The CP List: 20 Top Colocation Providers You Should Know

Microsoft Azure

Beckers said his company works with – and is a Gold partner of – Microsoft Azure. Microsoft Azure ExpressRoute provides a private connection between an organization’s on-premises infrastructure and Microsoft Azure data centers.

“Uptime is one of if not the most important selling points of a colo provider,” Cronin said. “Any cutting-edge provider should have a Tier IV facility rating, which provides for no less than 99.995 percent uptime on all facility systems including power, cooling and network.”

AWS/QTS

Beckers also works with Amazon Web Services (AWS). AWS and QTS formed a strategic partnership to bring hybrid cloud offerings to AWS customers needing dedicated colocation that communicates with their AWS cloud.

“QTS is an example of a provider that has facilities that were built to meet government and health-care compliance standards, (and) they also set up hybrid environments including virtualization incorporated into their managed-service capabilities,” Bradley said.