Denver Hosting BLOG

by Victor Daily | thewhir.com

Cloud computing is the relatively new concept of using a “cloud,” or a co-located common storage space, for storing and sharing files. Saving files “in the cloud” simply means loading files into the common storage space that is maintained as a service. Several companies offer the service of storage in the cloud for businesses for a monthly or yearly fee, such as Microsoft and Amazon. Other services that cater to individuals might offer a smaller amount of storage space for free, while offering a premium level of membership that includes more storage space for a fee.

Applications in the Cloud

Gmail, Yahoo Mail and Hotmail are all examples of email applications that deliver in real-time and are offered as a software service. However, cloud computing for business may extend far beyond these cloud-based email systems.

Applications in the cloud are accessed via the internet and are always available in real-time. In other words, when you access a folder, such as your Gmail inbox, you have instant access to the email in the Inbox folder. Click on an email and the content is immediately displayed on the screen. Just as with the virtual email applications, when the virtual resource is accessed over a fast Internet connection, data is delivered or a program is executed immediately.

Cloud computing profits businesses by alleviating the need to purchase and maintain computer software and hardware. The cost of software may be a major expense for the company, not to mention the time it takes to get the program set up and ready to use. Also, the cost of training users to utilize the software may be significant. Cloud computing offers the application as a service, which decreases software and hardwared costs to the business.

In addition, cloud computing lowers the cost of supporting a company’s computer network. Because the cloud is provided as a service, the task of maintaining the product is the job of the cloud service provider. Fewer specialized technical resources are required, which saves the company money.

Going Green

Cloud computing is also considered a more green approach to conducting business. Studies have shown that a business computer may only be used at 10 to 20 percent of capacity. In other words, a certain computer resource owned by a business may have a certain software product installed. Though the computer is running for 8 or more hours per day, the resource is only utilized for 10 to 20 percent of the day. During the rest of the time, the machine sits and consumes energy. Cloud computing allows the business to pay for the access that it requires, alleviating the need for a computer resource to sit unused, therefore saving energy and the cost of maintaining the machine.

Mobilizing via the Cloud

Applications in the cloud generally may be accessed on the go, from any location, and often from any device, such as a smartphone. Applications in the cloud may be accessed wirelessly, from any location. If your sales staff maintains their CRM data on a physical computer, they must be able to access that particular system in order to update contact information or to track a sales call. CRM as a cloud-based application enables your sales force to update customer data from any location and from any device.

The Cloud is the Future

Applications in the cloud, such as Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook and other social media sites, are used more and more to create and develop business relationships. For companies, target demographic groups may be tagged for more efficient marketing. Also, when your company embraces the latest technologies, your business is seen by customers as up-to-date and in line with the times.

Cloud computing offers businesses ways to streamline software and hardware implementations, as well as save money by cutting energy costs and the need for specialized technical staff. Applications in the cloud are energy efficient and enable users to access programs and data from any location and device. Finally, cloud computing is the wave of the future. Your business will most likely attract a more tech-savvy, new generation customer when it follows the trend and embraces computing in the cloud.

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To get additional information on cloud computing, Denver colocation, dedicated servers, and hosting server colocation, please visit our Colorado colocation informational site.

To get additional information on Denver cloud computing, Denver colocation, dedicated servers, and hosting server colocation, please visit our Colorado colocation informational site.

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To get additional information on Denver colocation, unmetered servers, and hosting server colocation, please visit our hosting server colocation informational site.

by Michelle Lee | thewhir.com

In 2005 one of the most influential speakers of our generation published his book entitled The Singularity Is Near: A True Story About Our Future, and in it Kurzweil hypothesized that technology would eventually surpass human intelligence.

The hypothesis is based off of a law, More’s law, and the law states that a computer chip’s computational power increases exponentially roughly every two years. Exponential acceleration takes place rather slowly at first, then gets faster and faster, and before you know it, its increasing at a rate that we wouldn’t be able to understand or comprehend as humans, Kurzweil says. Every day I’ve been thinking about that theory, about that actually happening, and more than ever it seems that now it actually seems possible.

