RGS Archives - Intelligence Community News https://intelligencecommunitynews.com/tag/rgs/ Breaking news about the market for products, systems and services for the U.S. intelligence community Tue, 03 Feb 2026 14:55:16 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.0 https://intelligencecommunitynews.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/cropped-ICN-square-logo-400-32x32.jpg RGS Archives - Intelligence Community News https://intelligencecommunitynews.com/tag/rgs/ 32 32 59882712 Brian Durden promoted to solutions engineering VP at RGS https://intelligencecommunitynews.com/brian-durden-promoted-to-solutions-engineering-vp-at-rgs/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=brian-durden-promoted-to-solutions-engineering-vp-at-rgs Tue, 03 Feb 2026 14:55:16 +0000 https://intelligencecommunitynews.com/?p=43758 On February 2, Rancher Government Solutions (RGS), announced the promotion of Brian Durden to vice president of solutions engineering, underscoring the company’s continued...

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On February 2, Rancher Government Solutions (RGS), announced the promotion of Brian Durden to vice president of solutions engineering, underscoring the company’s continued evolution from a product-focused organization to a solutions-driven provider of mission-ready platforms for U.S. government customers.

In his expanded role, Durden will lead RGS’s solutions engineering organization and a growing distributed edge business unit, focusing on the design and delivery of integrated, turnkey platforms that support secure command and control (C2) operations in contested, disconnected, and resource-constrained environments. He will work closely with customers, partners, and internal engineering teams to ensure RGS solutions remain deployable, sustainable, and operationally relevant from the enterprise to the tactical edge.

This promotion reflects a continued and deliberate shift in RGS’s go-to-market and delivery model. Rather than offering individual technologies à la carte, RGS is increasingly delivering complete, mission-ready solutions, unified platforms that combine infrastructure, orchestration, security, and lifecycle management into systems customers can deploy and operate with confidence.

“RGS is evolving to meet our customers where they operate,” said Jason Motte, chief growth officer at RGS. “That means moving beyond products to deliver full solutions that reduce operator burden and stand up to real-world mission demands. Brian has been a driving force behind this effort, and his leadership will be critical as we continue expanding our edge and platform capabilities.”

Durden brings more than 20 years of experience spanning embedded systems, DevSecOps, and multi-cluster Kubernetes architectures. Prior to joining RGS, he held senior engineering and architecture roles at Pivotal and VMware, supporting large-scale federal modernization programs.

Under Durden’s leadership, RGS has advanced multiple generations of edge capabilities, culminating in platforms such as Harvester Government HCI and Harvester Customizer, which unify virtual machines and containers under a single Kubernetes-based control plane. These solutions are designed to deliver deployable, self-contained edge systems that support mission planning, sensor fusion, analytics, and decision-support workloads in degraded, disconnected, intermittent, and limited (DDIL) environments.

“This role reflects a broader evolution happening at RGS,” said Durden. “We’re moving from delivering individual products to delivering real solutions—platforms that customers can deploy, operate, and trust in the field. Instead of handing teams parts, we’re giving them the keys to the race car. I’m excited, and humbled to help lead this next phase as we continue building mission-ready edge capabilities alongside our customers.”

Source: RGS

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Speed. Security. Simplicity. Rancher Government Transforms Kubernetes Operations in Classified Environments https://intelligencecommunitynews.com/ic-insiders-speed-security-simplicity-rancher-government-transforms-kubernetes-operations-in-classified-environments/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=ic-insiders-speed-security-simplicity-rancher-government-transforms-kubernetes-operations-in-classified-environments Wed, 12 Nov 2025 14:03:30 +0000 https://intelligencecommunitynews.com/?p=43158 From IC Insider Rancher Government Solutions With IC Cloud Support, Intelligence Community teams can now provision and manage clusters faster...

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From IC Insider Rancher Government Solutions

With IC Cloud Support, Intelligence Community teams can now provision and manage clusters faster and more securely, simplifying operations across the most restricted networks.

For mission owners across the Intelligence Community, secure modernization has long meant trade-offs: classified environments often lag behind commercial clouds in automation, speed, and usability. Rancher Government Solutions (RGS) helps close that gap.

