System Administrator

About UVS Infotech:

UVS Infotech is Laurel, Maryland based, IT System Integrator with expertise in Emerging Technologies: Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Robotic Process Automation, Blockchain, Identity & Access Management, Identity Proofing

Position Description:

The Systems Administrator will be responsible for the design, deployment, and ongoing maintenance of both Windows and Linux (RHEL, CentOS, Ubuntu) server environments in support of our students, faculty, and staff. This role requires strong technical expertise in server operating systems, virtualization, security hardening, and identity management, as well as the ability to troubleshoot complex issues, automate routine tasks, and collaborate effectively in a team-based setting. The Systems Administrator will participate in weekly virtual meetings and coordinate with vendors for hardware support and warranty tracking.

Role and Responsibilities:

• Plan, install, configure, and document Windows Server and Linux (RHEL, CentOS, Ubuntu) environments.
• Build and maintain domain controllers, file servers, application servers, and related infrastructure.
• Administer Active Directory (user/group management, Group Policy Objects, DNS, DHCP).
• Harden server configurations according to industry best practices (CIS benchmarks, NIST guidelines).
• Implement and manage antivirus solutions, monitoring for threats and coordinating remediation.
• Design, schedule, and monitor backup jobs (e.g., Veeam, Backup Exec, or similar).
• Perform periodic backup verification and execute recovery operations as required.
• Maintain and support on-premises or cloud-based email platforms (e.g., Exchange Server, Office 365).
• Troubleshoot mailbox, connectivity, and spam/quarantine issues; enforce retention policies.
• Deploy and manage virtual machines on VMware vSphere and/or Microsoft Hyper-V.
• Monitor host health, apply patches/updates, and rebalance workloads for optimal performance.
• Monitor CPU, memory, storage, and network utilization; tune system parameters to optimize performance.
• Forecast growth trends, propose hardware or configuration upgrades, and plan for future capacity needs.
• Coordinate OS patching schedules for Windows and Linux servers; validate updates in test environments.
• Plan and execute major OS version upgrades, minimizing user downtime.
• Develop and maintain PowerShell and Bash scripts to automate user provisioning, software deployment, and routine maintenance tasks.
• Create scheduled tasks for log rotation, disk cleanup, and system health checks.
• Provision, modify, and decommission user accounts for students, faculty, and staff; enforce least-privilege access.
• Integrate new systems with Active Directory, LDAP, or other identity providers as needed.
• Implement security baselines, patch vulnerabilities, and apply configuration changes to reduce attack surface.
• Collaborate with security teams to perform vulnerability scans and remediate findings.
• Investigate and resolve server, network, and application issues (disk failures, network misconfigurations, performance bottlenecks).
• Document incidents, root causes, and remediation steps in the ticketing system.
• Coordinate with vendors for on-site warranty repairs, hardware replacements, and RMA processes.
• Maintain an inventory of critical server hardware with expiration dates for support contracts.
• Attend weekly virtual operations meetings to report status, discuss roadblocks, and plan upcoming tasks.
• Work closely with network engineers, application teams, and desktop support to ensure end-to-end service reliability.

Required Skills:

• Expert-level administration of Windows Server (2012 R2, 2016, 2019, 2022), including AD, DNS, DHCP, and Group Policy.
• Solid experience with RHEL, CentOS, and Ubuntu (installation, package management, systemd, kernel updates).
• Hands-on experience with VMware vSphere (ESXi, vCenter) and/or Microsoft Hyper-V (failover clustering, live migration).
• Familiarity with SAN/NAS storage technologies, LVM/LXVM on Linux, and Windows Storage Spaces.
• Experience implementing firewall rules (iptables, Windows Firewall) and SELinux/AppArmor on Linux.
• Strong PowerShell scripting skills for Windows automation.
• Proficient in Bash shell scripting on Linux; familiarity with Python or Perl is a plus.
• Proficiency with enterprise backup solutions (e.g., Veeam Backup & Replication, Symantec Backup Exec, Bacula).
• Administration of Microsoft Exchange Server or equivalent email platforms.
• Troubleshooting SMTP, IMAP, ActiveSync, and mail flow issues.
• Use of monitoring tools such as Nagios, Zabbix, Prometheus, or SolarWinds.
• Ability to interpret logs (Event Viewer, syslog) and performance counters.
• Basic to intermediate knowledge of server hardware components (CPU, RAM, RAID controllers).
• Ability to troubleshoot network connectivity (TCP/IP, VLANs, subnets) between servers.Basic to intermediate knowledge of server hardware components (CPU, RAM, RAID controllers).
• Ability to troubleshoot network connectivity (TCP/IP, VLANs, subnets) between servers.

Education and Experience:

• Bachelor s Degree from an accredited college or university in Engineering, Computer Science, Information Systems, Business or other related discipline.
• 3 5 years of hands-on experience administering Windows Server and Linux environments in a medium- to large-scale organization. (Preferred)