While data centers can be used to provide a wide range of services, not a single one will work without first ensuring the data center has a solid infrastructure.

"Infrastructure," in this case, means hardware, ranging from the same kind of server, storage, networking, and similar technologies used in corporate data centers to the specialized cooling, power distribution, fire suppression, physical security and other equipment designed specifically for data centers.

The infrastructure side of the data center business is where vendors with longtime ties to the channel can be found, making infrastructure the best way for solution providers to dip their toe into the data center market.

Here we at look at the 20 infrastructure providers included in this year's Data Center 100.

CEO: Laurent Vernerey

A leading developer of AC-based and DC-based backup power products and services, APC protects home offices to largescale data centers and facilities. APC's InfraStruXure architecture integrates power, cooling, rack, management and services.

CEO: Lloyd Carney

The leading developer of storage networking gear, Brocade is also one of the few companies that can give Cisco a run for the money in data center Ethernet networking. It also is involved heavily in developing converged networking infrastructure.

CEO: John Chambers

Cisco has become a successful developer of blade servers for virtualized environments and is tying its server and networking technology with storage from partners such as EMC and NetApp in converged infrastructures.

President: Michael Ho

A builder of products for protecting IT power in home offices to SMB and corporate data centers, CyberPower's lines include UPS, surge protection, power distribution units, network power management and telecom equipment.

CEO: Michael Dell

Dell has in the past couple of years morphed from a direct seller of consumer PCs and notebooks to a supplier of server, storage, networking, software and cloud data center solutions, and is the No. 1 supplier of HPC servers.

CEO: Alexander Cutler

Eaton is a large enterprise with businesses ranging from automotive technology to hydraulics to power distribution, but in the data center, it is one of the largest providers of power quality and monitoring technology, including UPS systems.

CEO: Joe Tucci

The data center's leading storage vendor, EMC is also a top data center provider of cloud and virtualization technology via its VMware holdings, security via its RSA acquisition, and big data and analytics via its Greenplum business.

CEO: David Farr

A leading supplier of data center power and cooling equipment sold mainly under the Liebert brand, Emerson provides UPS and DC power system, data center and telecom performance-monitoring solutions, and more.

CEO: Meg Whitman

As the top or near-top vendor in server, storage, networking, PC, and other products, as well as a leading provider of services to go with them, HP remains the industry's top provider of data center solutions.

CEO: Jack Domme (HDS)

Known by Hitachi Data Systems outside Japan, the company traditionally has been a top independent storage vendor but is now making a move to be a data center converged infrastructure provider with its blade server line.

CEO: Ginni Rometty

IBM has been in the data center longer than most data center providers have been in business and continues to be a leader in storage, server, middleware, services and other parts of the data center.

CEO: Eyal Waldman

Mellanox develops end-to-end connectivity solutions, including InifiniBand adapters and switches, as well as 10-Gbit and 40- Gbit Ethernet adapters and gateways, for servers and storage to help optimize data center performance.

CEO: Tom Georgens

The second-largest independent storage vendor and the largest to offer the same storage OS across all product families, NetApp also partners with Cisco on converged server-storage-networking data center solutions under the FlexPod name.

CEO: Larry Ellison

Best known as the primary vendor of business application software, Oracle is combining its software expertise with the server and storage hardware it got with its acquisition of Sun Microsystems into appliance-like integrated solutions.

CEO: Friedhelm Loh

A leading provider of data center enclosures, power distribution, climate control, IT infrastructure, and related software and services, Rittal bundles those different products into integrated offerings it calls "Rittal-The System."

CEO: Rick Tinsley

A developer of WAN acceleration tools including hardware and software to reduce the amount of traffic sent across a WAN and to deliver information locally, Silver Peak improves backup replication, and recovery between data centers and facilities.

President: Oliver Stulz

A developer of cooling solutions and services for mission-critical data center applications, Stulz offers a full line of indoor and outdoor cooling equipment, humidification and dehumidification equipment, and the services to go with them.

CEO: Charles Liang

Developer and manufacturer of rack-mount, pedestal and blade servers, high-end workstations, and storage appliances based on industry-standard components for data centers, Supermicro also supplies components to system builders.

CEO: Emerick Woods

The Mercury line of appliances from Talari Networks can be used to mix and match such technologies as MPLS, ATM, frame relay and broadband Internet to create high-performance aggregate networks for data center WAN optimization.

President: Joel Ross

The StarLine line of electrical power solutions includes track busways for quickly tapping power at any location, raceways for quickly adding or relocating plug-in modules, no-joint electric conductor bars and a turnkey 380VDC power system.