Decommissioning a Point of Presence: A Checklist

Closing a point of presence (POP) or exiting a facility is more than unplugging servers. Done carelessly, it leads to lost data, damaged gear, surprise charges, or a cage you cannot hand back clean. Here is the sequence we follow.

1. Plan and confirm access

• Confirm the deadline from the facility and your notice period so you avoid an extra month of billing.
• Verify access authorization and any LOA, and reserve a loading dock or freight elevator if needed.
• Inventory what is in the cage: devices, cross-connects, and any shared or colo-owned equipment.

2. Handle data and connectivity first

• Migrate or confirm backups of anything you still need before power-down.
• Cancel or transfer cross-connects and circuits with the facility and carriers. Leaving these active can keep charges running after you are gone.
• Wipe or destroy media to your policy. We can sanitize drives on-site or pull them for destruction, with documentation.

3. Power down and de-cable

• Shut down devices gracefully in the right order.
• Remove network and power cabling, then unrack equipment.
• Recover anything you own but is easy to forget: rail kits, PDUs, patch panels, KVMs, and spare optics.

4. Pack, palletize, and ship

• Wrap and pad equipment properly; server rails and switches are easily bent in transit.
• Palletize and shrink-wrap for freight, or box for courier. You can provide the supplies or we can arrange them.
• Label everything and match it to a packing list so nothing is lost between the dock and its destination.
• Schedule the courier or freight pickup, or we can coordinate it for you.

5. Clean handover

• Remove your labels and debris and leave the cage or cabinet empty and clean.
• Get written confirmation from the facility that the space is released, so billing stops.
• Keep a final record: photos, the packing list, and any media-destruction certificates.

We handle decommissioning end to end across the datacenters we serve. Tell us the site and timeline and we will scope the teardown, or read more about our decommissioning and logistics service.