LINUX System Administrator

  • Contract
  • Toronto
  • This position has been filled

Job Description

The Senior Administrator, UNIX is responsible for leading the proper implementation, monitoring, troubleshooting and support of a wide variety of enterprise services utilizing the AIX and Linux operating systems. In addition, the Senior UNIX System Administrator participates at a senior level in the operation of related enterprise-class data management systems such as network-attached storage (NAS); storage area networks (SAN) and various types of backup systems.

KEY PERFORMANCE METRICS

  • Meet and exceed support response times and service levels for mission-critical systems
  • Ensure that appropriate security is maintained throughout the UNIX and storage environments
  • Leads/Advises in technical upgrade decisions and new implementations from initiation to operational status on time and on budget.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES

Functional

Responsible for the installation, performance, quality and support of operating systems and middleware software:

  • Evaluates new operating and systems software. Leads as required in mission critical systems upgrades and product selection
  • Develops or modifies routine support activities such as file management, operating systems, shell scripts and multi-programming environments etc.
  • Leads/Advises the installation of system and application software, upgrades, fixes and tools as assigned (AIX (Unix), SUSE, RedHat (Linux), Veritas, Control-M, Brocade and IBM storage, etc) if appropriate
  • Automates the installation process of firmware, software and other technologies
  • Assists the Windows team with troubleshooting and basic support functions
  • Ensures thorough testing of all systems software, including planned and unplanned fail-over tests.
  • Participates in a 24x7x365 support and on-call function to maintain high availability of the infrastructure
  • Regular application of system patches and firmware upgrades through the environment.
  • Analyzes and solves operational and procedural problems with regards to systems software at senior level then identifies and tracks all technical issues through Incident, Problem and Change Management

Responsible for pro-active performance monitoring of operating systems and system software:

  • Analyzes applications that have response and throughput problems.
  • Provides storage management for both data placement and performance considerations on all platforms.
  • Performs equipment, software, database, and quality process evaluations and recommendations.

Responsible for the analysis of all systems software products at a senior level:

  • Participates in all areas of analysis, quality assurance and performance turning with the project team, including thorough testing before migration into production on any platform.
  • Analyzes applications that have response and throughput problems.
  • Provides storage management for both data placement and performance considerations on all platforms.

Provides possible specialization in three or more of the following disciplines:

  • 5 to 10 years Systems Administration processes (UNIX).
  • Hardware Expertise (IBM preferred, Lenovo would be an asset)
  • IBM AIX Specialization certification.
  • SUSE, RedHat Linux Administration
  • Secure data management and archival processes
  • Storage area networks (SAN)
  • Act as an advocate for the customer by placing them at the forefront of all decision-making and design processes
  • Proactively identify and anticipate customer expectations and needs
  • Embrace and seek out technology that creates high tech and high touch solutions for customers
  • Challenge the status quo by consistently identifying areas for improvement, diagnosing issues and working to resolve them

KEY RELATIONSHIPS

Internal:

  • IT Technical Services Team
  • IT DBA Team
  • IT Networking Team
  • IT Desktop Support
  • IT Service Desk
  • IT Application Support and Development
  • Lines of Business

External:

  • IT Vendor Contacts (Microsoft, IBM etc.)

QUALIFICATIONS

Work Experience / Education / Certifications

  • Post-secondary college diploma or university degree in the field of computer science degree or a combination of related experience and education
  • Demonstrated skills in UNIX, specifically with the AIX and Linux systems administration for a minimum of 5 years.
  • A minimum of 5 years with enterprise storage technologies (NAS, SAN, etc.).
  • A minimum of 5 years with enterprise backup technologies (NetBackup, etc.)
  • Advanced knowledge of AIX, IBM hardware as well as IBM SAN controllers is preferred
  • Knowledge of Brocade SAN switching, zoning and QLogic HBA’s is preferred
  • Knowledge of Suse and Redhat is an asset
  • IT Retail operations experience is an asset

Competencies / Skills / Attributes

  • Extensive technical knowledge of AIX systems installation, administration, configuration and security
  • Solid in-depth understanding of AIX and clusters, HACMP, virtualization, paging and swapping, inter-process communication, file system concepts, devices and what device drivers do.
  • Solid in-depth understanding of SAN technology, specifically Network Appliance is preferred.
  • Solid in-depth understanding of Fabric switches, placement, upgrading and configuration.
  • The following is a list of preferred experience/qualifications:
  • AIX certification
  • Experience with Enterprise Systems Monitoring and Management tools.
  • Experience with Intel and AIX hardware
  • Knowledge of Enterprise Anti-virus systems.
  • Working technical knowledge of scripting languages such as Powershell, Perl, SNMP, Shell Scripting
  • Familiarity with operational processes and procedures
  • Familiarity with planning and installation of third party software
  • Familiarity with system backup and restores
  • Retail experience