March 14, 2023
Companies rely on data to guide their decision-making each and every day. It is the lifeblood of every business in today’s tech-heavy world. So, it is more important than ever for companies to safeguard their data by storing it in a data center. Data centers are rated from tier 1 to tier 4 in four levels. The first tier is considered the lowest level, while the fourth is the highest. For enterprise systems, tier 3 support is the lowest recommended level. At Pathway Communications, we can provide the best in data center support. Reach out to us today to find out more about our data solutions.
What Are the Differences Between Tier 1 IT Support, Tier 2 Support, and Tier 3 Support
Data centers are ranked into different tiers by the Uptime Institute, an independent organization that determines the facility level. It looks at the following factors to make that determination.
- Uptime Guarantees
- Fault Tolerance
- Service Cost
While these determinations are important in determining the data center’s reliability, they are not required. Businesses looking for data centers should avoid those with no tier rating. The rating system is a way for data centers to do the following:
- Helps Build Credibility
- Markets Capabilities
- Builds Trust with Potential Customers
- Helps Plan for Future Upgrades
Data Center Tier-Level Descriptions
Knowing the different tier requirements is important so businesses know what they can expect with Tier 3 support versus Tier 2 support.
- Tier 1 – This is a data center with a single source for both power and cooling. There are no backup components associated with a tier 1 data center. The expected uptime is 99.671% per year.
- Tier 2 – This data center also has a single path for both power and cooling but does have some redundancy built in as well as backup components. The expected uptime is 99.971% per year.
- Tier 3 – This tier of data center offers multiple paths for both power and cooling. It also has redundant systems to allow staff to work on them without taking them offline. This tier has an expected uptime of 99.982% per year.
- Tier 4 – The highest tier has a completely fault-tolerant data center with redundancy for every component. This tier has an expected uptime of 99.995%.
Each progressive tier has the requirements of the lower tiers included. While tier 4 has the highest reliability, the additional costs are too much for some businesses. Each business needs to determine which level best meets its needs. For some, tier 1 IT support is enough; for others, tier 3 support is ideal.
Reach out to Pathway Communications to find out more.