TSI.STANDARD – for data centers

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The TSI.STANDARD as a basis for testing and certification

Trusted Site Infrastructure (TSI) is a methodology established in 2001 for evaluating and certifying the physical security and availability of data centres. It is based on the TSI.STANDARD criteria catalogue developed by the TÜV NORD GROUP.

With its various assessment aspects, it takes a holistic approach that examines the physical infrastructure of your data centre as well as organisational processes and documentation. The aim is to optimally secure your data centre by implementing and fulfilling the various planning, organisational and technical requirements and thus ensure the highest possible availability of the supplying infrastructure.

The criteria catalog

The TSI.STANDARD has been developed by experts at TÜV NORD for over 20 years and is an applied industry standard for the physical security and availability of data centres in German-speaking countries. It takes into account findings and many years of experience from over 2,000 projects in the sense of "best practices". It is also based on the recommended measures in the IT baseline protection catalogues and the maximum availability requirements of the German Federal Office for Information Security (BSI). It takes into account the relevant DIN, EN and ISO standards - in particular DIN EN 50600 and ISO/IEC 22237 - as well as VDE regulations and VdS publications. The TSI.STANDARD has been continuously developed since 2002 with the aim of consistently reflecting the state of the art and standards.

Since 2016 (from V4.0), the TSI.STANDARD has also verifiably covered the requirements of DIN EN 50600 in full. EN 50600 supplements can optionally be tested if EN 50600 conformity is to be confirmed as a result.

Since the publication of V4.5, an ISO/IEC 22237-specific supplementary test is also possible. Requirements of the five published parts of the standard (ISO/IEC 22237 parts 1, 2, 3, 4 and 6) are included.

In this way, the TSI.STANDARD can be used to confirm three different norms and standards at the same time: TSI, EN 50600 and ISO/IEC 22237.

The TSI.STANDARD is currently available in version V4.6 from 01.11.2024 and replaces the previous version V4.5 from 01.07.2023.

Sample illustration of current criteria catalog

Target groups of the TSI.STANDARD

Our testing and certification services are aimed at companies and organisations that want to bring their data centres up to the highest security and availability standards.

Our target group

IT service providers and hosting providers
Colocation data centres
Companies with their own data centres (enterprise)
Financial institutions and banks
Healthcare organisations
Government authorities and public institutions
Telecommunications companies
Cloud service providers
Industrial companies with high data volumes

Advantages of the TSI STANDARD

Many years of experience and continuous further development by experienced experts
Three standards in one: TSI, EN 50600 and ISO/IEC 22237
Optional testing of energy efficiency with additional "EFF" option
Testing of data centre networks (dual site) possible
Test specifications for modular data centres (proof of concept) included
Added value due to high level of awareness, established method and high market acceptance

The test areas of the TSI.STANDARD criteria catalog

The catalogue of criteria is divided into nine thematically separate assessment areas. These are as follows:

ENV: Environment
CON: Construction (building construction)
FIR: Fire Protection & Extinguishing Systems (fire detection and extinguishing technology)
SEC: Security Systems & Organisation
CAB: Cabling (cabling)
POW: Power Supply
ACV: Air Conditioning & Ventilation (ventilation systems)
ORG: Organisation
DOC: Documentation

Optionally, there are three further assessment areas that lead to additional test statements and possibly also to further certificates.

DDC: Dual Site Data Centre (data centre network)
- The DDC assessment area allows an availability statement to be made when operating two equivalent data centres that are operated as a network.
EFF: Energy Efficiency
- The EFF assessment area adds an energy efficiency statement to the TSI certificate.
PoC: Proof of Concept (prototype concept planning)
- The PoC assessment area contains requirements for a supplementary procedure to pre-qualify standardised, modular data centre concepts.

The “comply or explain” principle

The high level of expertise of our experts enables a "comply or explain" approach, which offers greater flexibility than the pure application of checklists. This means that a criterion does not necessarily have to be implemented in accordance with the described measure, but that an operator may be just as well positioned with alternative solutions or may even solve a particular challenge better. In this case, "comply or explain" means that special solutions can also be evaluated positively if they are just as effective and reliable and fulfil the protection objective.

