Senior System Administrator - VMWare

JOB TITLE: Senior Systems Administrator – VMWare

CLIENT: USGS – GHSC

LOCATION/HOURS: ONSITE - Colorado School of Mines Campus

CITIZANSHIP: US or Green Card/Permanent Resident (must pass background check)

 PROGRAM OVERVIEW:

The USGS has an ongoing need for system administration of all data center and enterprise architecture hardware and associated software, management of system replacement and upgrade projects, and Windows Server administration. The candidate will assess, administer, document, and continually improve and the existing virtual infrastructure; design, develop, test, implement, document, and maintain systems for resolving issues and accomplishing tasks through the configuration and maintenance of Windows and associated computers and software systems.

The candidate will work on systems that are complex to plan, configure, and implement. Participate in the monitoring, maintenance, and upgrade of systems to meet the needs of the GHSC as well as document these systems. They will provide specialized support and system administration of all facets of the virtual infrastructure that fit within the larger architectural operation. They will participate in all phases of planning, system design, prototyping, development, testing, documentation, and software maintenance.

QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelor’s degree or higher in Computer Science, Information Systems or similar and/or equivalent work experience (7 years’ work experience in lieu of degree)
• Proficient in managing virtualized infrastructure utilizing the VMware suite of virtualization tools (vCenter, vSphere, ESXi, Cloud Foundation, etc.) or other similar virtualization tools
• Deep understanding of storage network such as iSCSI and NFS and their integration with VMware infrastructure (VI).
• Experience designing, configuring, deploying and supporting block level storage protocol Systems – (E.g. Dell Unity, PowerStore, Compellent).
• Proficient using back-up software, Rubrik, Veeam, and a solid understanding of back-up policy on-premises and in an AWS environment.
• Perform architecture planning using concepts such as virtualization, distributed infrastructure, storage networks, and load balancing.
• Understanding of configuration management COTS such as Puppet or similar technology.
• Proficient using Git for version control and CI/CD pipelines for streamlined deployments.
• Understand infrastructure as code concepts and best practices.
• Demonstrate full understanding of security requirements and database maintenance/operations.
• Proficient deploying ESRI tools and products or open-source mapping tools in an AWS or on-premises environment.

 JOB FUNCTIONS:

• Serve as a Tier-1 IT emergency responder providing phone and on-site support. Tracking
• tickets are entered, responded to, and/or closed as appropriate. Tier-1 assignment is usually once every other week but can be up to once a week in some cases. Tier-1 duty covers 6:00AM to 6:00PM.
• Serve as VMware administrator responsible for virtual infrastructure (VI) as well as all phases of the virtual machine lifecycle.
• VI Patching and Upgrades – (as necessary, action taken within 14 days for critical)

1. vCenters/vRops
2. Hosts (update manager remediation, vibs)
3. VMs (VMware tools, VM hardware/compatibility)
4. SANs (scos as recommended by dell)
5. Dell Storage Manager/ Collector (as recommended by dell)

• Ensure production systems are operational, patched, secure, and available more than 490 hours out of every 500 hours. 
• Confirm Critical and High vulnerabilities are patched within the required 14 days after being identified and issues resulting from patch testing are resolved prior to the patching of production servers.
• Work with system administrators for Creation, Deletion, Modification of virtual machines
• Monitor vCenter/vRops for system alerts, report to systems administrators/subject matter experts, take action as necessary
• Investigate new technology and software to increase efficiency of operations
• Troubleshoot failures and restore systems to operational state. Provide written summary/analysis of failures
• Optimize networking and storage
• Work with remote contacts and support (VMware, HP, or Dell) to troubleshoot issues and system failures
• Planned outages are coordinated, and users are notified prior to planned system downtime for routine system administration tasks
• An informational email will be sent to all IT staff when emergency tasks are performed that may affect operations no less before starting the task
• Tickets are mo