A Data Center Facility is a secure building that houses mission-critical systems such as computing and communications hardware.

Data center facilities — also known as data storage centers, data centers, data storage facilities or data storage vaults — are secure, disaster-hardened structures that data backup service providers and others use to maintain the integrity of their data storage infrastructure. These providers may also utilize an identical secondary facility for redundancy and maximum fault tolerance.

By definition, a data center facility is a strictly controlled physical environment that may feature:

• Advanced climate controls to maintain optimal temperature and humidity levels for servers and other IT equipment
• Uninterruptible power supply (UPS) systems
• Diesel-powered generators
• Fire prevention and extinguishing systems
• 24/7 on-site security personnel
• Virtual private networks (VPNs)
• Intrusion detection systems
• Firewalls