DescriptionThe Linux System Administrator is responsible for the installation, configuration, maintenance, security, and performance of Linux-based servers and infrastructure. This role ensures system availability, reliability, and operational efficiency while supporting business applications, users, and IT initiatives.
This is a hybrid working role that requires 3 days onsite, in office, per week.
Responsibilities- Administer Linux servers and operating systems across development, test, and production environments.
- Monitor system health, performance, and availability.
- Perform operating system installations, upgrades, and patching.
- Implement and maintain security controls and compliance requirements.
- Troubleshoot and resolve hardware, software, and infrastructure issues.
- Manage user accounts, permissions, and authentication services.
- Maintain backup and recovery processes.
- Develop and maintain infrastructure automation solutions.
- Create and update technical documentation, procedures, and system diagrams.
- Participate in incident response, root cause analysis, and problem resolution.
- Support change management and system maintenance activities.
- Collaborate with application, network, security, and cloud teams.
Qualifications- Bachelor's degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, Information Systems, or related field; or equivalent work experience.
- Relevant certifications preferred (RHCSA, RHCE, Linux+, LPIC, AWS SysOps, or equivalent).
- 3+ years of experience administering Linux operating systems in enterprise environments.
- Experience supporting physical, virtual, and cloud-hosted Linux servers.
- Experience with enterprise monitoring, backup, and security tools.
- Strong experience with Linux distributions such as:
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)
- Rocky Linux
- AlmaLinux
- Ubuntu
- SUSE Linux Enterprise
System Administration- Installation, configuration, and maintenance of Linux servers.
- User and group administration.
- Filesystem management and disk provisioning.
- Service management using systemd.
- Performance tuning and system optimization.
- Patch management and operating system upgrades.
Scripting and AutomationProficiency in:
- Bash shell scripting
- Python (preferred)
- Ansible or similar automation tools
- Ability to automate routine administrative tasks.
NetworkingUnderstanding of:
- TCP/IP
- DNS
- DHCP
- SSH
- NFS
- LDAP
- VPN technologies
- Experience troubleshooting network connectivity issues.
Virtualization and CloudExperience with:
- VMware vSphere
- Hyper-V
- KVM
- AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud
- Managing virtual machines and cloud infrastructure.
SecurityKnowledge of Linux security best practices.
Experience with:
- SELinux/AppArmor
- Firewall configuration (firewalld, iptables, nftables)
- Vulnerability remediation
- Access controls and auditing
- Security compliance standards
Monitoring and LoggingExperience with monitoring and logging tools such as:
- Nagios
- Zabbix
- Splunk
- ELK Stack
- Prometheus
- Grafana
Storage and BackupKnowledge of:
- RAID configurations
- LVM management
- SAN/NAS environments
- Backup and recovery procedures
- Disaster recovery planning
Preferred Skills- Container technologies (Docker, Podman).
- Kubernetes or OpenShift administration.
- Configuration management tools (Ansible, Puppet, Chef).
- DevOps practices and CI/CD pipelines.
- Git version control.
- Infrastructure as Code (Terraform).
- Enterprise directory services integration.
- Experience in highly available and clustered environments.
Soft Skills- Strong analytical and troubleshooting abilities.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
- Ability to work independently and within a team environment.
- Strong organizational and time-management skills.
- Customer service and stakeholder engagement skills.
- Ability to manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced environment.
Physical and Operational Requirements- Ability to participate in on-call rotations and after-hours support.
- Ability to support maintenance windows during evenings or weekends as needed.
- Ability to lift and install server hardware when required.
- Must be able to obtain and maintain any required security clearances.
Success FactorsA successful Linux System Administrator will:
- Maintain high system availability and uptime.
- Proactively identify and resolve issues before service impact.
- Automate repetitive tasks to improve operational efficiency.
- Ensure systems remain secure, patched, and compliant.
- Provide excellent support to users and technical teams.
