What is Colocation?
Colocation allows you to place your server hardware in our data center. You maximize your uptime by utilizing our Internet bandwidth and leveraging our redundant power and cooling. Colocation costs less than building your own facility and installing redundant Internet connections. The primary difference between colocation and other hosting services is that you own and manage the hardware that your data resides on.
Colocation: The advantage of a world-class data center without the capital expense.
Your servers need stable power, reliable cooling, and a physically secure environment in order to perform reliably. That's exactly what we offer. We provide IP addresses, Internet bandwidth, and UPS power & cooling to your server. In addition to these basic services, we can provide private connectivity, data replication and backup services, remote hand and eyes and a host of other services that fit your individual needs.
Why ipHouse?
ipHouse was founded by a group of Minnesota Internet veterans with the desire to provide better service to users who are frustrated with technology and the Internet. Our team members have been providing online services to a discerning public since 1984 and we've got the expertise to make your online experience trouble free.
Need to get more from your servers? Thinking that virtualization might be the answer? Here is a comparison of virtualization and colocation. If you need more servers, or need to replace aged equipment, consider Virtualization. ipHouse is a certified VMware Professional Service & Solutions Provider. Ask us how we can help you today.
Security is our primary focus
You might wonder why security is at the top of the list of details. Security is the most important characteristic of our colocation services. We understand and recognize that a single security lapse could significantly injure our clients and open our company to major liabilities. As such, our employees understand how important a comprehensive security program is when convincing our customers and prospects that ipHouse is a trustworthy partner.
Security is a market differentiator for ipHouse. Our target is appropriate security, not excessive security. Excessive security is counterproductive to our work effort and our customers’ needs. We continuously develop and manage our security program with good business judgment and respect for the customer.
While ipHouse is stringent about security, we are an Internet Service Provider and our customers require unrestricted access to the Internet. ipHouse considers a firewall a necessary component of network security and recommends that each customer implement a firewall as the first component of their colocation environment. ipHouse can provide fully managed firewall service as required. Speak with your Sales Guru for details.
ipHouse divides security into three separate fields:
Physical Access:
- The data center is governed by strict access control procedures. ipHouse provides these procedures, policies, badges and Personal Identification Numbers (PIN) for customers to physically access the colocation environment.
- Within the data center physical access to equipment is further restricted to individually locked cabinets and cages.
- Unless otherwise defined, customers have 24 x 7 x 365 physical access to their colocated hardware.
- Video surveillance systems cover all entrance/exits, and lobbies, man-traps, ancillary rooms and generator equipment.
- The data center is located within the Minneapolis SafeZone.
Network Access:
By default, ipHouse does not restrict network access from the public Internet. If requested, ipHouse can restrict network access via Access Control Lists on the network access point where the colocated hardware connects to the ipHouse network.
- Blocking specific network protocols can be implemented depending on customer requirements, but are not implemented by default.
- ipHouse maintains a high level of network infrastructure security following accepted industry practices. We provide security of the ipHouse network in the following manners:
- Restricting access to, and requiring regular periodic changes to passwords for ipHouse infrastructure.
- Restricting the use of network protocols via dedicated firewalls.
- Hardening and maintaining operating systems for ipHouse infrastructure.
- Utilizing encryption and encapsulation methods for ipHouse data.
- Maintaining and testing written policies and procedures (SAS70).
Remote Access:
- Customers control and administer remote access on their colocated hardware.
- ipHouse provides unrestricted Internet access to the colocation service. Customers should utilize industry standard remote access tools to gain remote access to their colocation platform.
Electrical Power
The data center is fed by three 1200 Amp 480 Volt feeders, one active, two spare. Power is fed to an automatic transfer switch and backed up by a 750kWatt generator with a 1000 gallon belly tank. Fuel is on-call 24 x 7 with a 2 hour time-to-delivery.
Both AC and DC UPS power is fed from a separate 2,300 sq. ft battery room onto separate cable trays for DC power and conduit for AC power.
The diesel generator backs up the HVAC system, lighting system, access control system, and fire suppression system. Power is customizable for customers with private cages.
ipHouse cabinets and cages come with their own dedicated power circuits. Each circuit is individually metered and monitored. ipHouse partners with Packet Power to individually meter for kWh/amps/volts 24 x 7, so you only pay for what electricity you use. At ipHouse, you do not share a power circuit with your neighbor. All power is protected and conditioned 24x7 by a UPS which in turn is backed by the generator.
Internet Bandwidth
We provide your servers with redundant multi-homed Internet bandwidth via three Tier 1 national backbones. When you choose ipHouse as your Internet gateway, your hardware will be connected to our network via a 10/100/1000 autosensing port and your traffic is directly routed via the best path.
To carry traffic out to the Internet with very high reliability, our facility is equipped with twin opposing underground communications vaults, spaced 270 feet apart. Our connections to Time Warner Telecom, Verizon Business/MCI/UUNET and Level3 provide you with a carefree high-bandwidth, low-latency Internet experience. ipHouse also peers with other ISP's and local organizations to ensure that your traffic always takes the best route to its destination.
