Wireless

The benefits of WLAN infrastructure can apply to any vertical market. The added mobility and security functionalities for bring your own device (BYOD) and consumer-oriented devices are ideal for enterprises that have large numbers of knowledge workers. This includes most verticals, but mobile security for health care, finance and education are representative of the type of industries that have the most to gain from using a business WLAN as their primary access technology. More generally, enterprises with extensive mobility strategies and projects are likely to reap the benefits of WLAN. On the other hand, a manufacturing company that operates mostly factories rather than offices may not benefit much from investing in a WLAN infrastructure.

Maximizing Business Potential

The benefits of WLAN as a primary approach to connectivity include the following:

  • • Ubiquitous access.Wireless supports both stationary and growing mobile workforces, as well as mobile devices and the new generation of apps they bring in.
  • • Cost reduction.Instead of running two networks in parallel, companies with sufficient WLAN infrastructure can install, maintain and operate just one. This benefit is most obvious in new locations — which don’t need to be wired for end-user access at all — as well as in locations with an old wiring plant where the cost of updating it would be highest.
  • • Highly scalable network architecture.. Decentralized architectures — which put the intelligence for all features in each access point (AP) and sometimes can be managed via Software as a Service (SaaS) — scale easily. Each AP adds the same capability and capacity to the network automatically, without diminishing returns or additive configuration burdens.◦ App and performance optimization. Through technologies such as Quality of Service (QoS), routing, flow control, band-steering and even software-defined antennae shaping, enterprises can improve app and general network performance starting at the business WLAN access point in ways their wired networks can’t yet match.
    ◦ OpEx-based costs. Many vendors offer SaaS-centric solutions, where the hardware and software become operating expenses rather than capital purchases. These solutions are often an easier “sell” to management than those involving large up-front capital investments.
    ◦ Secure device management. WLAN network access control (NAC) allows enterprises to automatically identify and manage all devices, including guest and BYOD mobile devices, via a consistent policy framework, and in a more robust way than they currently use (or are able to use, in many cases) on their wired networks.
connected-globally

Connected Globally, Quickly, Securely

When it comes to connectivity, colocation means a business is connected globally, quickly and securely. We find that many companies with onsite server rooms often do not have onsite access to a resilient Internet connection, nor do they have dedicated personnel monitoring traffic flow to ensure they always remain on.

Colocation enables organizations to benefit from faster networking and resilient connectivity at a fairly low price – delivering 100 mbps of bandwidth might be hard at an office location and trying to create a redundant solution is often financially unviable. Data centers are connected to multiple transit providers and also have large bandwidth pipes meaning that businesses often benefit from a better service for less cost.

Sustaining Your Infrastructure

With these considerations in mind, some organizations start to look to cloud solutions rather than colocation. However, cloud does not provide organizations with a fully auditable system and the ability to have full control over their own infrastructure. Colocation often enables businesses to avoid spending money on storage bills in the cloud as it is often cheaper to store information on their own servers.

From the periodic necessary replacement of UPS batteries, to the maintenance and testing of UPS systems, the hidden costs of sustaining your infrastructure to optimal levels can be surprising. As part of a standard colocation solution, organizations instantly benefit from high level security with ISO 27001 accredited processes, onsite security teams and infrastructure.

Additionally, data centers have the time, resources and impetus to continually invest in and research green technologies. This means that businesses can reduce their carbon footprint at their office locations and benefit from continual efficiency saving research. Companies that move their servers from in-house server rooms typically save 90 percent on their own carbon emissions.

Location, Location, Location

Choosing a colocation provider away from a city or data center hub with optimal connectivity options – both to the capital, Europe and further afield – means having the advantages of all central data centers with the added benefits of having attractive power capabilities and the security of being away from centrally targeted terrorist activity. Out-of-town colocation providers allow businesses to take full advantage of the capital’s infrastructure without the premium costs associated with it.

A colocation solution provides companies with a variety of opportunities, with exceptional SLAs and having data secured off-site, providing organizations with added levels of risk management and the chance to invest in better equipment and state-of-the-art servers. This can enable IT teams the possibility to explore options such as virtualization and condense the amount of racks and servers required.
Colocation providers are able to meet business requirements at a lower cost than if the service was kept in-house. Data centers and colocation providers have the ability to have businesses up and running within hours, as well as provide the flexibility to grow alongside your organization. Colocation space, power, bandwidth and connection speeds can all be increased where required to ensure that all sizes of colocation clients can be catered to.

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1 Scalability
Did your computing needs shoot up overnight? Or did they drop drastically during your slow season? Instead of having to hire — or fire — new staff or purchase more equipment to handle it yourself, you can just make a call to your colocation provider and scale your service up or down as needed.

2 Connectivity
Colocation providers keep your servers in climate-controlled data centers, with high bandwidth speeds, and excellent redundancy for network connections. You won’t have to pay the costs to purchase and maintain this kind of IT infrastructure in your own offices, and your internal IT staff can focus on other business operations.

3 Security
Quality colocation providers house your servers in secure data centers, with security measures that include biometric scanners, closed circuit cameras, on-site security, coded access, alarm systems, and more. And with colocation, you

don’t have to hire or purchase any of these security measures yourself — it’s all included in your service plan.

4 Stability
If you have to move offices, or are hit with a power outage, or suffer a natural disaster, you won’t have to worry about your data or services going down. A colocation provider will have multiple backup generators and contingencies in place to ensure that there is never an interruption in service, for you, or for your customers.

5 Predictability
Not only does using a colocation provider often save money, but it also turns unpredictable capital outlays into predictable monthly expenses.  You only pay for your own equipment, not a whole datacenter.  Your company will be able to budget for IT needs and allocate existing resources more efficiently.