With the increased speed of network connections, we are now able to take other computer’s computational power and relay that information to other mobile user’s devices from phenomenal distances. This technology is called cloud computing and it is taking the mobile world by storm. Cloud computation is a newly rising technology, which offers computation as a service rather than a product.

Take a refrigerator for example, the refrigerator is needed because it offers a process that makes beverages cold, if there were a cloud refrigeration technology this would allow someone that wanted a colder beverage to simply pay for the time that their beverage was in the refrigerator. When the beverage is done being chilled, the customer then pays for the time used and goes on their way with their cooled beverage in hand. This is exactly what cloud computation offers, only instead of chilling beverages; the service offers computation on demand.

The implications of this technology are extreme; Amazon is now integrating this technology into their new Kindle fire tablet with the Amazon Silk web browser. Amazon Silk is one of the first web browsers to offer the technology free-of-charge only to help increase the computational power of their cutting edge web browser. It is now possible to have the computational power of a $4,000 tower PC in the palm of your hand for a fee. Companies everywhere are beginning to jump on the bandwagon from Amazon’s AWS, which stands for Amazon Web Services to companies like IBM’s Smart Business and Test Development cloud. AWS is actually currently number one as the most popular cloud computing service provider and below them is Verizon’s Terremark.

Following this trend, company’s phones and mobile devices will begin getting even smaller as the device’s necessity for on-board hard computational speed and power are no longer needed. As connection speeds continue to increase, so too will the computational power that can be sent over the cloud to client’s mobile devices. In no time at all it isn’t unlikely that robots with connections to large cloud computation servers that fill large warehouses will be able to access a whole universe of information and power in the blink of an eye. It is precisely these types of technological advancements that are turning Kurzweil’s theories into real applicable ideas that aren’t so unbelievable to be seeing on tomorrow’s market.

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To get additional information on cloud computing, Denver colocation, dedicated servers, and hosting server colocation, please visit our Colorado colocation informational site.

To get additional information on Denver cloud computing, Denver colocation, dedicated servers, and hosting server colocation, please visit our Colorado colocation informational site.

To get additional information on server colocation, Denver vmware hosting, and hosting server colocation, please visit our Denver managed services informational site.

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PRESS RELEASE

Denver, Colorado – November 29, 2011 — PeakColo, a leading provider of Infrastructure-as-a-Service and VMware vCloud® Powered cloud services, today announced that it is now a member of the VMware Service Provider Program (VSPP) as a Premier-level member. As part of the VMware vCloud initiative, the VSPP is a framework that enables service and hosting providers to consume VMware virtualization solutions in a way that aligns with their business models.

PeakColo has made, and continues to make, significant investments to grow and enhance its relationship and capabilities with VMware. Driven by ever-increasing demand for PeakColo’s Infrastructure-as-Service and its VMware vCloud Powered WhiteCloud Services™, BlueCloud Services™ and RedCloud Services™, PeakColo has leveraged the breadth and depth of VMware’s product portfolio and our field and factory relationships with VMware to meet this demand.

“VMware has provided us with fantastic support.” say Luke Norris, Founder and CEO. “Their partner, technical and marketing teams have provided us the knowledge and tools to build, grow and enhance our model”. “We are pleased that PeakColo with their VMware vCloud Powered service offerings has entered the VMware Service Provider Program,” said Don Schleicher, Vice President Americas Service Providers, VMware. “VMware is uniquely positioned to help service providers like PeakColo develop their own cloud computing businesses to enable them to increase revenue, differentiate service offerings and accelerate growth opportunities, and we’re excited to welcome PeakColo into the program.”

The VMware Service Provider Program was created for partners who offer cloud computing and/or hosted IT services to enterprise and SMB customers. Through a product subscription model, VSPP provides partners flexibility in offering VMware virtualization solutions, applications and services to their customers with no up-front expense. VSPP creates new opportunities for service providers and helps them expand revenue streams with new lines of business based on VMware product portfolios, including virtualization and cloud infrastructure, cloud application and end-user computing – setting the foundation for greater profitability and success.

