When should you think about building / renting a datacenter ?
I may have a stupid question here but I was wondering when shall a company consider having its own datacenter instead of renting racks in an already existing one.
At the pace our company is growing I really begin to wonder and ask myself questions about it. With 10 new servers a day... after 1 month will soon come to 100k per month in colo fees.
A good first step would be to assess the power and cooling infrastructure you would need for your own facility, compare it with what you have available on-site now, and begin to develop a ballpark idea of what it would cost you to make up any differential. Easier said than done, but that's the bottom-line $64 question that would influence other variables and decisions.
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RichM Data Center Knowledge
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Thanks, we will probably start looking at facilities in a few months Then ill just need some good employees in the area I guess this forum will be a good place to start
We get asked this question a lot by clients. Generally speaking from our experience, if you get to point where you have 6,000-8,000 square feet, then it's time to start thinking about buying a datacenter for yourself. This has many advantages over "renting" space from a provider.
If you need any further information, then please let me know. We have ways of calculating when the right time to move is as well as build/purchase benchmark costs for a facility.
First of all do not take this question lightly. The decision to build a Data Center should be based on a very thorough and detailed process. And building a Data Center (if done right) can take years and cost millions of dollars. Plus, it is does not promise an easy exit strategy.
We worked with one of the largest U.S. Banks on this exact question. At the end of the day the answer was to rent Data Center space because it was not one of their core business functions. A number of Managers at the Bank wanted to build / manage / own Data Centers for "empire building" reasons. As any long-term shareholder will tell you - this is not a good reason to spend money.
Of course that was their primary decision making criteria. For others it might be about piece-of-mind. For you a larger criteria may be cost savings. If you can truly build and manage a Data Center cheaper than it costs to rent, then consider it an option. But, make sure you are very realistic about the costs and time-lines involved. Most people do not truly realize exactly what it entails - building permits, HVAC experts, backup generators, , peering redundancy, vendor contracts, NOC staff, UPS battery replacements every 3 years, etc.
I am not trying to discourage you, but rather am hoping that this helps you realize the scope of the project.
With that being said - we typically advise most clients to rent space as there are numerous great facilities currently being operatied globally. They are ready for move-in today, and you only have to commit to a 12-month contract. If your business does well you add more space, if your business does not do well you walk away at the end of the year. And you can leave the infrastructure to the experts while you run your business.
A good first step would be to assess the power and cooling infrastructure you would need for your own facility, compare it with what you have available on-site now, and begin to develop a ballpark idea of what it would cost you to make up any differential. Easier said than done, but that's the bottom-line $64 question that would influence other variables and decisions.
I agree. We have a data center and we have filled it up with clients and have been doing extensive research into buying a existing dark facility or doing our own build out. Are you looking to lease out Colo space to other customers? If you want to mitigate your overhead you may want to change providers and move to a new facility that offers cage space.
The cost involved in cooling, power, fire suppression, cabling, generators, fuel for generators, a staff technical with all the facility infrastructure, and dealing with carriers (carriers can be a pain), is pretty high. I definitely recommend shopping around for a new provider first. But if you are in the business to sell Colo space, then it may be worth it.
Your own datacenter means a lot of money and jumping in big. A datacenter is like having a whole home rather than just renting a bed in someone else's home, so make sure that is what you want to do.
it really depends upon the position of the company, if it is in growing phase, then a dedicated data center can be an expensive deal for the company. I think a company should gradually move from a rented to dedicated data center.
When should you think about building / renting a datacenter ?
