How Edge Colocation Helps Growing Businesses

Modern content and application providers face a conundrum: how can they provide newer, more advanced applications and content to their users while improving performance? This is a difficult task because applications are more data-hungry than ever, and content providers’ users are more dispersed.

Edge computing has been the market’s answer to this issue. By distributing compact edge PoPs and nodes in strategic locations, providers have moved computing resources closer to the user and have thereby improved digital experiences in larger geographic areas. While practical, this shift has created a new challenge: managing the infrastructure to support edge computing.

Colocation helps businesses simplify the management of edge computing. What is edge colocation, and what does it mean for data centers?

Edge Colocation Helps Serve Smaller Markets

In contrast to the large data centers that require immense resources and infrastructure to power, edge hardware is built to fit anywhere. However, since the edge network is distributed, companies must manage hardware installed in many locations, presenting logistics problems.

Edge colocation providers help companies overcome logistics challenges by renting dynamic server space to them. In traditional data centers, the company is responsible for all of the infrastructure maintenance. However, colocation providers furnish the building, cooling, power, and physical security needed to maintain the servers. This approach means that companies only need to worry about designing their hardware configuration and maintaining the content and applications they deliver.

Benefits to Using Colocation Services Instead of On-Premise Data Centers

Colocation does more than simply limit the maintenance of edge hardware. For example, many industries need access to secure storage, including those in the finance, healthcare, and government sectors. Edge computing allows companies in these sectors to place data closer to users without compromising security. This is because colocation providers strive to maintain the same protection found in traditional data centers.

Additionally, companies can deliver high-performance content and applications to users outside major cities while cutting bandwidth costs. Since colocation providers are built to scale, it’s easy for companies to scale up or down based on usage. Being able to scale on demand allows companies to fine-tune each region’s hardware capabilities, optimizing their cost-performance ratio.

Datacenter costs continue to rise as companies grow their user base and improve service in traditionally underserved markets. These costs will only intensify as the edge data center market is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 23% between 2020 and 2026. This growth pushes providers to expand their ability to provide lower latency service in tier 2 markets and reduce the cost of data transmission.

Tap Into the Business Advantages of Colocation

Edge colocation providers give companies highly connected data centers in underserved areas. They allow businesses to improve online experiences, reduce transport costs, lower latency, and better handle secure data. Many companies are mixing cloud, on-premise, and colocation infrastructure for optimal performance because of these advantages.

Companies must be readily available to users across the globe. This requires a combination of strategically located resources and high-performance infrastructure. Intequus can help you design infrastructure that is flexible, fast, and easily deployable at the edge. To learn more, talk to a team member today.