RGS, a leader in secure, enterprise-grade Kubernetes management for the U.S. Government, has announced the General Availability (GA) of IC Cloud Support. This breakthrough capability brings full provisioning and lifecycle management to classified cloud environments without requiring access keys, custom software development kits (SDKs), or manual workarounds.

“Our customers in classified environments deserve the same operational simplicity and resiliency they get in commercial cloud,” said Adam Toy, Chief Technology Officer at RGS. “With IC Cloud Support, RGS brings that consistency to the most secure environments in government.”

The Challenge: Managing Kubernetes Behind the Airgap

Organizations operating in airgapped or restricted AWS and Azure regions face a radically different landscape from commercial cloud users. These classified environments are completely isolated by design, with no internet connectivity, external endpoints, or public resource exchange.

As a result, provisioning or managing Kubernetes infrastructure required manual, highly constrained processes:

  • Physically moving software via burned discs or removable media into SCIFs
  • Operating without identity access management (IAM) keys or secrets, since credential creation is prohibited
  • Rewriting code to communicate with .gov API endpoints and custom certificate authorities
  • Relying on imported clusters that limited access to Day-2 operations like scaling, shell access, or certificate rotation

 

This fragmentation left DevSecOps teams balancing compliance with complexity—manually managing infrastructure that, in commercial settings, takes minutes.

From Technical Preview to Full Operational Capability

When RGS first announced IC Cloud Support as a technical preview in March 2025, it was clear the capability filled a critical operational gap. The preview demonstrated that by leveraging a differentiated Rancher Government build, users could provision clusters in classified AWS regions by simply toggling the new “Carbide Instance Credential” option—removing the need for manually managed keys and secrets.

Since then, RGS engineers have expanded the feature set and hardened the integration for General Availability. The result: full RKE2 and EKS provisioning, native classified API endpoint compatibility, and seamless Day-2 lifecycle management—all inside the familiar Rancher Manager interface.

How It Works: Secure Automation Without Keys or Custom Code

At the core of IC Cloud Support is a Kubernetes-native approach that replaces manual access management with secure automation.

When IC Cloud Support is enabled, Rancher Manager uses the EC2 instance’s own IAM role (rather than user-managed credentials) to authorize access. This is powered by the Carbide Instance Credential, a hardened mechanism unique to RGS that uses instance metadata services to assume cloud permissions automatically.

This eliminates the need for:

  • Handwritten SDKs or API scripts
  • Local key storage or secrets rotation
  • Custom certificate handling for classified domains

 

The outcome: a keyless, zero-trust-aligned provisioning workflow that meets the stringent security expectations of intelligence and defense networks.

Full Parity for Classified Cloud Operations

The General Availability release introduces a complete suite of enhancements designed for mission-critical continuity:

  • Native provisioning for RKE2 and EKS clusters in classified AWS regions
  • Instance-level authorization via Carbide Instance Credential
  • Compatibility with classified API endpoints and certificates
  • Expanded Day-2 operations including node scaling, certificate rotation, snapshot/restore, and encryption key rotation
  • UI and UX parity across AWS Commercial, GovCloud, and classified regions

 

Together, these improvements eliminate operational gaps between environments, giving intelligence agencies feature parity and user experience consistency across classification levels.

Why It Matters for the Intelligence Community

For operators inside the Intelligence Community, the implications are significant.
Classified cloud environments support some of the nation’s most sensitive workloads—mission systems that demand both speed and assurance. IC Cloud Support means these systems can now be provisioned, scaled, and secured with the same simplicity and confidence found in commercial deployments.

Benefits include:

  • Faster mission delivery: Full provisioning in minutes, not days
  • Reduced human error: Eliminates manual configuration and scripting
  • Operational continuity: Consistent Rancher UI across all classification levels
  • Accelerated ATO cycles: Built-in compliance and evidence generation
  • Improved security posture: No external keys or unmanaged secrets

 

This advancement directly supports the Intelligence Community’s goals of agile modernization, zero trust implementation, and mission-ready cloud operations.