Facility Environmental Control
The ipHouse data center has a independent glycol HVAC system and is N+1 for all areas of the data center. The data center HVAC system consists of 9 ATS up-flow CRAC units rated at 20 tons (240,000 BTU) each. Details on each unit:
- Two 10-ton compressors with individual glycol piping
- Two fans
- 17 pph canister steam humidifier
- 10 kWatt reheat coil
- R-22 coolant
- Condensate Pump
Battery room and electric room are also N+1 systems. Dry coolers are N+1 with separate pumps for each dry cooler. HVAC systems are monitored by an Integ system notifying ipHouse technicians of change in system status. All cooling fluid piping is supported by drip pans with a separate leak detection and alarm system. The entire HVAC system is supported by the generator.
Fire detection is a dual zone ion/photo sensor system with dual cross-zone trigger release mechanism. Fire prevention is a self contained dry-pipe pre-action system (including dry-pipe valve and air compressor) interconnected with the building main fire water riser system designed at 200 sq ft. per sprinkler head. Water release of the system is a two-stage process that requires both smoke detection via photo/ion and heat of at least 150 degrees Fahrenheit beneath sprinkler head(s) to activate the system.
Network Neutrality
We pride ourselves on our bandwidth and networking. But when it comes to connecting to remote locations, we maintain a carrier neutral approach. Although it is unlikely you will need independent connectivity to access to your equipment, you have the ability to connect directly to any of the 18 national carriers already located in our facility.
Carriers with a presence in our building include:
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Configurations
| Single Server | Private Half Cabinet | Private Full Cabinet | Private Cage | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Recommended Uses | Perfect for basic server - Details | Best for small and medium business - Details | Best for eCommerce and large business - Details | |
| Electricity | 2A @120V | 10A @ 120V | 20A @ 120V | Custom Power |
| Bandwidth | 1/2 Mbps Minimum | 1.0 Mbps Minimum | ||
| IP addresses | 1 included | As necessary, per ARIN guidelines | ||
| Remote hands & eyes | n/a | 4 hours per month | ||
| Physical Access | 24 x 7 | |||
Not sure what you need? Our experienced staff and engineers can help. Give us a call at 612-337-6320 or 1-877-337-6320 Toll Free and put our knowledge to work for you.
The advantages of colocation
The list of the advantages for colocation is long, but the primary advantage is peace of mind.
Stable Power
The ipHouse data center provides power redundancy on a level that is extremely expensive to replicate. We provide full surge and lightning protection, battery backup, and diesel power generation for extended outages. If your business chooses to have your server in-house instead of colocating, you run the risk of losing data and suffering prolonged downtime through summer blackouts, winter ice storms, and other electrical calamities.
Physical Security
The most common way for someone to steal your company's sensitive data is by copying it directly off the server while it sits in your office. Worse, imagine a disgruntled employee from walking out of your office with your server. While you could invest in heavy-duty physical barriers, around-the-clock video surveillance and armed guards, the best way to safeguard your data is to use colocation at the ipHouse data center.
Cost Effective Bandwidth
By colocating, your cost for Internet bandwidth is much lower per Mbps than it would be to bring the connectivity in-house. Cost savings can be quite substantial. You can get colocation and 20mbps of bandwidth for the price of a 20mbps Metropolitan Ethernet line. The cost of colocation is usually less than the telecom charges for equivalent bandwidth.
Reduced Network Latency
We connect to three independent upstream providers. Your customers will use the the shortest and fastest path to connect to your data. Shortest path routing keeps latency low and improves overall network performance.
Infrastructure Expansion
ipHouse has capacity for your business to grow without the headache of downtime or physically moving servers around.
Environmental Stability
We protect your data and keep your hardware running with consistent environmental control of temperature and humidity.
Flexible IT Management
You own the server hardware and software. If you decide that the machine is too slow or doesn't have enough memory, you can simply upgrade the server. You can install patches and software on your schedule. You're not susceptible to the schedule of other IT personnel.
Bandwidth Burst Capability
Every so often your bandwidth demand might spike to ten times it's usual level. To handle these spikes with connectivity at your location, you end up paying for ten times the capacity you need. By getting burstable bandwidth from ipHouse, you are only paying for the bandwidth you really need. We have huge data pipes, so when a bandwidth spike occurs, the capacity is there.
Additional services for colocation
With hackers and network attacks an ever increasing threat, ipHouse offers a variety of products and services to protect your colocated infrastructure and give you peace of mind. A few of the additional services we offer:
Virtualization
The largest cost saving technology available today, virtualization reduces capital equipment expenses, ongoing electrical and cooling expenses and improves availability.
Data Replication
We can provide a space for your data to be replicated to and even replicate the data offsite to a secondary location.
Private Connectivity
Utilizing the public Internet to carry data between your colocated hardware and your office might not be the most efficient use of bandwidth. ipHouse can install a private connection between your office and the colocation infrastructure.
SAN Storage
Temporary or long term SAN storage can help you manage your data storage needs.
Firewalls, IDP and VPN concentrators
Secure your Internet hosting environment with fully managed FortiGate security appliances. Our managed firewall services include 24x7 monitoring of the appliance, updates, and hot fixes to keep your colocated infrastructure secure.
Security Scans
Our professional services team offers comprehensive security scans and assessments of your server architecture and security implementation. Our security scan gives you a full report on the status of your servers with regard to passwords, patches and known vulnerabilities or exploits, and the status and security configuration of any services that you may be running.
CaringBridge
CaringBridge is a free, online service that allows friends and families to privately and easily share information, love and support with each other when faced with serious health issues.
CaringBridge houses the servers for this global community of care in the ipHouse data center. With more than three million unique users each month using over 40Mbps of bandwidth, uptime is critical. ipHouse has the knowledge, environment and network reliability they need.