Overview of TSI levels and availability classes

Certification according to the TSI.STANDARD allows data centres to be clearly classified into four different levels, which classify both the quality of the supply systems and all other elements. From level 2, the requirements are harmonised with the availability classes of EN 50600 and ISO/IEC 22237 by means of additional criteria.

TSI Levels

1

Level 1

Medium protection requirements / medium availability Functional basic supply to ensure the operating conditions of IT server rooms, taking into account access and fire protection

2

Level 2

Extended protection requirements / Extended availability Securing the supply through redundancies, consideration of environmental hazards for IT, access security and fire protection Harmonised with availability class (VK) 2 of EN 50600 and ISO/IEC 22237

3

Level 3

High protection requirements / high availability No single point of failure (SPoF) of active components in the supply, increased intrusion protection, protection of supply lines, fire control, status monitoring Harmonised with availability class (VK) 3 of EN 50600 and ISO/IEC 22237

4

Level 4

Very high protection requirements / maximum availability Dedicated data centre building, apron protection, maintenance tolerances Harmonised with availability class (VK) 4 of EN 50600 and ISO/IEC 22237

Additional services based on TSI.STANDARD

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Workshops for data centers

Interesting facts about the testing, evaluation and certification of data centre infrastructures

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Location evaluation

Ensuring an optimal starting position for the data centre to be planned.

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Planning assessment

Support during the planning and design of your data centre.

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Drei Bauingenieure in Sicherheitswesten und Helmen stehen auf einer Baustelle und betrachten gemeinsam einen Laptop und Baupläne.

Quality Gates (construction supervision)

Support during the construction phase with regular on-site inspections to ensure compliance with requirements.

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Techniker im Sicherheitshelm und Warnweste überprüft elektrische Schalttafeln in einem Kontrollraum.

Support during commissioning

Accompanying the commissioning of your data centre & carrying out integration tests for quality assurance.

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Conformity assessment / GAP analysis

Systematic identification of all potential risks and weaknesses of your data centre or IT service provider.

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Certification

Implementation of certification in accordance with Trusted Site Infrastructure (TSI), EN 50600 or ISO/IEC 22237.

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FAQ about TSI.STANDARD

The TSI.STANDARD is primarily aimed at operators and users of enterprise and colocation data centres. However, they also serve as an orientation and planning basis for specialist planners. Reference is often made to the TSI.STANDARD in the context of tenders and is therefore binding. Depending on the defined level (Level 1 - 4), it describes precise requirements for data centre infrastructures and thus specifies a target corridor.

The TSI.STANDARD is available free of charge for reasons of transparency. You can obtain a digital copy here: Request catalogue

Since 2016, conformity with EN 50600 can also be tested and confirmed with the TSI.STANDARD. Parts 1, 2, 3 and 4-2 of EN 50600 have been fully adapted and integrated into the catalogue. With the publication of V4.5, an ISO/IEC 22237-specific supplementary test is also possible. Conformity with the five published parts of the standard (ISO/IEC 22237 parts 1, 2, 3, 4 and 6) is confirmed by means of an additional certificate. In this way, the data centre operator can obtain three certificates at once: TSI, EN 50600 and ISO/IEC 22237.

In addition to its own criteria, the TSI.STANDARD also takes into account all the requirements of EN 50600 and ISO/IEC 22237, enabling data centres to be aligned with these standards in a structured manner and their requirements to be met in a comprehensible manner.

The principle makes it possible to recognise functionally equivalent measures as valid - even if they do not correspond exactly to the specifications. This means that individual solutions can be assessed, provided they achieve the same level of protection and are documented in a comprehensible manner.

Overview of other standards for data centers

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TSE.STANDARD

The TSE.STANDARD contains requirements for the energy efficiency of data centres according to the maturity model.

TSE.STANDARD

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EN 50600

The European data centre standard DIN EN 50600 uses a holistic approach to set comprehensive specifications for the planning, construction and operation of data centres.

EN 50600

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ISO/IEC 22237

As the international equivalent to EN 50600, ISO/IEC 22237 creates the basic prerequisite for ensuring that data centres can be planned, built and operated according to the same principles worldwide.

ISO/IEC 22237