A data centre is, at its essence, a physical facility used by companies to house their vital software and data. The architecture of a data centre is focused on a network of computing and storage resources that allow shared applications and data to be delivered. Routers, switches, firewalls, storage systems, servers, and application-delivery controllers are the main components of a data centre architecture.
Modern data centres vary significantly from what they were only a short time ago. From traditional on-site physical servers, technology has moved to virtual networks that support applications and workloads through physical infrastructure pools and into a multicloud world.
Data exists and is linked through numerous data centres, the edge, and public and private clouds in this period. The data centre must be able to collaborate, both on site and in the cloud, through these various sites. Also, the public cloud is a data centre array. When apps are stored on the cloud, they use the cloud provider's data centre services.
Data centres are built in the world of enterprise IT to serve business applications and activities that include:
There are several types of data centres and models of services available. Their classification depends on whether they are operated by one or more companies, how they fit into the topology of other data centres (if they fit), what computing and storage technologies they use, and also their energy efficiency. Four key types of data centres exist:
These are developed, owned, and operated by businesses and are customised to their end users. They are most frequently located on the company's campus.
These data centres are operated on behalf of a corporation by a third party (or an operated services provider). Instead of purchasing it, the firm rents the equipment and facilities.
A business leases space in colocation ('colo') data centres inside a data centre operated by others and situated off business premises. The colocation data centre hosts the infrastructure: building, cooling, bandwidth, security, etc., while the components, including servers, storage, and firewalls, are provided and operated by the company.
In this off-premises data centre type, a cloud service provider such as Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft (Azure), or IBM Cloud or other public cloud provider hosts data and applications.
ANSI / TIA-942 is the most commonly accepted standard for data centre architecture and data centre infrastructure. It includes ANSI / TIA-942-ready certification requirements that ensure compliance with one of four data centre level categories valued for redundancy and fault tolerance levels.
Tier 1: Basic site infrastructure. A data centre for Tier 1 has minimal protection against physical incidents. It has components of single-capacity and a single, nonredundant delivery path.
Tier 2: Redundant-capacity component site infrastructure. This data centre provides enhanced security from physical accidents. It has elements of redundant capacity and a single, nonredundant delivery path.
Tier 3: Concurrently maintainable site infrastructure. This data centre safeguards against nearly all physical incidents, offering components with redundant capability and numerous independent delivery routes. Without disrupting services for end users, each part can be removed or replaced.
Tier 4: Fault-tolerant site infrastructure. The highest levels of fault tolerance and redundancy are given by this data centre. Components of redundant capability and multiple independent delivery paths allow simultaneous maintainability and one fault without causing downtime anywhere in the installation.