Colocation -- Managed And Unmanaged Services

Most small and medium sized online companies are now into colocation, the outsourcing of data centers in offsite colocation providers. Their major reasons are the security in power and data storage, fast access for their sites, and lower bandwidth costs.

Just like dedicated servers, colocation solutions come in two distinct types of services – managed and unmanaged. For those still on the lookout for colocation providers, it is best to understand first these differences and their exact requirements before choosing a colocation data center.

Your choice whether to use a managed or unmanaged colocation service can have a significant impact on your business. These include such factors as how much maintenance is needed to be done, what things can be run on the server, pricing and others.

Here is a short rundown on the differences on managed and unmanaged colocation services.

Managed Colocation

Right off the bat, managed colocation is the best option for businesses that do not have the time and the IT resources needed to maintain their equipment. With the service, your company is spared from performing manual tasks required to keep your system online.

Managed colocation is often referred to as dedicated server rental. The provider has a dedicated server already configured to certain specifications for use by their various colocated clients. 

Services 

Their services include the use of the other requisite services, including maintenance like reboots, solving hardware issues and backups. The client will simply move their equipment and run their business right away. 

This arrangement is useful for people who are not technically inclined and do not have the time or the resources to handle troubleshooting and other maintenance chores.

Disadvantages 

There are disadvantages in this setup, the most significant of them is the high price for the pampered treatment. There are also restrictions such as only supported applications are allowed to be run on the servers. (You may NOT use any application needed for your site if it is not supported by your provider.)  

Unmanaged colocation

Choosing unmanaged colocation gives you and your company greater flexibility. This freedom of choice comes in handy when deciding the hardware, software and the other components you want to include in your server.

You can, in effect, install applications needed by your requirements but are not supported by your provider. You have more control on the configuration and use of your server, which is the opposite in managed services.

Access 

Depending on your contract, your technical people can come and go to the facility as needed and perform the tasks in regard with your equipment. The disadvantage here is that your people must be available to travel to the colocation center in times of trouble which is always unpredictable.

Comparison 

Finally, it should be clear that managed and unmanaged services cater to two different customer needs. If you have the IT resources (including the staff), an unmanaged service will work best.

The managed version, on the other hand, will allow you to move your hardware and leave all the technical aspects to the colocation services people. All in all, it is best that you know these differences and their consequences on your business.
