • Buying new servers for better energy efficiency and performance
  • Balancing the data center power load correctly
  • Server virtualization
  • Efficient data center design
  • Planning different levels of redundancy

Access

Can I get into the data center 24x7 unescorted?

It depends, as we operate from a large number of facilities and each operator has different policies. Generally, only customers with a full rack or more can have unescorted 24x7 access.

Insurance

Does Sublime IP insure my equipment when in the data centers?

No. The customer is required to take out insurance of its own as per our colocation terms of use.