Make it reliable.
Which method of redundancy is the best fit for your project? The Tier Classification system categorizes data centers from Tier I to Tier IV based on infrastructure design, availability, and fault tolerance, each tier a progressively higher level of resilience.
Tier I
Basic infrastructure with limited redundancy. Commissioning verifies basic functionality and minimum uptime requirements.
Tier II
Some redundancy in critical systems. Commissioning tests redundant components and validates failover to minimize downtime risk.
Tier III
Concurrently maintainable, maintenance and upgrades without disrupting operations. Validation emphasizes redundant paths and high availability.
Tier IV
Fault-tolerant architecture with multiple independent systems, designed to withstand the most severe disruptions and ensure continuous operation.
Resilience across every critical system
Power
- N+1: one backup unit per set of required units
- 2N: fully duplicated systems (UPS and generators)
- 2N+1: fully duplicated plus an extra component
Cooling
- N+1: extra cooling unit available for failover
- 2N: fully redundant cooling infrastructure
Network
- BGP multi-homing across multiple ISPs
- Dual-path fiber to prevent a single point of failure
Storage
- RAID 1, 5, 6, 10 for disk-level redundancy
- Geographically redundant backup across locations
Make your data count.
Tell us about your facility and uptime targets, and we’ll help you match redundancy to risk.