Co-location definition
Co-location is the practice of keeping an organization’s servers and networking equipment in shared third-party premises. Co-location centers provide various amenities, such as power, cooling, connectivity, and physical security to organizations that do not have the necessary infrastructure in-house.
In 2020, NordVPN started to transition towards co-located servers, starting with servers in Finland. Colocated servers are fully owned, maintained, and managed by NordVPN. This complete ownership guarantees that the company stays firmly in control of its configuration and security.,
Real co-location advantages
- Cost: Using co-location services lets organizations share operating costs and avoid waste (such as paying for the physical security of each organization’s servers separately.)
- Facilities: Co-location services provide space, networking and cooling equipment, infrastructure access points, and everything else required for the smooth operation of the organization's servers.
- Power: Co-location facilities have redundant power supplies (such as backup generators on-site) to ensure that the servers remain in operation in the event of an unexpected blackout.
- Staff: While the servers themselves are wholly owned and maintained by the organization, co-location service providers often have staff on hand to deal with non-IT related disruptions, such as flooding or fires.
- Physical security: Co-location service providers employ various security measures to protect the servers in their care, such as CCTV cameras, security guards, response teams, and authentication requirements for entry to the premises.