Availability and Next Steps

IC Cloud Support is now available to all RGS customers through the Carbide Portal and Registry. After downloading the latest Rancher Government build for Rancher Manager, users can deploy directly in classified regions by toggling the Carbide Instance Credential option during cluster provisioning.

For more information or to schedule a technical consultation, contact info@ranchergovernment.com or visit us at ranchergovernment.com.

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Rancher Government Solutions and Norseman Defense Technologies announce strategic partnership https://intelligencecommunitynews.com/rancher-government-solutions-and-norseman-defense-technologies-announce-strategic-partnership/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rancher-government-solutions-and-norseman-defense-technologies-announce-strategic-partnership Thu, 21 Aug 2025 12:57:16 +0000 https://intelligencecommunitynews.com/?p=42492 On August 19, Rancher Government Solutions (RGS) announced a strategic partnership with Norseman Defense Technologies to launch Odin’s Edge—a fully autonomous, enterprise-grade edge...

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On August 19, Rancher Government Solutions (RGS) announced a strategic partnership with Norseman Defense Technologies to launch Odin’s Edge—a fully autonomous, enterprise-grade edge AI platform built to operate in the most austere and disconnected environments.

Odin’s Edge combines Norseman’s expertise in tactical, resilient hardware with RGS’s hardened Kubernetes-native software stack to deliver a cloud-native “platform in a box.” Designed specifically for defense, intelligence, and emergency response use cases, the solution provides real-time AI and compute capabilities at the edge—without the need for cloud connectivity.

“We’re helping Norseman build a true cloud-native appliance that goes far beyond legacy cloud-dependent ‘edge’ solutions,” said Ryan Lewis, RGS’s CEO. “This system enables a new set of mission capabilities by operating independently of the cloud and prioritizing autonomy, security and compute capacity.”

Unlike traditional edge solutions that require persistent cloud orchestration, Odin’s Edge is engineered to run securely and sustainably on house or generator power. It is hardware-agnostic but optimized for lightweight, GPU-capable platforms that can fit in a backpack, overhead bin, or mount on a tactical vehicle.

“This is not a glorified server in a Pelican case,” said Norseman Defense CEO Toby Groff. “Odin’s Edge is a purpose-built, mission-first platform that puts cloud-native autonomy and compute power directly into the hands of operators—whether they’re on a submarine, in a disaster zone, or leading forward-deployed missions.”

“This partnership represents the next frontier in tactical edge computing,” added Ben Zifrony, VP of Ecosystems at RGS. “By combining RGS’s open, secure platform with Norseman’s mission-driven innovation, Odin’s Edge empowers agencies to act on data when and where it matters most.”

Source: Rancher Government Solutions

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RGS promotes Adam Toy to CTO https://intelligencecommunitynews.com/rgs-promotes-adam-toy-to-cto/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rgs-promotes-adam-toy-to-cto Wed, 09 Jul 2025 13:04:52 +0000 https://intelligencecommunitynews.com/?p=42130 On July 8, Rancher Government Solutions (RGS) announced the promotion of Adam Toy to chief technology officer (CTO). A founding member of...

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On July 8, Rancher Government Solutions (RGS) announced the promotion of Adam Toy to chief technology officer (CTO). A founding member of the RGS technical leadership team, Toy brings over a decade of experience delivering transformational open-source solutions to the U.S. government and military.

As the architect behind many of RGS’s most critical platforms—including RKE2, Harvester Government, and Carbide—Toy has been a driving force in advancing secure, interoperable cloud-native infrastructure for mission-critical environments. His deep expertise in Kubernetes, edge computing, and DevSecOps has helped RGS become a trusted partner for agencies seeking modern, compliant, and resilient systems.

Throughout his career at RGS, Toy has led the development of hardened, government-ready platforms that are now widely deployed across air-gapped, classified, and tactical environments. His leadership was instrumental in launching Harvester Government, the first FIPS-aligned hyperconverged infrastructure (HCI) solution designed specifically for U.S. government use. He has also helped agencies adopt secure Kubernetes through RKE2, built with a defense-first architecture that meets federal compliance mandates from day one.

