BY DAN KURTZ, Director, Business Development and Data Centers, LightEdge Solutions

One of the most vital components of a colocation center is the data for which it is responsible.

Many customers use off-site data centers for their information technology needs, and those that don’t soon will in the future. The Internet of Things (IOT) is increasing the need for this as many businesses are now experiencing a deluge of information and data they previously did not know existed.

The pace of technology continues to increase, and workloads will continue to become more complex because of the IoT. Gartner Inc., a research and advisory company that helps business leaders, projects that by 2020, 26 billion devices will be connected to the internet.

A data center prepared for the future will offer a Hybrid Cloud solution that allows customers the option to choose private Cloud storage within the facility for their data while also providing access to a Public Cloud. The massive amount of data will need to be sorted into a variety of applications and edge-of-network storage, and a data center with the appropriate Cloud offerings can provide this.

Hybrid Clouds have grown in popularity as businesses have learned they need public storage for application development but need to keep confidential and proprietary information in a Private Cloud. The Gartner Group reports that half of large enterprises will operate a form of hybrid Cloud by the end of 2017.

Most businesses cannot operate a Hybrid Cloud on their own because they do not have the skills and experience to inventory their existing applications while also monitoring the security, compliance, storage and compute requirements for their data. This is why a colocation center with a Hybrid Cloud component is necessary. It will become an extension of the business’s IT department.

A colocation center with a Hybrid Cloud will have:

• Modern and secure infrastructure, compute and storage.
• IT consulting services to guide use and implementation of the hybrid Cloud, as well as management of it and how to leverage one’s data.
• A variety of colocation and cloud options that include an on-ramp to a public Cloud.
• Industry-specific and process-audited compliance.
• Fast interconnectivity, so critical business applications and data are accessible within a matter of milliseconds.

LightEdge provides an easy path for you to consume Public Cloud features, while keeping your more sensitive data safe in a Private Cloud. You can keep each type of data and application in the perfect place, and we’ll manage it for you. As your single point of contact, we ensure everything is operating as it should: safely and quickly, and at the edge the network.

A secure Hybrid Cloud solution is of the utmost importance. Some Public Cloud users have discovered it can be difficult to control their proprietary and confidential information once it is in the Public Cloud. Customers whose business is in a compliance-driven industry need to shift to a Cloud environment that inspects every packet and piece of information that travels through the Cloud environment. This isn’t currently available in the Public-Cloud arena.

A colocation provider that offers a Hybrid Cloud with a Private Cloud component will give business owners more in-depth levels of visibility and control of their information.

Dan Kurtz View Bio