GMS approaches rack mount servers from a rugged MIL-SPEC mentality yet with an eye towards total system cost. Where other suppliers of “rugged” rack mount servers utilize off-the-shelf motherboards and "ruggedize" them with myriad commercial component schemes and cooling fans, GMS uses patent-pending RuggedCool™ conduction-cooled CPU boards that are designed to operate in harsh environments without fans. GMS rack mount systems are configurable to utilize either COTS connectors or military-style rugged interconnects that are fully sealed so our servers can operate in rain, sand, mud and under extreme shock and vibration (IP66/IP67). GMS also chooses components on semiconductor suppliers’ embedded roadmaps—assuring lifecycle longevity. GMS American-made motherboards—as opposed to foreign-sourced and commercial roadmap motherboards—provides customers with long-term, reliable server operation and maintenance.

Our servers utilize Intel’s latest server-class processors including the Xeon® E5-26xx v4 and are available in single- and dual-CPU with up to 18 cores per CPU. Since GMS chooses Intel’s embedded CPUs for longest roadmap life, our servers benefit from our deep technology in rugged, deployed MIL-SPEC systems. For example, no other rack mount server vendor incorporates Intel’s Xeon® processor D, a low power server CPU that still boasts up to 16 cores (32 virtual machines) and a long roadmap life. GMS servers also incorporate the latest storage options, including SATA/SAS/PCI Express drives and Intel’s NVMe embedded drives. Our drive options allow customers to balance storage with lifecycle requirements, and performance with security (such as encryption and secure erase). A hallmark of all GMS products is networking, and our servers pack more 1 Gigabit and 10Gigabit Ethernet ports in 1U and 2U than the competition. For example, in base configuration the S2U “King Cobra”, boasts 20x 1 Gigabit Ethernet and four 10 Gigabit Ethernet ports with options for many more via add-in modules. New options include the S2U-SC (Super Computing) variant that adds a 24 TFLOPS co-processing compute engine using GPGPU technology. As well, a full-featured Cisco® IOS® router can be run in one or more virtual machines. Cisco’s Embedded Services Router (ESR) series is intended for embedded applications, or Cisco’s 1000V™ Series Cloud Services Router (CSR) creates a locally-hosted, infrastructure-agnostic “single tenant router” capability.

GMS servers and Micro-Servers are more than outstanding rugged hardware platforms. They are also designed to embed and host usability, manageability, and control tools, along with the enterprise-class applications users and IT administrators expect. Third-party virtualization environments are possible—including those running on “bare metal”—with access to the CPUs and other high-value in-system peripherals. This makes possible the creation of virtual machines (VMs) using hypervisors, as well as virtual systems like software-defined networks. Higher-level system and system-of-system functions are also do-able (including out-of-band access), such as Storage Area Networks, Distributed Databases, and Virtual Scale-Out. Management tools are also supported, connecting directly with in-system resources such as intelligent Layer 2/Layer 2 Ethernet switches or IPMI-enabled BMC controllers (where present). Users can layer on tools for network management dashboards, disk management, file archiving, de-duplication, disk mirroring, and control plane monitoring of all in-system resources. In short: our servers are rugged and embedded, but they’re also enterprise class and cloud-enabled. No compromise is needed just because they can be deployed in the field, outside of the vault.

Other unique advantages of GMS rugged servers are the available power options. Although they may operate from standard 110VAC, they also operate from “dirty” 28VDC vehicle power. This MIL-STD-1275/704 power allows GMS rack mount servers to operate in vehicles without the use of power invertors, which degrade power efficiency and add a significant amount of weight. In addition, some servers like the GMS S2U “King Cobra”, can provide APU power hold-up and N+1 power redundancy for truly reliable operation.

Designed to the highest military standards, GMS rugged rack mount servers are ideal for environments where dirt, dust, chemicals, extreme temperature, shock, vibration and other harsh variables prevent the use of commercial servers or even modified commercial servers. Furthermore, GMS rack mount servers provide unmatched performance and CPU core density in 1U/2U packaging.