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To get additional information on cloud computing, Denver colocation, dedicated servers, and hosting server colocation, please visit our Colorado colocation informational site.

To get additional information on Denver cloud computing, Denver colocation, dedicated servers, and hosting server colocation, please visit our Colorado colocation informational site.

To get additional information on server colocation, Denver vmware hosting, and hosting server colocation, please visit our Denver managed services informational site.

To get additional information on Denver colocation, unmetered servers, and hosting server colocation, please visit our hosting server colocation informational site.

by Jim Haughwout | technorati.com

Cloud computing has definitely moved into the mainstream. You now see commercials from Microsoft, Cisco, IBM and others every evening on prime time Cable TV. CNBC has created a Cloud Computing Special Report for investors to learn more about it. Even government agencies are now moving to cloud-based solutions.

Unfortunately, one of the most touted reasons we see for using cloud computing – that it provides universal access to data and applications from the Internet – has nothing to do with what cloud computing actually is. This is simply what web-based applications have been doing since the 1990s. True cloud computing offers a whole lot more. In October 2009, The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) published an excellent definition of cloud computing that calls out five essential characteristics that separate clouds from simple remotely hosted, web-based computing models:

• On-demand self-service
• Broad network access
• Resource pooling
• Rapid elasticity
• Measured service

I know, some of these terms are mouthful – especially to those who do “live and breathe” technology. However, they remove so much of the work and complexity that has so frequently made management of computing so painful and costly:

On-demand Self-Service (Think “Now”). With on on-demand self-service, you do not need to ask your provider to execute an “IT project” to enable you to use your application (or update it) to support a new business development. You can do whatever you need, when you need it – without the cost and delay of overhead managing your vendor.

Broad Network Access (Think “Convenience”). This lets you work wherever you need, whenever you need – from your work or home computer, netbook, tablet, or smartphone. Traditionally, this was done through browser, to bypass the need to install local software. However, the rise of (cloud-based) App Stores now allows us to install richer applications to access our data – wherever we are, on-demand.

These first two characteristics are what most people think of when talking about cloud computing. However, it is the next three characteristics that make true clouds stand out:

Resource Pooling (Think “Black Box”). Somewhere far away IT people are managing shared, redundant infrastructure across many data centers. They manage maintenance, business continuity, elimination of failures and bottlenecks, etc. You gain all of the benefit of these large-scale investments in time and resources – but without the need to do any work.

Rapid Elasticity (Think “No Limits”). You no longer have to worry about capacity planning. If you suddenly get a surge in traffic (due to an emergency or unexpected popularity) the computing resources you need are automatically – and immediately – available. You avoid slow-downs, timeouts and outages that waste time, cause frustration and turn away customers.

Measured Service (Think “Value”). Pay only for what you use, and no more. Rather than paying 100% for servers that you only use at 20% utilization, you pay for the exact number of resources you use, when you use them. The ideal cloud providers charge usage in terms that everyday people – not just IT systems administrators – understand and value.

When explaining these cloud computing characteristics to those whose “day jobs” are not in tech, I like to use the electricity analogy. When you buy a new television, you do not call the power company and ask them to initiate a project to set up your television. You simply plug it in and begin using it. If you don’t like where it is in your house, you unplug it, move it to a different room, and plug it in again. At the end of the month, you don’t pay for the power company’s generator and labor investments; you pay for the extra kilowatt-hours your television used.

Services that meet all five of these characteristics are much more valuable than those that simply provide access from anywhere. That’s why cloud computing has so much potential to transform the software and IT markets.

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To get additional information on cloud computing, Denver colocation, dedicated servers, and hosting server colocation, please visit our Colorado colocation informational site.

To get additional information on Denver cloud computing, Denver colocation, dedicated servers, and hosting server colocation, please visit our Colorado colocation informational site.

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PRESS RELEASE

Denver, Colorado – October 10, 2011 – PeakColo announces it has successfully completed a Type II SSAE 16/SOC 1 audit, which demonstrates independent examination of the effectiveness of internal controls supporting the firm’s client services and operations.

