We Step Up When You Power Down
What We Offer
Data center decommissioning involves more than disconnecting hardware.
Every server, storage device, network component and rack must be identified, handled securely and directed toward an approved outcome. Data-bearing devices require additional controls. Equipment removal must also be coordinated around live environments, site restrictions, lease requirements and project deadlines.
SLS plans and executes data center decommissioning projects with asset-level visibility from the facility through final disposition.
What is data center decommissioning?
Data center decommissioning is the controlled process of retiring physical infrastructure that is no longer required.
Depending on the project, decommissioning may include:
- Project planning and site surveys
- Scope and schedule development
- Asset identification and inventory reconciliation
- Equipment power-down and disconnection coordination
- Sever, storage and network equipment removal
- Rack and cable removal
- On-site data destruction
- Lease-return management
- Packing and secure transportation
- Asset recovery
- Recycling
- Chain-of-custody and final disposition reporting
The goal is to remove infrastructure safely while protecting data, maintaining asset visibility, meeting facility deadlines and recovering available hardware value.
Trusted decommissioning and on-site data destruction for colocation data centers.
WE HANDLE
- Full cage cleanouts
- On-site data destruction
- Security-cleared field technicians
- Packing, shipping, and chain-of-custody documentation
We support your team, systematically managing deadlines.
We PROVIDE
- Physical inventory reconciliation
- Decommissioning and removal of all equipment, cabinets, and cables
- Secure on-site or off-site data destruction
- Preparation for resale, redeployment, or responsible recycling
- End-of-lease equipment return
We come to you to destroy data while assets are still in your custody.
WE Provide
- Bulk hard drive shredding at your data center
- Full inventory of storage media, including parent/child
- Same day Certificates of Data Destruction (CODD)
Lease returns
Lease returns can cause significant administrative headaches in locating, restoring to acceptable condition and removing digital data from the equipment prior to return.
Our services include managing equipment return deadlines, inventory reconciliation, removal of company applied asset tags, data erasure and packing and shipping the leased equipment back to the leasing company to avoid unnecessary chargebacks and return fees.
Frequently Asked Questions
The ultimate guide to data center decommissioning
You have questions.
We have answers.
How do I develop a decommissioning plan?
View our checklist to ensure your team is ready and you work with a vendor who meets the needs of your data center.
What services do I need from a decommissioning vendor?
Use our easy-to-use comparison chart helps you quickly assess what is important to support your project.
What hardware inventory information should I gather for decommissioned equipment?
Accurately identifying what equipment will be decommissioned is critical. Most data centers will provide the decommissioning vendor with a list of equipment to be decommissioned.
What happens to decommissioned equipment after it leaves the data center?
There’s an entire industry set up to recover value from used equipment and maximize resource recovery, either through reuse or responsible recycling.
Why Data Centers Trust SLS
- 20+ years of decommissioning expertise
- Built-in sustainability strategies
- Custom playbooks for every environment
- Fast execution without compromising security
Built on Trust and Transparency
Since 2002, SLS has evolved alongside the shifting landscape of IT infrastructure.
With a deep track record in critical decommissioning projects, our work is built on safety, transparency, and accountability.
We don’t just help you wind down, we help you recover value and build a smarter reverse supply chain:
- Redeploy racks and servers to internal facilities
- Harvest parts for inventory
- Resell equipment for use in less-demanding environments
- Responsibly recycle e-waste and obsolete assets
Sustainability-Driven ITAD
Every asset we recover helps extend the lifecycle of materials and reduce carbon impact.
By maximizing reuse and minimizing waste, we make your ITAD program part of a sustainable circular economy.
Security You Can
Count On
From secure data destruction to chain-of-custody documentation, we ensure your shutdown meets the highest standards in compliance and care.
Let’s Build a Smarter Strategy for Your Data Center
Reach out, and we’ll build a plan that meets you where you are and gets you where you need to go. Securely. Smoothly. Sustainably. Let’s work together to turn your data center shutdown into something valuable.