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What Is Colocation Web Hosting?

Description: There are many different kinds of web hosting available, but there is one kind that is not so well known, and that is colocation web hosting.

The word colocation brings to mind more than one location being used for a single purpose, and that is essentially what colocation web hosting is all about, as well as the fact that you will be providing your own server equipment instead of renting space on someone else's.

Colocation web hosting is not for personal websites or even small businesses. The main customer for this kind of service is the big business that needs to ensure it is online and serving its visitors and customers in the fastest time possible, twenty four hours a day, seven days a week.

There is a much higher cost involved with colocation web hosting, purely because the person or company who requests it will usually have to provide their own servers and equipment. The web host provides them with rack space in which to house their own servers, and the company then uses the bandwidth supplied by the web host as agreed.

Essentially the service means that you are making use of servers which are housed in more than one location. This means you can ensure your servers are located in the best possible places for your business, ensuring the fastest data transfer possible from the server to the customer.

Colocation also offers more security for the person or business that is taking advantage of it. Protection is the main feature - if one server goes down for any reason you can still operate from the second location, and the website will still be able to operate as normal.

Colocation services obviously cost a great deal more than the regular web hosting that the majority of people use, and there are a number of add on services which can also be bought. Some companies enlist the help of the engineers at each server location, to ensure their equipment is working as it should be and providing the best service to keep the website live and accessible at all times.