Data centres 'are of an awesome scale'

Today's "awesome" data centres are huge halls featuring rack upon rack of advanced IT equipment, one expert has explained.

Writing for IT resource site ZD Net, commentator Bob Tarzey drew attention to the differences between those small firms that possess their own servers, and the major firms who are able to invest in IT infrastructure "on a massive scale".

Data centres feature "seemingly endless corridors, spotless cleanliness, fortress-like physical security and resilience to power failure", he stated.

Mr Tarzey said they "will not fail to impress", especially given that they can offer IT support services to so many other businesses with just a handful of employees to call on themselves.

He added: "Only those prepared to invest tens of millions can afford true enterprise-class data centres," – helping to explain why many firms turn to managed hosting for their storage and back-up needs.

According to thehostingnews.com, dedicated servers are now "imperative" to the successful functioning of many online businesses.

The site reported last week that such solutions are now "a critical part of the web presence".

Written by Tim Dunton