Ready for Service (RFS)

Ready for Service (RFS) is the milestone at which a data center building, hall or phase has passed commissioning and can be handed to the customer. The customer can then install and power equipment, which is when lease revenue normally starts. Operators announce capacity in RFS tranches: on 2 October 2026 Applied Digital reported another 75 MW of Ready for Service at Polaris Forge 1 in North Dakota, bringing its operational critical IT load to 250 MW of a 400 MW contracted campus. RFS differs from construction completion and from tenant go-live, since integrated systems testing must finish first, and the delivery date is often written into the lease with penalties or rent credits for delay. Analysts track RFS dates to see when announced megawatts actually become usable supply.