Question What are some good options for rugged and durable motherboards?

[Armin_K99]

Hi everyone, I'm planning to install a computer in an off-road car, and I want to make sure it can withstand the harsh environmental conditions and vibrations. I'm looking for recommendations on the best motherboards and components to use for this purpose, with a specific requirement for a 3090 GPU. What are some good options for rugged and durable motherboards that can handle off-road driving, and that can accommodate a 3090 GPU? And what other factors should I consider when building a computer for use in a vehicle? Any advice or suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks​

 

[drea.drechsler]

In which case, you should have been one of the first people lining up to discourage this avenue for somebody who is NOT a military or aerospace client and does NOT (And almost certainly never will) have access to those kinds of purpose built parts. You know damn well this guy won't ever have access to those kinds of extremely high end purpose built parts NOR the types of supporting hardware and frameworks required to make them last under those kinds of conditions. Not unless they are a millionaire with inside contacts at exactly the kinds of companies you are talking about, but MORE importantly, even if they did, it's still a ridiculous endeavor because the cost will be astronomical and you can do the same thing with a different solution that

1. Requires none of that

2. Costs 99% less.

You misunderstand the complexity of ruggedizing COTS hardware as it's commonly done. It may be very time consuming, but it's not rocket science and not that expensive as a DIY. I'm not sure what you consider the high cost in it. I also won't challenge OP's need for running a PC with a 3090 GPU...I leave that for everyone else. I'm just going to assume he's done the trades himself and/or leave it to others to talk him out of it.

He also didn't ask for help with a case or mounting...I'd gladly offer help if I can with that. But I'd start with a sealed NEMA enclosure because you can get them OTS, very strong and typically not that expensive. It will involve some drilling of holes and making provisions for ventilation but nothing someone can't do in a shop that's preparing whatever kind of vehicle he's putting this thing in. And besides, I got the idea he has that sorted along with mounting.

He could also go buy a fully ruggedized, industrial computer off the shelf. But he asked for a motherboard and what to do to prepare it. If he wanted a ruggedized PC he'd have asked for that instead. I suspect that if he sees the effort in ruggedizing he'll either enjoy it as a project or reconsider doing it himself, or consider it cheap compared to a buying one.

 

[Darkbreeze]

I consider the fact that you can't even get a graphics card, of ANY kind that would handle what the OP wants to do, for the price of a camera that can do ALL of it, as the "high cost in it". The rest, including a "rugged and durable motherboard", of which I seriously doubt that there are ANY which are suitable for use with a gaming card like he wants to use, is just extra. So, I guess if you are JUST wanting a project to pour your time and money into, then fine, maybe your ideas are useful in that regard, but I still don't believe that most of the consumer hardware that you would be limited to using with a 3090 or similar gaming card will last very long no matter what you do to it, and for certain you will be spending about ten or more times the money, and investing ten or twenty times the man hours, than you would if you simply did what RL recommended early in this thread.

You are all looking for a solution to a problem that doesn't exist. The solution already exists, is simple, is inexpensive (Relatively) and will LAST probably indefinitely or at least much longer than anything you build is likely to.

But like I said earlier, some people don't mind lighting their wallet on fire or digging holes just to fill them back in, so, whatever. I think it's more a matter of some people simply wanting to confirmation of their own amazing intellect than any actual benefit or advantage of doing it their way. Basically, I want to be right so I'll keep on until I find somebody who agrees with me and will give me the warm fuzzies I need, rather than somebody who will be honest and say "this is not a good idea. There are much better ways to get where you want to be".

And also, I don't know of ANY type of NEMA enclosure that is going to protect your hardware from dust and moisture while STILL offering the ability to provide the type of cooling that would be required for a device like this with a high end CPU, CPU cooler and graphics card. Not to mention, even if you somehow managed to implement some type of passive cooling, bypassing the need for direct air or liquid cooling on your CPU and graphics card, that passive cooling would still need some kind of chassis airflow, which is going to entirely derail any kind of "harsh environment protections" it might have had the second you install a fan anywhere on it because now you are going to be actively sucking those environmental conditions directly into the chassis, and no matter where it is mounted, any rugged offroad vehicle is going to find a way to end up with dirt, dust, moisture, maybe also fuel vapors, possibly other contaminants, wherever you put that chassis. I mean, you might be able to live with some of the hardware being fanless including the CPU and power supply, if you are willing to spend that much money, (And it isn't going to be a small solution, because passive coolers for high end hardware NEVER have a small footprint) but you are NOT getting around the need for airflow through the chassis to make that work and you are not getting around needing direct active cooling for any kind of graphics card of this caliber. ESPECIALLY in a chassis that is mostly or entirely sealed up. It just won't happen and I don't care what you say. It is not feasible. Not by a long shot.

You believe it is? Prove it. SHOW us how it can be done. I'm calling BS.