A strong advocate for open-source interoperability and zero-trust security, Toy played a key role in integrating NeuVector into the RGS portfolio, enabling runtime container protection and secure software supply chain validation. His contributions to the development of Carbide have further empowered agencies to implement digitally signed SBOMs and enforce software integrity across the CI/CD pipeline, the company said.

“Adam’s technical vision and leadership has played a critical role in developing RGS’s foundational software products,” said Ryan Lewis, CEO of RGS. “His promotion to CTO reflects his outstanding track record and vision for the company. It also highlights our desire to build upon that foundation with new offerings designed to enhance the security, efficiency, interoperability and scalability supporting U.S. Government missions today.

As CTO, Toy will lead the strategic direction of RGS’s technology portfolio, overseeing platform engineering, architecture, and product development. He will focus on expanding RGS’s role in enabling secure modernization across the public sector, from hybrid cloud to the tactical edge.

“I’m honored to take on this new role and continue building solutions that help government teams operate with speed, security, and confidence,” said Toy. “At RGS, we believe that open-source software—when engineered with purpose and rigor—can give agencies the control and transparency they need to succeed in any environment.”

Source: RGS

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Rancher Government Solutions and Kasm Technologies partner https://intelligencecommunitynews.com/rancher-government-solutions-and-kasm-technologies-partner/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rancher-government-solutions-and-kasm-technologies-partner Wed, 07 May 2025 14:22:54 +0000 https://intelligencecommunitynews.com/?p=41651 On May 6, Rancher Government Solutions (RGS) announced a strategic partnership with Kasm Technologies, a pioneer in modern virtual and containerized desktop...

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On May 6, Rancher Government Solutions (RGS) announced a strategic partnership with Kasm Technologies, a pioneer in modern virtual and containerized desktop infrastructure (VDI/CDI). Together, RGS and Kasm are delivering a cloud-native, Kubernetes-powered workspace solution purpose-built to meet the mission-critical demands of government and defense organizations.

This partnership brings together RGS’s industry-leading open-source Kubernetes stack with Kasm Workspaces’ web-native VDI/CDI platform — offering a scalable, secure, and cost-effective alternative to legacy hypervisor-based solutions like VMware and Citrix.

“Government agencies can no longer afford to rely on legacy VDI platforms that are costly, complex, and vulnerable,” said Ryan Lewis, CEO of Rancher Government Solutions. “Our partnership with Kasm Technologies provides a modern, cloud-native solution that delivers operational simplicity, zero-trust security, and true multi-cloud flexibility.”

The RGS-Kasm solution redefines VDI/CDI for government use-cases, empowering agencies to securely deliver virtual desktops and applications across on-premises, hybrid, cloud, and air-gapped environments — without endpoint agents or proprietary hardware requirements.

“Together, we are transforming workspace delivery for federal agencies,” said Justin Travis, CEO of Kasm Technologies. “By combining our web-native VDI platform with Rancher’s secure Kubernetes stack, we are enabling government organizations to operate with greater agility, security, and cost efficiency — wherever their mission takes them.”

Source: Rancher Government Solutions

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Rancher Government and DPG Solutions collaborate https://intelligencecommunitynews.com/rancher-government-and-dpg-solutions-collaborate/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rancher-government-and-dpg-solutions-collaborate Thu, 01 May 2025 14:11:37 +0000 https://intelligencecommunitynews.com/?p=41610 On April 29, Rancher Government Solutions (RGS) announced a strategic partnership with DPG Solutions, a cleared integrator specializing in secure deployment environments....

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On April 29, Rancher Government Solutions (RGS) announced a strategic partnership with DPG Solutions, a cleared integrator specializing in secure deployment environments. Together, the companies are delivering a complete platform that allows government agencies to run virtual machines and containerized workloads in Disrupted, Degraded, Intermittent, and Low-bandwidth (DDIL) environments , without introducing proprietary complexity or compromising security.

