Direct public cloud interconnection is a "must have" for 94% of IT leaders surveyed, according to the 2023 State of the Data Center Report from CoreSite and CIO. The majority of respondents agree that a native, direct connection between colocation data centers and major cloud providers is essential for improved performance, enhanced security, cost savings and hybrid cloud connectivity.
Colocation enables organizations to outsource their data center by purchasing or leasing IT hardware that is housed at a colocation facility. The colocation provider builds and operates the data center, including managing power, cooling and security.
The report advises, "By partnering with colocation providers, organizations can greatly reduce their CapEx burden, allowing them to free up resources for investment in innovation and business growth. And just as important, when an organization's data center needs increase, it can contract for additional space and resources without having to invest in expanding or building a new data center of its own."
Other report findings include:
Hybrid IT Infrastructure Is the Norm
Survey results show that nearly 97% of CIOs have implemented or plan to implement a hybrid cloud model.
Some colocation providers offer direct cloud connections, native onramps to the major hyperscalers via dedicated high-speed, low-latency connectivity. As mentioned above, many IT organizations consider this an essential part of a colocation service.
"The way that businesses connect with each other is constantly evolving, and they require more efficient and automated ways to make today’s digital supply chain work," says Matt Senderhauf, VP of Interconnection Strategy at CoreSite. "Similarly, public cloud providers want to deliver their services to customers in a more efficient manner. Direct cloud connections deployed in secure colocation data centers provide the perfect ecosystem for cloud providers to reach the most end users and for those end users to connect to the public clouds securely, with the highest performance and lowest cost."
Colocation Successfully Supports Critical Workloads
The report found that IT decision-makers are more open than ever to moving critical workloads from public cloud to colocation:
■ 92% are considering moving AI/ML applications.
■ 84% are considering moving IoT connectivity and
management.
■ 92% are considering BI, data warehouse and data analytics.
Security is The Top Attribute Sought in a Colocation Provider
While performance, scalability, ecosystem and total cost of ownership are among the most important attributes in choosing a colocation provider, top decision-makers rank security as the most important in 2023.
