Colocation services refer to the practice of renting space for servers and other computing hardware at a third-party providers data center facility. These facilities provide space, power, cooling, and physical security for the server, storage, and networking equipment of other firms and also connect them to a variety of telecommunications and network service providers with a minimum of cost and complexity. Here are some key features of colocation services:

• Space: Colocation offers space in the provider’s data center for IT hardware, including racks, cabinets, and cable trays for equipment.

• Power: Colocation facilities provide power to the equipment, and many can provide redundant A and B power feeds to customer equipment.

• Cooling: Colocation services provide cooling systems to protect hardware, typically including redundant HVAC systems and chiller configurations.

• Physical security: Most colocation centers maintain high levels of physical security, including on-site security guards, 24x7x365 surveillance, and biometric authorization.

• Network connectivity: Colocation facilities connect customers to a variety of telecommunications and network service providers.

Colocation services allow businesses to eliminate the capital expenditures of building and maintaining their own facility while allowing them to retain ownership and complete control of their physical servers. However, it still requires businesses to shoulder upfront hardware costs, and typically involves increased travel costs for engineers in the event that they need to manually access the equipment. Colocation facilities generally have generators that start automatically when utility power fails, usually running on diesel fuel, and battery backup systems.