The partnership is specifically designed to accelerate federal IT modernization efforts for application enablement through the deployment of DPG’s cutting-edge Secure Platform-as-a-Service (SPaaS) with RGS under the hood. This joint solution integrates the full Rancher Government software stack to deliver a secure, scalable foundation for mission-critical workloads, enabling government agencies to run both virtual machines and Kubernetes containers on a unified infrastructure in any environment.

“DPG is demonstrating how the RGS stack can be operationalized to support mission success in highly classified environments,” said Dylan Miller, director of channels at Rancher Government Solutions. “This partnership reflects a shared commitment to delivering secure, resilient capabilities critical to national security operations.”

DPG Solutions, a cleared, Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB), has deep expertise in infrastructure modernization and application transformation. Their solution fully deploys and automates the Rancher Government Suite in secured on-premise DOD environments, enabling government agencies to transition legacy virtualized workloads to modern, cloud-native architectures without compromising on security, availability, or compliance. The solution is purpose-built to operate in DDIL, and classified environments, ensuring that applications can go wherever they need to for mission success.

“We were looking for a solution that offered lasting reliability,” said Greg Trent, director of research and development at DPG Solutions. “We needed a platform that moves fast, is scalable and delivers. RGS brought us the right components and the right kind of support to make that happen.”

Source: RGS

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Ryan Lewis named RGS CEO https://intelligencecommunitynews.com/ryan-lewis-named-rgs-ceo/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=ryan-lewis-named-rgs-ceo Tue, 08 Apr 2025 12:55:22 +0000 https://intelligencecommunitynews.com/?p=41399 On April 7, Rancher Government Solutions (RGS), provider of secure, Linux, Kubernetes and enterprise open source software for critical missions in...

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On April 7, Rancher Government Solutions (RGS), provider of secure, Linux, Kubernetes and enterprise open source software for critical missions in the U.S. government, announced the appointment of industry veteran Ryan Lewis as its new chief executive officer (CEO).

Lewis brings a wealth of experience at the intersection of artificial intelligence (AI), national security, and tech innovation. Prior to joining RGS, he served as partner at SRI Ventures, where he led investments and development in early-stage enterprise IT and AI companies, with a focus on dual-use technologies for both government and commercial markets.

“Ryan is exactly the leader we need at this moment,” said Dale Meyerrose, chairman of the RGS board. “Securing someone of Ryan’s caliber to lead RGS is a powerful testament to the strength of our company, mission, the quality of our team, technology, and the opportunity ahead of us.”

Lewis previously served as senior practice manager for AI at Amazon Web Services (AWS) National Security and as a senior vice president at In-Q-Tell (IQT), where he founded and led an applied research lab focused on developing and open sourcing advanced AI capabilities.

“Ryan’s rare combination of technical and national security expertise make him uniquely qualified to lead RGS into its next phase of growth and impact,” said Heather McMahon, interim CEO. “He understands how open source, containerized infrastructure, and AI are reshaping the defense and intelligence communities—and he’s a proven builder who knows how to deliver value at mission speed.”

Lewis joins RGS during a period of significant growth for the company as government agencies increasingly look to Rancher for help modernizing their legacy IT infrastructures to break free from expensive, proprietary vertical stacks that limit innovation and transition to more modern, interoperable, open source, container and Kubernetes technologies.

“RGS sits at the nexus of open source innovation and national security impact,” Lewis said. “I’m honored to lead this exceptional team as we build the future of mission-ready infrastructure for the U.S. Government. The demand for secure, efficient, and open solutions has never been greater—and RGS is uniquely positioned to deliver them.”

Source: RGS

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How Harvester Government is Replacing Legacy Infrastructure https://intelligencecommunitynews.com/ic-insiders-how-harvester-government-is-replacing-legacy-infrastructure/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=ic-insiders-how-harvester-government-is-replacing-legacy-infrastructure Mon, 24 Mar 2025 14:31:06 +0000 https://intelligencecommunitynews.com/?p=41283 From IC Insider Rancher Government Solutions The Broadcom acquisition of VMware has sent shockwaves through the Federal IT ecosystem. With...

