London Data Centres (your recommendations, please!) :)

[Peter Sabaini]

On Friday 04 January 2008 14:06:10 LinuxLearner wrote:
> Hi All,
>
> I want to buy my first rack server, and place it, once I've configured
> and built on it in the home-office, into a data centre in London.

Out of curiosity -- did you consider renting a server or, even more 
affordable, a virtual server? I have had a limited but mostly positive 
experience using a VServer from Lycos Webhosting

peter.

> Of course it will be running Ubuntu! :)
>
> Could people please provide some suggestions of who it would be possible
> to contract with to get (initially) one of the following:
>
> 1.  1u (the smallest rack size, if that is incorrect!);
> 2.  2u (double the smallest size)
> 3.  The smallest size of lockable part of a full rack.  {I understand
>      this is 4u, but on little research:  help!!}.
>
> I have very few funds, as I am in start-up, and need the most reliable,
> lowest cost provider, giving me the space, power & bandwidth only.
>
> It would be great if any suggested providers could also provide on-site
> hardware support, if needed, on a pay-per-case basis (so I can go on
> holidays, and business trips, sometimes, without worry of major downtime!).
>
> Please, guys 'n' girls:  who are the major players in this sector of the
> market; who is trying to sell 1u, 2u and quarter racks, and doing so
> most cheaply/reliably?!?!
>
> FWIW, I access London via Waterloo, so if there is any much
> geographic/transport issues of physically me getting to the site of the
> server, please provide that detail, too, as I would like of course to
> work out how long it would take me to get door to door, hardware in
> hand, if things went down.
>
> Finally, and part of the reason for posting here.  To differentiate
> between the different suggestions; do any of these companies support in
> any way FOSS/Ubuntu?  I would like to give what little cash I have to a
> company that in some way contributes to Ubuntu, or failing that, FOSS
> more generally.
>
> TIA - great list; Ubuntu - I love it! :)
>
> LinuxLearner (hereafter LL)