SSAE 16, and its predecessor standard SAS 70, are audit standards maintained by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants that provide service organizations across a variety of industries a mechanism to define the set of internal control objectives that are important to their customers’ and their customers’ auditors and have an independent assessment of the internal controls supporting those control objectives completed that can provide customers assurance on the design and operational effectiveness of those controls.

Completion of the Type II SSAE 16/SOC 1audit indicates that internal processes, procedures and controls have been extensively analyzed by an independent Certified Public Accounting (CPA) firm, Linford & Company LLP. The resulting audit report provides PeakColo users reasonable assurance that appropriate internal control objectives related to the services delivered were achieved during the review period.

“We chose to invest and participate in this extensive review process to further express our dedication to quality and commitment to our clients”, said Luke Norris, Chief Executive Officer at PeakColo. “The audit report assures our clients that they are receiving the highest level of care and control in service delivery through our comprehensive internal processes and controls.”

“A Type II SSAE 16/SOC 1 examination is a significant undertaking in time and expense for any organization. PeakColo has demonstrated they have designed and implemented effective processes and controls throughout the audit period that support the services they provide to their clients. Moreover, the successful completion of this examination shows PeakColo places a tremendous amount of importance on their client relationships” says Linford & Company LLP.

About PeakColo
PeakColo provides fully redundant Cloud Services, collocation, hosting, managed services for all operating systems, fully redundant cloud computing systems, dedicated servers and VMware hosting.  PeakColo is a Premier level VMware Service Provider Partner and one of the first to deliver VMware’s vCloud Director enabled solutions for both its Service Provider Partners and customers.  Further, PeakColo is a NetApp Gold Level Service Provider.  It has three data centers in the Denver, Colorado area, one data center in Phoenix, Arizona and one in the U.K.  For more information, visit the PeakColo website at http://www.peakcolo.com.

About Linford & Company LLP
Linford & Company LLP is a Denver- and New York City-based Certified Public Accounting firm comprised entirely of former “Big Four” auditors. They perform SSAE 16/SOC 1, SOC 2, and royalty audits for large and small organizations across North America, Europe, and Asia. Their steady growth is attributed to the reputation earned as the specialized firm of choice for organizations looking for a predictable, affordable, and marketable information technology (IT) audit experience. By focusing on two types of niche audits, their knowledge is extensive in the areas in which they specialize—including the most highly-technical information technology matters—ensuring their clients receive extremely knowledgeable, accomplished auditors on every engagement. For more information, visit http://linfordco.com or call +1 (720) 330 7202.

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To get additional information on cloud computing, Denver colocation, dedicated servers, and hosting server colocation, please visit our Colorado colocation informational site.

To get additional information on Denver cloud computing, Denver colocation, dedicated servers, and hosting server colocation, please visit our Colorado colocation informational site.

To get additional information on server colocation, Denver vmware hosting, and hosting server colocation, please visit our Denver managed services informational site.

To get additional information on Denver colocation, unmetered servers, and hosting server colocation, please visit our hosting server colocation informational site.

Press release

Richmond, Va., – September 27, 2011 – Further securing its position as the market leader in mission-critical data center power management equipment, alternative energy, industrial, and commercial power markets, Power Distribution, Inc. (PDI) today introduced PeakColo as its newest customer. PeakColo is utilizing the company’s newly announced PowerMap™ solution across its five data centers to automatically upload individual circuit-based power statistics and secure power management information in the cloud—eliminating the need for handheld meters.

Efficient energy consumption and management continues to be a top priority for data center managers today. The Environmental Protection Agency reports that power use in the data center doubled between 2000 and 2006. The government agency also expected this figure to double yet again by 2011.

“Energy costs are quickly getting out of control. When you combine rising prices with the expanding size of today’s data centers, it’s easy to see why efficient energy management is so critical,” said Luke Norris, Founder/CEO of PeakColo. “To help our customers maximize their investments in virtualization and cloud services, we needed to keep a close eye on our pass-through energy costs. That’s why we turned to PDI.”

