When trusting your data to the cloud, the physical reliability of the data center is paramount. The industry standard for measuring this reliability is the Tier Rating System developed by the Uptime Institute.
1. What are Data Center Tiers?
Data centers are rated from 1 to 4 based on their infrastructure redundancy, fault tolerance, and guaranteed uptime.
| Tier | Description | Uptime Guarantee |
|---|---|---|
| Tier 1 | Basic capacity. No redundancy. (Single path for power/cooling). | 99.671% |
| Tier 2 | Redundant capacity components (backup power/cooling), but single distribution path. | 99.741% |
| Tier 3 | Concurrently maintainable. Equipment can be replaced without shutting down the system. Multiple power/cooling paths. | 99.982% |
| Tier 4 | Fault-tolerant. Fully redundant systems (2N+1). Can withstand a major incident without impact. | 99.995% |
2. Tilaa's Standard: Tier 3+
Tilaa exclusively selects data centers that meet or exceed the Tier 3+ standard. This is currently the highest commercially available standard in the Netherlands.
What Tier 3+ means for you:
Your server remains online even during maintenance. We have multiple active power and cooling paths to every rack, ensuring that if one component fails (or needs service), the other takes over instantly.
Your server remains online even during maintenance. We have multiple active power and cooling paths to every rack, ensuring that if one component fails (or needs service), the other takes over instantly.
Physical Protections
Beyond the Tier rating, our locations are selected based on rigorous physical security criteria:
- "Room-in-Room" Construction: The data floor is built as a separate, reinforced shell inside the main building. This provides extreme protection against external fire, water, and debris.
- Redundant Connectivity: The facility is carrier-neutral with multiple redundant optical fiber entry points.
- Emergency Power: In the event of a total grid blackout, UPS systems take over immediately, followed by diesel generators with long-term fuel contracts.
- Flood Protection: Locations are selected based on their elevation relative to sea level (NAP) and flood risk assessments.