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From IC Insider Rancher Government Solutions

The Broadcom acquisition of VMware has sent shockwaves through the Federal IT ecosystem. With pricing increasing significantly and licensing uncertainty becoming the new normal, many government agencies are asking for a better way to modernize infrastructure.

The Legacy Infrastructure Dilemma

Traditional infrastructure solutions like VMware’s vSphere have been the backbone of government IT operations for decades. But today, they’re quickly becoming bottlenecks for agencies and organizations trying to stay responsive.

Think about the compounding challenges your teams face daily:

Costs are skyrocketing. You’re burdened with increasing licensing fees and maintenance overhead for outdated systems, draining budgets that could fund innovation. With Broadcom’s acquisition, these uncertainties have only multiplied.

Legacy systems have become too complex to update and maintain. Your teams spend too many hours on manual processes prone to errors rather than focusing on mission-critical initiatives.

Flexibility is nonexistent. These siloed systems are often incompatible with newer technologies, making integration difficult and time consuming. Scaling quickly for a mission-critical operation without significant disruption and capital investment is virtually impossible.

Security compliance gaps are widening. As standards become more stringent, legacy systems often can’t keep pace with security updates fast enough to address new vulnerabilities and put critical data at risk.

And then there’s the vendor lock-in. You’re essentially held hostage to proprietary technologies, losing control over your own infrastructure and forced into costly upgrades on someone else’s timeline.

Infrastructure Freedom Reimagined

Rancher Government Solutions (RGS) offers a modern alternative to legacy infrastructure through Harvester Government, a purpose-built hyperconverged infrastructure (HCI) product designed to run both containers and virtual machines under a unified management framework.

“Harvester Government is a modernized approach that provides the stepping stones to migrate away from legacy solutions and towards cloud native infrastructure,” said Camryn Carter, RGS Director of Product Management. “Running VMs alongside your container workloads gives you flexibility to optimize your resources, and RGS has handled security considerations like STIG compliance and encryption for you.”

Harvester Government’s air gap capabilities make it ideal for disconnected environments. It includes embedded documentation for disconnected knowledge management and encryption-at-rest options and supports security image deployments in fully disconnected scenarios. This means agencies working in isolated or tactical environments can maintain high operational efficiency without compromising security.

Unlike Broadcom/VMware’s approach, Harvester Government is purpose-built to run both containers and virtual machines (VMs) under a unified management framework using Kubernetes as the orchestrator. It combines core infrastructure services (block storage, networking, load-balancing, and vGPU support) in an open-source package decoupled from hardware dependencies.

That hardware independence is a meaningful change for agencies working with mixed environments or trying to maximize ROI on existing hardware investments. Older servers collecting dust in your data center can find new purpose with Harvester Government, which gives existing hardware investments a new lease on life and added value.

When paired with Rancher Government, Harvester Government offers features that improve your infrastructure capabilities compared to traditional solutions:

  • Define and manage RKE2 clusters as Helm charts
  • Implement RBAC with support for various authentication providers
  • Deploy GitOps/CD capabilities through Fleet
  • Access logging and observability tools

 

Harvester Government also offers Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) capabilities through RGS’s partnership with Kasm Technologies, an infrastructure-agnostic, container-driven approach to VDI. Kasm hosts virtualized applications without requiring an entire desktop environment, bypassing the need for specific Windows or Linux VMs and reducing resource consumption for faster provisioning.

The Compatibility Comparison

You may wonder how Harvester Government stacks up against your existing vSphere environment. While there’s not always a one-to-one comparison, here’s how the core components align:

Harvester Government uses KubeVirt for virtualization instead of ESXi. For storage, Longhorn provides scalable networked block storage compared to vSAN. Management happens through Rancher rather than vCenter, and networking uses Multus and Canal instead of NSX-T.

Things get interesting in areas VMware doesn’t work well. Harvester Government’s container-native approach means you get RKE2 for container orchestration built right in, not bolted on as an afterthought like TKGs. The infrastructure automation capabilities via Fleet/Flux/Argo/Tekton typically outpace Tanzu Automation in flexibility and community support.

