Is Data Center as a Service the Right Move for You?

Are you struggling to scale up your on-premise physical infrastructure? Do you want to avoid the hassle and cost of building and maintaining your own data centers? If so, data center as a service (DCaaS) could be a potential solution. 

DCaaS allows you to access and manage data center resources remotely, without having to own or operate them. You can outsource parts of your infrastructure to a third-party provider, who will take care of the hardware, software, security, and maintenance. This way, you can focus on your core business and enjoy the benefits of flexibility, scalability, and cost-efficiency.

DCaaS is emerging as the go-to option for enterprises that lack the rack space or technical expertise to handle the growth of their data center operations. However, other options exist, such as the public cloud and colocation. 

In this article, we will provide the following:

• An overview of DCaaS.
• An explanation of its benefits for your enterprise.
• A look at how it differs from the well-established cloud and colocation data centers. 

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What Is Data Center as a Service (DCaaS)?

DCaaS refers to the provision of an off-site data center for specific clients. The provider is responsible for providing all the infrastructure and space, including racks, servers, storage, and other computing/networking resources necessary for the client to run their operations. The clients can remotely access the resources at the off-site data center via a wide area network (WAN). 

In other words, clients can lease or rent resources from a provider. Enterprises can use DCaaS as their sole data center or combine it with an on-premise or public cloud. However, this service is mainly used by enterprises that no longer can extend their on-premise data center. 

As DCaaS runs on a subscription-based model, clients pay for the resources they use and can quickly scale up as their data needs grow. Aside from the physical resources, the data center provider may also offer data management and monitoring tools to optimize and secure operations. 

Understanding the Differences 

The rise of services in the IT industry has created a wide range of options for businesses for their infrastructure needs. DCaaS is part of the bigger infrastructure services scheme available through hyperscalers and niche providers. 

On the surface, DCaaS is another Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) name. Similarly, it doesn’t look much different from the colocation model. Understanding the subtle differences between the different data center services on the market is essential. 

DCaaS vs. On-Prem

An enterprise owns, controls, and manages all the assets with an on-premise data center. They’re responsible for providing space, power, and cooling for all the equipment. Similarly, they can decide which equipment and vendor to use for their operations. 

With DCaaS, enterprises only pay to use the equipment owned and housed by the provider. While it’s dedicated for their use and can access it remotely, they don’t own it or are responsible for its maintenance. 

DCaaS vs. IaaS

IaaS is a cloud computing model that offers virtualized computing resources over the internet. Enterprises can get on-demand computing resources, like servers and storage. It resembles the DCaaS service model, where enterprises use the provider’s resources. 

The main difference between DCaaS and IaaS is that with the former, the resources are typically dedicated. With IaaS, hardware resources may be shared. 

Moreover, IaaS providers may offer additional services besides bare infrastructure to enhance the capabilities of the enterprise. With DCaaS, enterprises are primarily concerned with the infrastructure and may build and deploy applications on it themselves. 

DCaaS vs. Colocation

Colocation providers offer enterprises space to host their data center infrastructure. In other words, colocation providers offer rack space for servers, storage, and associated network equipment. The company owns the hardware, and the provider only offers space, cooling, and physical security. 

The main difference between DCaaS and colocation ownership, as with the latter, the clients own all the assets hosted off-site. This gives them more freedom and control over hardware. 

Benefits of DCaaS 

The DCaaS model provides a wide range of benefits. You may find some advantages with models like IaaS and colocation. 

No Maintenance

Renting infrastructure with a third party frees you of the responsibility to maintain the physical assets. Similarly, you’re not responsible for providing all the power and cooling at the facility, which is often a significant expenditure in data centers. 

While the costs for management and maintenance may be factored into what you pay to rent the data center, it’s not your responsibility. The provider oversees the operations and provides security for the assets. 

Cost-Effective

DCaaS can be cost-effective, mainly if you use resources on a pay-as-you-go model. Going with a data center provider is essentially an operational expense, as opposed to the capital expenditure of buying your own equipment. 

DCaaS providers have extensive facilities providing resources to many clients. So, the overall cost per asset is relatively lower. 

Scalability

DCaaS can offer ease of scalability, although not as efficiently or dynamically as cloud-based services such as IaaS. You can add servers and storage as and when you need them, and the provider will dedicate them for your usage. 

Support

You don’t need to dedicate engineers to maintaining and supporting equipment, as it’s the job of the DCaaS. That way, your technical experts can focus on other more important things than day-to-day maintenance or repairs. 

Drawbacks of DCaaS 

The same drawbacks that apply to IaaS also apply to DCaaS. Unlike on-prem or colocation, you don’t have ownership of the hardware. While this isn’t a significant drawback, some enterprises may prefer direct ownership due to the sensitive nature of their operations. 

There’s also the availability concern, as downtimes may be unlikely but not entirely impossible. As you’re relying on a third party to run your applications, any outage can result in unavailability, which, in turn, can cause financial and reputational damage. However, this particular concern can be addressed by choosing a provider with guaranteed service level agreements on uptime and availability. 

When to Use DCaaS

DCaaS is most suitable for enterprises with existing data centers that want to expand but lack the space or cooling capacity. The offsite data center can be combined with the on-premise data center to meet the business needs. 

While the resources the third party provides can handle extra workloads, mission-critical operations can continue to be hosted on-site. Similarly, sensitive data can be hosted on-site to ensure compliance with applicable regulations. 

If you run a data center on-site, you likely already have the expertise to manage an off-site data center remotely. 

Colocation is also a viable option, but it requires significant upfront investment as you’ll need to buy and ship all the hardware to the provider’s location. DCaaS provides a faster way to scale when rack space on-site has run out. 

The Verdict?

DCaaS is similar to cloud computing models like IaaS and colocation. However, it’s primarily concerned with providing data center infrastructure off-site. You don’t own any infrastructure, you simply pay to use it, which can be a convenient option for small to mid-sized businesses. 

Colocation is a better option for larger enterprises, especially those requiring more control over their infrastructure. While the colocation provider provides the space, you can house and configure your equipment to suit your existing infrastructure and architecture. 

Whether you want to expand your on-premise data center or go with colocation, PivIT can help you procure the necessary equipment without having to wait weeks from quote to delivery. Your devices can even be shipped and installed at your desired location, whether on-site or at a provider’s. 

Our extensive network of OEMs allows us to stock a wide range of equipment, including new surplus and legacy gear. This ensures that you have everything you need to build the perfect ecosystem for your business. Discover more about the comprehensive infrastructure services offered by PivIT today.