Dallas is packed with businesses that demand the fastest level of service from the applications they use. It’s also an excellent base from which to serve other locations both in Texas and beyond. With that in mind, here is a quick guide to what you need to know about implementing a Dallas data center.
The most obvious benefit of implementing a Dallas data center is being able to guarantee fast and reliable service to customers in Dallas.
Dallas also makes a great base from which to connect with customers in surrounding areas. These include other Texan powerhouse cities such as Fort Worth, Houston, and Austin. There is also excellent connectivity with New Mexico, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Mississippi, and Louisiana.
The city is a major telecommunications hub, hosting numerous data centers and telecommunication facilities. This ensures high-speed and reliable connectivity for businesses. It also has excellent physical infrastructure, a skilled workforce, and a business-friendly state government.
The basic process for choosing a Dallas data center is much the same as the basic process for choosing a data center in any other location. There are, however, some area-specific considerations it is worth noting. Here are the key points you should consider and how they relate to Dallas specifically.
All data centers need to implement robust physical and digital security. This includes effective and tested processes for event- and incident management. These are essential for ensuring business continuity and disaster recovery. Having effective security in place is a prerequisite for achieving certification with data security frameworks and standards.
There are unlikely to be any major location-specific physical or digital security considerations for a Dallas data center. It is, however, important to be clear about what compliance programs and data security frameworks are relevant to you.
If you are implementing a Dallas data center to access new markets, you may come into the scope of new, industry-specific compliance programs. Even if you aren’t, knowing that your data center vendor can support them may be useful for the future.
Since Dallas is a telecommunications hub, the city overall has some of the best network connectivity available today. There will probably be some minor variations in the speed and reliability of the service. Data centers near to network hubs and/or user bases will always have some level of advantage over those that don’t. These differences are, however, likely to be relatively minor.
There are, however, some potentially important differentiators between Dallas data center vendors. These are carrier-neutrality, interconnectivity and multicloud support. Of these, carrier-neutrality is arguably the most important as it generally has the most influence on cost.
No matter what type of Dallas data center you’re planning on implementing, you’ll need to look at power and climate control.
Power: One of the major benefits of operating in Texas is that the state has consistently low energy costs. Even so, it is still advantageous for data center operators to manage power efficiently. This minimizes operating costs and improves sustainability. It is even better if they can use sustainable energy sources and/or generate power on-site (e.g. through solar panels).
Climate control: Climate control needs to be a huge consideration for any Dallas data center. As with any location in Texas, Dallas can get extremely hot in summer. This means it’s vital to have effective cooling systems. Humidity is also a major issue that needs to be carefully managed.
IT equipment: If you’re planning on using vendor-provided IT equipment, you’ll need to check exactly what they can provide and at what cost. It’s also advisable to check the options for customization and scaling. As always, think about what the future might bring and what this could mean for your needs, wants, and priorities.
The vendor will usually give a reliability guarantee. This should be close to 100%. In fact, 100% reliability guarantees are becoming increasingly common. The guarantee should be written into your contract and backed by sanctions for failure. It should also tally with the data center’s tier rating and the vendor’s historical performance data.
In general, if you want or need to provide the very fastest service, it’s best to look for a Dallas data center near a network hub and/or your user base (preferably both). If, however, this is not essential for you, then it may be worth assessing locations purely in terms of security, accessibility, and cost.
Opting for a Dallas data center in a less prime location may lower your costs significantly with relatively little impact on the service you offer.
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