Capability Harvester Government vSphere
Virtualization KubeVirt ESXi
Storage Longhorn vSAN
Management Rancher Manager vCenter
Cluster Management Rancher Manager Tanzu Mission Control
Networking Multus + Canal vCenter + NSX-T
Load Balancing Kube-VIP (L2 & BGP) NSX-ALB (Avi)
Container Orchestration RKE2 TKGs/Workload Mgmt
OS Layer SLE Micro + Elemental Photon
Ops Management Rancher Manager + Monitoring Aria
GitOps Automation Fleet/Flux/Argo/Tekton Tanzu Automation
Service Mesh Istio, Consul, etc. Tanzu Service Mesh

Security Where It Matters

If you’re handling sensitive government workloads, RGS enhances the upstream Harvester with Rancher Government Carbide™ service to provide hardened security capabilities designed explicitly for high-compliance environments.

Upcoming Rancher Government Carbide™ improvements take security to the next level with:

  • FIPS-140-2 or 140-3 compliance at both OS and Kubernetes layers
  • US-soil built software assets with SLSA-3 Secure Supply Chain Compliance
  • STIGATRON for Day 2 compliance monitoring
  • Encryption-at-rest for VM volumes (experimental)
  • Out-of-the-box DISA STIG compliance
  • Kubewarden Security Policy Engine

 

Applying STIGs to your Kubernetes environment is straightforward with RGS. The process requires just several controls from RGS and a handful of configuration lines for RKE2, making security compliance implementation remarkably efficient for government environments.

A Phased Migration Approach

Unlike the rip-and-replace strategy typical vendors push, migration to Harvester Government follows a phased approach that respects your existing investments. Harvester Government can coexist with your vSphere environment, supporting hybrid applications during the transition.

For VM workloads, Harvester Government includes a VM Import Controller that can connect your vSphere environment and migrate VMs with their volumes intact. It handles network mapping and lets you export migrated VMs as base images for future deployments.

Container migration offers multiple paths depending on your current setup, whether you’re running Docker containers on VMs or managing Kubernetes clusters that can be imported to Rancher Manager.

Licensing Advantages

Since the Broadcom acquisition, VMware licensing has become too complicated and expensive with the consolidated VMware Cloud Foundation (VCF) approach. Getting a quote can take a long time, which is unacceptable in modern IT environments.

RGS’s pricing model, by contrast, is straightforward:

  • Harvester Government bills per server, up to 32 cores
    • includes Rancher Management Server for managing Harvester clusters running VM workloads
  • Rancher Suite is billed based on workload resources
    • includes full capabilities of Rancher for kubernetes management, RKE2, Harvester Government, security tools, and more in a single SKU

 

Freedom of Choice, Finally

The cloud-native, container, Kubernetes revolution has changed what’s possible in infrastructure. Harvester Government is a better, less expensive, modern approach to a VMware with Kubernetes as a universal control pane, enabling containers and VMs to live side by side to modernize while maintaining and integrating legacy workloads seamlessly.

To learn more about breaking free from legacy infrastructure constraints, contact us at info@ranchergovernment.com or visit ranchergovernment.com.

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RGS launches IC Cloud Support https://intelligencecommunitynews.com/rgs-launches-ic-cloud-support/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rgs-launches-ic-cloud-support Thu, 20 Mar 2025 14:44:07 +0000 https://intelligencecommunitynews.com/?p=41261 On March 18, Rancher Government Solutions (RGS) announced a technical preview of its new IC Cloud Support offering for RGS...

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On March 18, Rancher Government Solutions (RGS) announced a technical preview of its new IC Cloud Support offering for RGS customers, designed specifically to address the challenges faced by government and military customers operating in classified cloud environments.

Organizations and agencies working in classified cloud regions such as AWS or Azure face a fundamentally different operating environment than what they experience in commercial clouds. These classified environments are completely air-gapped by design, with no connectivity to the internet or outside networks, forcing teams to rely on manual processes for moving resources in and out of these environments. In many cases, teams are still burning discs with needed resources, carrying them into a SCIF, and loading them in.

