FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Common Questions About Data Centers and Colocation
Find clear answers to the questions organizations commonly ask when evaluating colocation, data center hosting, disaster recovery, connectivity, infrastructure planning, and enterprise data center services.
Sierra Data Centers at a Glance
What is colocation at Sierra?
Sierra provides secure space, power, cooling, and connectivity for customer equipment.
Do you only operate the data center, or can we add IT/cyber?
Sierra offers data center services with optional IT and cyber support through our sister company, Sierra Experts, including managed IT services and hardware and software licensing.
Where are your facilities?
Sierra has facilities in Pittsburgh and Metro Columbus. Our Pittsburgh facility is The Pittsburgh Technology Bunker in Downtown Pittsburgh, with 13,500 sq ft across 3 floors, 1.54 MW of power and a SOC 1 Type II audited report.
Can I tour a facility or get a colo quote?
Contact Sierra to schedule a tour or request a quote.
Is the facility carrier-neutral?
Yes. Sierra Data Centers facilities are carrier-neutral, so you can choose among network providers instead of a single carrier. In Pittsburgh, carriers in the building include Verizon, Lumos, DQE Communications, Cogent, Metro Optical and Fidium Fiber, and more. Sierra also resells telecom for offices and sites outside the data centers. See Carrier-Neutral Connectivity.
Who do I contact?
Sales@SierraDC.com or 412.722.0707.
Is Sierra Data Centers a telecom master agent?
Yes. Sierra Data Centers resells carrier and telecom services, including services from large national carriers, Metro Optical and Comcast Business (Xfinity), for your offices, branches and sites anywhere, not just inside our data centers. See Telecom Master Agent.
What colocation sizes are available?
Colocation is à la carte, from small configurations through full cabinets, private cages and private suites. Contact us to size your footprint.
Frequently Asked Questions by Topic
- Colocation
- Data Center Hosting
- Disaster Recovery
- Connectivity
- Facility & Infrastructure
- Planning & Getting Started
Colocation
What is colocation?
Colocation allows organizations to place their own servers and IT equipment inside a professionally managed data center while maintaining ownership of their infrastructure.
Why do businesses choose colocation?
Organizations often choose colocation to improve infrastructure reliability, scalability, business continuity, and operational efficiency while avoiding the cost of maintaining their own data center facilities.
What is the difference between colocation and cloud hosting?
Colocation allows organizations to own and manage their hardware within a professional data center, while cloud hosting provides virtualized computing resources managed by a cloud provider.
Is colocation secure?
Professionally managed colocation environments typically include multiple layers of physical security, controlled access, environmental monitoring, and infrastructure designed around operational reliability.
Can colocation scale as my business grows?
Yes. Colocation environments are designed to support organizations as infrastructure requirements evolve.
Data Center Hosting
What is data center hosting?
Data center hosting provides professionally managed infrastructure environments designed to support business-critical applications and technology operations.
When should an organization consider hosted infrastructure?
Organizations commonly evaluate hosted infrastructure when internal environments become difficult to scale or maintain.
What is the difference between hosting and colocation?
With colocation, organizations own the hardware. Hosting solutions provide infrastructure environments designed to support applications and operations without requiring organizations to manage facility infrastructure.
Can hosted environments support future growth?
Yes. Enterprise hosting environments are typically designed to scale alongside changing business requirements.
Disaster Recovery
What is disaster recovery?
Disaster recovery refers to the processes and infrastructure used to restore business operations following unexpected disruptions.
Is disaster recovery the same as backup?
No. Backups protect data, while disaster recovery focuses on restoring operational systems and business continuity.
Why is disaster recovery important?
Recovery planning helps organizations prepare for infrastructure interruptions and minimize operational disruption.
How often should disaster recovery plans be reviewed?
Organizations commonly review recovery plans on a regular basis to ensure they remain aligned with current operational requirements.
Connectivity
What is carrier-neutral connectivity?
Carrier-neutral connectivity allows organizations to choose from multiple network providers rather than relying on a single carrier.
Why is carrier neutrality important?
It provides greater flexibility, network redundancy, and the ability to adapt connectivity strategies as business requirements evolve.
Can multiple carriers improve redundancy?
Organizations often use multiple providers to reduce reliance on a single network path and improve overall resilience.
Facility & Infrastructure
Can I tour the data center?
Yes. Organizations evaluating Sierra Data Centers can schedule a guided facility tour.
What services does Sierra provide?
What industries does Sierra support?
Healthcare, manufacturing, financial services, enterprise organizations, technology companies, and other businesses requiring reliable infrastructure.
Does Sierra support organizations outside Pittsburgh?
Yes. Sierra supports organizations throughout Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia, and surrounding regional markets.
Planning & Getting Started
How do I choose a data center provider?
Organizations commonly evaluate infrastructure reliability, scalability, security, connectivity, business continuity capabilities, and operational support.
When should a business move to colocation?
Many organizations evaluate colocation after outgrowing internal server environments or when planning future infrastructure growth.
Should infrastructure planning include disaster recovery?
Yes. Business continuity and disaster recovery planning are often important parts of a long-term infrastructure strategy.
How can infrastructure support business growth?
Scalable infrastructure environments allow organizations to expand technology operations without repeatedly redesigning their infrastructure.
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