PeakColo delivers Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IAAS) solutions via the company’s three Denver, Colorado and one Phoenix, Arizona data centers. Prior to PDI, the company was forced to undertake the highly inefficient process of manually calculating and reporting on customer power usage.

Continued Luke Norris, “Our teams were literally forced to take a ‘hands-on’ approach — physically removing panel boards from the circuit breaker to see what was being used. This method was not only time-consuming, but also involved some risk through direct contact with the wiring.”

In addition to wasted time, PeakColo found this manual process to be inefficient. Under the old method, the company was unable to quickly pull reports for customers when power costs were in question. Faced with these mounting challenges, PeakColo realized it needed a better way to track power, “The way we were tracking just wasn’t working – plain and simple. That’s when we turned to PDI for help,” continued Norris.

The company found what it was looking for in PDI’s PowerMap. The software instantly uploads all client power usage data into the cloud, where PeakColo can then instantly access the information and send customer reports. By forwarding detailed power utilization reports alongside invoices, PeakColo saved thousands of dollars.

“Not only did we save a significant amount of money right from the start, but we’re also now realizing cost-efficiencies of one man-day of labor per month,” continued Norris. “Even more importantly, we deliver stronger SLAs for our customers. Before PDI, this never would have been possible.”

Along with the ability to store and access power consumption statistics via the cloud, PowerMap also brings the following features:

• TCP/IP access into any branch circuit
• Energy consumption metering including Voltage kw, Real Power kw, Apparent Power kw and Energy kwh
• Graphical power consumption analysis by day, week or month
• Exportable CSV, Excel, ODS, PDF, RTF and XML reports
• E-mail alarm notifications to ensure power loads do not exceed circuit levels

Learn more about PDI’s innovative solutions at the following events:

• DatacenterDynamics, Chicago, IL, October 6, 2011. Join PDI and PeakColo executives as they share their insights about Cloud Based Power Monitoring. Register here.
• Gartner Symposium/ITXPO 2011, Orlando, Florida, October 16-20, 2011. To register, click here.
• The Data Center Alliance, Washington, DC, October 25. To register, click here.
• DatacenterDynamics, Dallas, Texas, November 1, 2011. To register, click here.
• 7×24 Exchange 2011 Fall Conference, November 13-16, 2011, Phoenix, Arizona.
• DatacenterDynamics, London, November 30 – December 1, 2011, London, England. To register, click here.

Read PDI’s latest industry article: Power Distribution Management – The Key to Increasing Data Center Efficiencies.

For additional information, visit www.pdicorp.com or contact PDI’s corporate office at (804) 737-9880. Follow PDI on Twitter @PDICorp, Facebook and LinkedIn.

About PeakColo
Established in 2006, PeakColo (www.peakcolo.com) began and continues its focus on the Infrastructure-as-a-Service slice of cloud computing delivering public, private, Hybrid, DR, and custom solutions. As a SAS70 Type II company, they focus on consistently sound operational procedures pushed down from our seasoned management team of industry experts. Headquartered in the Denver metropolitan area, PeakColo is privately owned and well-capitalized. This structure has allowed PeakColo to always expand and deploy solutions consistently and in accordance with the highest standards in the IT arena.

About Power Distribution, Inc.
Founded in 1978, PDI is a leading provider of power distribution equipment and services. PDI, a Bertram Capital company, is headquartered out of Virginia with additional manufacturing and engineering facilities in California and Michigan. The PDI, Marelco, and Onyx Power branded products cover a wide range of customized power solutions for data centers, wind, solar and other alternative energy, commercial, and industrial applications.

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To get additional information on cloud computing, Denver colocation, dedicated servers, and hosting server colocation, please visit our Colorado colocation informational site.

To get additional information on Denver cloud computing, Denver colocation, dedicated servers, and hosting server colocation, please visit our Colorado colocation informational site.

To get additional information on server colocation, Denver vmware hosting, and hosting server colocation, please visit our Denver managed services informational site.

To get additional information on Denver colocation, unmetered servers, and hosting server colocation, please visit our hosting server colocation informational site.