What is Co-Location?
Put simply, co-location is like renting an apartment in a great location. You have a server that you want connected to a very fast internet connection, in a secure location. We have rack space in some of the best-specified datacentres in the UK. We ensure your server is available 24/7, by picking what we believe is one of the best bandwidth providers in the UK. You benefit from economies of scale because you don't have to go out and find all this infrastructure yourself.

So what if I don't have a server?
Not a problem, you can lease or buy one from us. We build the quote to your specification, but you would expect to pay less than £50 per month for the rental of a decent-specification server. Or we can build a quality rack-optimised server for as little as £300. Click here for more information.

What do you mean by U's?
A "U" refers to a "unit" of space. Rack Space in data centres is limited, so as a standard, servers to be housed in datacentres are generally "rack-optimised", meaning they're wide, deep but not very tall. A "U" is 1.75 inches high. A rack-optimised server will have a height, quoted in U's, usually between 1 and 4.

So do you not co-locate tower servers?
By their nature, tower-based servers, or desktop machines are not designed for use in a datacentre, and will be quite inefficient in terms of the amount of space they will take. Therefore it is not ideal to put them in a rack. You will need to call or e-mail us, and let us know the dimensions of the machine, then we can give you an appropriate quote given the size. We'll also provide a shelf so that it is securely located.

Can you co-locate Mac Minis?
Yes, and we have a special price for people wishing to co-locate a mac mini. Please click here to view our colocation pricing.

How can I control my server(s)?
You can use a variety of methods, depending on the OS of your server. Windows-based machines can be controlled by Terminal Services/Remote Desktop, PC Anywhere, Remote Administrator or VNC. The choice is yours. Linux machines can be controlled by SSH. Macs can be controlled by Timbuktu or Apple Remote Desktop.

What if I need to reboot?
If your machine has locked up and needs rebooting, providing you've ordered a remote reboot switch, you can go in to our control panel, day or night and reboot your machine yourself, instantly. If you haven't ordered this facility, then you need to contact us to reboot the machine.

What about Backups?
The choice is yours here. For simplicity, a lot of customers FTP their own backups offsite. Alternatively, the data centre has a fully managed backup service, details on request. Or we can provide NAS type storage space for you, please contact us for a price. If you have a CD or DVD Writer in your machine, we can occasionally rotate CD's and post them out to you, for a small charge.

How Can I Gain access to my server?
If your server is hosted in a shared rack, we have to accompany you when you wish to physically access your server, to safeguard other customers' equipment.  Customers taking more than a quarter of a rack (11U) will be allowed unaccompanied access.

Accompanied visits are charged as per the rates in our price list.  The price varies depending on whether you need access during or out of  office hours.  You can schedule access to your server by contacting support by phone or e-mail during normal working hours, or by calling our customer emergency number out of hours.

If you have chosen a remote reboot switch port, this allows you to power-cycle your server from the web, reducing the need for some visits where minor software faults/crashes have occurred.

Does the monthly bandwidth allocation cover traffic in or out?
The monthly bandwidth allowance covers traffic that has passed through your switch port, so includes both inbound and outbound data.

I have another question, not answered here.
Please contact us and we'll do our best to answer.