Bob,

I need some help deciding where to build my next datacenter. It will be relatively small, only 5000 square feet. Operations will be very highly automated so there won’t be many people on site – six during the day and no one from 6PM to 7AM. I would like to keep its existence a secret, so no big signs or corporate logos.

I have found a nice older building in downtown Denver, just down the street from the capital building. However, Melinda prefers a site in the foothills, along the Platt River.

Renovating the building downtown would cost as much as building a new building in the foothills. So it comes down to security.

I know you are teaching a Computer Security class this Quarter, so can you have your class tell me if downtown is better or worse that being in the foothills, and why that might be so?

Here are some of my concerns.

Is a downtown location risker than an isolated location in the foothills when it comes to crime?

If I put a fence around the foothills site, what could I do downtown that provides the same security without screaming “big important datacenter located here! Come rob it!”

Would armed guards be required in the foothills? Can I use them downtown?

What about fire. Can I build in protection or retro fit it into an existing building? What would you recommend?

Should I worry about floods near the river?

Is Denver safe from tornados?

But most importantly, what have I forgotten?

I know your students can answer these questions off the top of their heads, but I will need actual references – to current articles on websites I can point to, to convince Melinda.

As always, thanks for answering all my difficult questions.