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Colocation equipment management for Digital Realty data centers

Joseph Thorwest Updated by Joseph Thorwest

This article provides information about the service of your colocated equipment in Digital Realty (DRT) data centers, including technical specifications of the racks and instructions for requesting access, delivery, pickup, or remote hands services via our portal.

Important information in advance

At this time we do not offer colocation as a standard product.

 

Furthermore, we do not offer the following:

  • substantial power upgrades for current colocation customers
  • migration / consolidation / upgrade projects for current colocation customers
  • colocation space bigger than 40U

Prerequisites

To make use of our colocation product, you need to order at least one Access and one additional DE-CIX service together with colocation.

You find a guide for ordering an Access here.

Please note: Colocation services are not orderable via our portal. In case of interest, please contact your sales representative directly at: sales@de-cix.net.

Service specification

The table below presents the technical specifications related to our colocation product.

Topic

Specification / description

Offered products

5 rack units

  • designed for the use of 1 device (active equipment)
  • typical power draw: 300-400W
  • maximum power draw: 400-500W
  • maximal 0.5kW power included
Important: Make sure to keep the power draw below 500W, as displayed in the upper image. An arrangement as depicted in the lower image is not permitted.

40 rack units

  • designed for the use of maximal 7 devices (active equipment)
  • maximal 3kW power included

Allowed hardware devices

DE-CIX Colocation is designed to install network devices (routers) for connection to the DE-CIX Internet Exchange or Cloud Exchange in the provided rack.

Important: The devices to be installed must be ASHRAE TC 9.9 Class A1 compatible according to the manufacturer's specifications.

Rack dimensions

60 x 100 cm (width x depth), in a rack with 40 rack units

Power supply

230V AC

PDU plugs (power distribution unit)

5 rack units

  • 2x CEE7/7 plugs (1x per A feed, 1x per B feed)

40 rack units

  • 14x CEE7/7 plugs (7x per A feed, 7x per B feed)

Amp fuse

2 x 16A (A+B feed)

Quality level

  • Dual power feeds
  • Cold aisle and hot aisle
  • Temperature range: 15°C (in the lower rack area) to 32°C (in the upper rack area) based on ASHRAE standard TC 9.9 Class A1 (Digital Realty's operations and SLA are aligned with this standard)
  • UPS (uninterruptible power supply) redundancy: 2N   (2N means a complete duplication of all systems)
  • Redundant cooling systems: N+1    (N+1 means an additional component as a reserve)
  • Availability of 99,999% per year (power, cooling)
  • Renewable energy: 100%

Compliance of Data Center

  • ISO 9001
  • ISO 14001
  • ISO 22301
  • ISO 27001
  • ISO 50001
  • PCI-DSS
  • SOC2

Access Request

The purpose of an Access Request is to install or remove hardware from the rack by yourself.

How to request
  1. Under Colocation, select Access request.
  2. Provide the following information
    • Name
    • Email
    • Phone number
    • Desired Access Start and End Date/Time
    • Type of equipment you want to install/remove
    • Remarks for additional information
    • Persons visiting
    • Optionally: File for maintenance schedule
      Please note: For urgent matters (e.g., an incident), select the Urgent checkbox.
  3. Click on Submit.

What to consider

The following rules apply when accessing the data center building:

  • Only registered persons are granted access to the facility. Unregistered persons are not permitted entry.
  • Registered persons must present their identity card or passport at the security desk. A driver's license is not sufficient.
  • Access is restricted to the registered time slot. If there is a delay, you must immediately contact DE-CIX Customer Service for further instructions.
  • When reaching the security desk at the Digital Realty data center, you receive a temporary access badge and the PIN code for the rack door.
  • DE-CIX does not provide assistance. You musrt install the equipment yourself.

 

The following must be observed when installing / removing new hardware in the rack:

  • Dual power feed: You must connect all devices to both the A-feed (primary) and B-feed (secondary), using separate PDUs, to prevent power outages and downtime.
    •  Special case: If a device has only one power connection installed, you must install an Automatic Transfer Switch (ATS) 16A by yourself.
  • Hot air blower: The hardware must be aligned in the rack to ensure hot air is blown into the hot aisle, not the cold aisle.

Delivery Announcement

The purpose of a Delivery Service Request is to arrange the delivery of packages (containing hardware) to the data center if you don't bring them with you when accessing the facility.

How to request
  1. Under Colocation, select Delivery announcement.
  2. Provide the following information
    • Name
    • Email
    • Phone number
    • Target site
    • Pickup carrier
    • Shipment tracking ID
    • Estimated delivery date
    • Shipment contents
    • Optionally: Remarks for additional information
  3. Click on Submit.
What to consider
  • Delivery Service is free of charge unless the shipment is stored for more than 5 days. 
  • The package shipment must be correctly labeled, also including the following information:
    • Name of DE-CIX as cage owner
    • Name of the end customer (you)
    • Room number
    • Rack number for which the package is intended
      Important: A label with only the name of the data center is not sufficient and will not be delivered!

Pickup Announcement

The purpose of a Pickup Service Request is to have Digital Realty remove hardware from the rack, pack it, label it, and hand it over to a courier for delivery if you are unable to do it yourself on-site.

How to request
  1. Under Colocation, select Pickup announcement.
  2. Provide the following information
    • Name
    • Email
    • Phone number
    • Target site
    • Pickup carrier
    • Storage ID / Remote Hands ticket
    • Pickup date
    • Optionally: Remarks for additional information
  3. Click on Submit.
What to consider
  • The Pickup service is a charged service.
  • You need to specify the following information:
    • Rack number
    • Rack unit number
    • Destination address
    •  Insurance value of the shipment

Remote Hands Request

The purpose of a Remote Hands Request is to request basic on-site support from DRT technicians for customer equipment, such as resetting interfaces, powering equipment on or off, operating buttons, and checking displays.

How to request
  1. Under Colocation, select Remote hands request.
  2. Provide the following information
    • Name
    • Email
    • Phone number
    • Target site
    • Specific position
      • Room
      • Rack
      • Shelf
      • Device
    • Start date and time of work
    • Remarks for additional information
      Please note: For urgent matters (e.g., an incident), select the Urgent checkbox. The earliest access time is 60 minutes after the request.
  3. Click on Submit.
What to consider
  • No other services beyond those listed above are covered.
  • You need to specify the following information:
    • What exactly is to be carried out.
    • Prefered way if cabling is needed: A cabling plan (Excel list) should be included showing from which port (device serial number & rack unit) the connection starts and to which target device (device serial number & rack unit) it leads - ideally with a picture, as every customer counts differently.
  • For the following purposes only, each customer is entitled to 2 Remote Hands Requests (max. 1 hour of service each, including preparation) per year, free of charge:
    • re-setting interfaces during the initial provisioning of the Access and related services & cross connects (after the installation of the hardware by yourself) and not for permanent use
    • re-setting interfaces as a result of an upgrade order of further Accesses / services
    • re-setting interfaces after removal of hardware (router) in the colocation rack
      Important: Any additional tickets (beyond 2 or for a different purpose) are not free of charge and must be purchased through a subscription.

 

Need help? Get in touch with our customer service.

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