Access management presents another hurdle. In commercial clouds, users typically have the freedom to create and manage their own Identity Access Management (IAM) roles, keys, and secrets to interface with cloud APIs. However, in classified environments, IAM access is often severely restricted or entirely unavailable. This means organizations generally have no ability to create AWS keys or secrets needed to interface with APIs, a requirement for most cloud management tools, including the standard Rancher Government deployment.

Another hurdle is that classified environments use different API endpoints than their commercial counterparts (such as .gov domains instead of .com). These unique endpoints are incompatible with standard libraries and SDKs, forcing teams to write custom code just to handle basic cloud operations. Classified environments also rely on custom certificate authorities and chains of trust that can’t be verified out-of-the-box by browsers or standard tools.

Until now, these limitations have made managing Kubernetes in classified environments a cumbersome, labor-intensive process that lacks the intuitive experience users expect from modern container orchestration platforms.

RGS is overcoming those limitations with its IC Cloud Support offering. This solution brings the familiar Rancher Government experience directly into some of the most secure and isolated cloud environments in the world, the company said.

The core of the solution is a differentiated build of Rancher Government that works with the constraints of classified environments. With IC Cloud Support, when creating clusters in these environments, users can now simply toggle the “Carbide Instance Credential” option in the Rancher Government control panel. This approach eliminates the need for manually managing access and secret keys by using the instance’s own IAM role instead.

This offering is fully compatible with classified API endpoints, allowing Rancher Government to communicate natively with these interfaces without requiring custom code development. More importantly, customers enjoy the same user experience when working in AWS Commercial or AWS GovCloud environments, creating a consistent operational model across all cloud environments.

Source: RGS

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Rancher Government taps Jose Simonelli as professional services leader https://intelligencecommunitynews.com/rancher-government-taps-jose-simonelli-as-professional-services-leader/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rancher-government-taps-jose-simonelli-as-professional-services-leader Thu, 06 Jun 2024 13:14:11 +0000 https://intelligencecommunitynews.com/?p=38883 On June 4, Rancher Government, provider of secure, certified Kubernetes and container management solutions to the U.S. government, announced the...

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On June 4, Rancher Government, provider of secure, certified Kubernetes and container management solutions to the U.S. government, announced the appointment of seasoned government IT executive Jose Simonelli as the new head of professional services and customer experience.

Simonelli joins Rancher Government during a period of significant growth for the company as government customers are increasingly looking to Rancher to help them modernize their legacy IT infrastructures to break free from expensive, proprietary vertical stacks that limit innovation and transition to more modern, interoperable, open source, container and Kubernetes technologies.

Simonelli is a proven technology leader with extensive experience in team building across ecosystem partners and government customers. Throughout his career, Simonelli has been responsible for overseeing the delivery of professional services, ensuring customer success, and driving strategic initiatives in the public sector.

He previously held the position of head of public sector enterprise success at UiPath, Inc., where he led teams of technical account managers, automation program advisors, and client delivery leads. His innovative leadership resulted in significant year-over-year growth and enhanced customer satisfaction.

He partnered closely with product owners to influence the product engineering team, ensuring FIPS 140-2 compliance within the Automation Suite product, enhancing its appeal to highly secure government clients. This allowed for the product to be widely adopted across the DoD and Civilian agencies.

Before UiPath, Simonelli spent 10 years at Red Hat, where he worked his way up to lead highly strategic technical teams within the public sector. He developed strategies to optimize pre-sales operations, led cross-functional collaboration, and provided direction to high-performing teams, driving significant revenue growth.

“We are firmly committed to providing the highest level of service and support to our government clients, and the addition of Jose to our leadership team underscores this commitment,” said Paul Smith, president and CEO of Rancher Government. “Jose’s proven track record in driving customer success and his deep understanding of the public sector make him the perfect fit for this role.”

“I am enthusiastic about joining the team at Rancher Government and combining my experience with the incredible talent here to drive success for our federal customers,” Simonelli said. “My commitment to developing highly technical teams, alongside Rancher’s innovative capabilities, will forge the continued success that our customers seek within their environments.”

Source: Rancher Government

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