2026-07 Principal Systems Administrator

1st-edge-llc; Huntsville (TN); Hybrid; USD 110,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

1st Edge is seeking a hands-on Principal Systems Administrator to support a hybrid Windows/Linux infrastructure across engineering and AI development teams. This role owns day-to-day administration, troubleshooting, and secure infrastructure maintenance for both enterprise IT and lab/test environments.

Responsibilities include designing VMware vSphere, managing AD/DNS/DHCP, FL/GPu compute resources, and ensuring DoD/CMMC compliance while supporting SI/CI pipelines and hybrid cloud connectivity.

Qualifications

• Active DoD security clearance (or clearance-eligible).
• Bachelor's degree required.
• 10+ years of systems administration experience with at least 3 years in a mixed Windows/Linux environment.
• Experience with AD, DNS, DHCP, and PKI/Certificate Services.
• Production Linux server administration (Ubuntu, RHEL, Rocky Linux or similar).
• Design/build VMware vSphere environments from scratch (not just admin).
• Networking fundamentals: switches, VPNs, firewalls, and secure comms.
• Experience with enterprise backups, monitoring, and logging solutions.
• Scripting ability (Bash, Python, or PowerShell) to automate tasks.
• Strong troubleshooting and cross-functional collaboration.
• Understanding of DoD/CMMC compliance in defense contracting.

Responsibilities

• Administer Windows Server infra including AD, DNS, DHCP, and Certificate Services.
• Manage Linux servers (Ubuntu, Rocky/RHEL) across engineering and development environments.
• Design/build VMware vSphere with GPU-accelerated compute environments.
• Manage networking infrastructure including switches, VPNs, firewalls, and secure communications.
• Troubleshoot hardware, software, and systems integration across lab/test environments.
• Collaborate with engineering and software teams for integration efforts.
• Maintain hybrid on‑prem/cloud connectivity (Entra ID / GCC High).
• Support infrastructure for software development and AI/ML workloads with GPU compute and job scheduling.
• Maintain secure infrastructure compliant with CMMC requirements.
• Support SLURM-based clusters for ML training pipelines.
• Hands-on admin across Windows and Linux, including patching, backups, monitoring, and incident response.
• Write and maintain automation scripts for routine administration tasks.

Skills

DoD security clearance

Bachelor's Degree

10+ years of sysadmin experience

Windows/Linux mixed environment

Active Directory

DNS

DHCP

PKI/Certificate Services

VMware vSphere

Linux server administration

Scripting Bash/Python/PowerShell

Networking fundamentals

Backups/Monitoring/Logging

DoD/CMMC compliance

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Bachelor's Degree

Tools

GitLab

Artifactory

MLflow

SLURM

Job description

1st Edge is a growing business seeking top performers to join in our mission of developing Artificial Intelligence solutions for our Government customers. We offer technically advanced, challenging work in an employee-centered environment driven by the desire to contribute to a meaningful purpose. Our employees work closely with Space and Missile Defense Command (SMDC), Missile Defense Agency (MDA), and The U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command (DEVCOM).

We believe in a balanced, quid pro quo relationship between the company and its employees, providing all benefits at no cost plus generous time off. This balanced culture allows employees to do their best work and contributes to our extraordinary success rate. From an excellent benefits package to job autonomy with challenging work, 1st Edge cultivates an innovative and collaborative environment with meaningful work.

Position Summary

1st Edge is seeking a hands-on Principal Systems Administrator to support a hybrid Windows/Linux infrastructure environment across engineering and software/AI development teams. This role owns day-to-day administration, troubleshooting, and secure infrastructure maintenance across both enterprise IT and lab/test environments supporting development and compute-intensive workloads.

Key Responsibilities

• Administer and support Windows Server infrastructure, including Active Directory, DNS, DHCP, and Certificate Services
• Manage and maintain a fleet of Linux servers (Ubuntu, Rocky Linux, RHEL) across engineering and development environments
• Design, build, and support VMware vSphere virtualized infrastructure from the ground up, including GPU-accelerated compute environments
• Manage networking infrastructure including switches, VPNs, firewalls, and secure communications
• Troubleshoot hardware, software, and systems integration issues across lab and test environments
• Work closely with engineering and software development teams to support project- and program-level integration efforts
• Maintain and support hybrid on-prem/cloud connectivity (Entra ID / GCC High)
• Support infrastructure for software development and AI/ML workloads, including GPU compute resources and job scheduling
• Maintain secure infrastructure in accordance with CMMC compliance requirements
• Support high-performance/GPU compute infrastructure (e.g., SLURM-based clusters) for ML training and development pipelines
• Provide hands-on systems administration across both Windows and Linux environments, including patching, backups, monitoring, and incident response
• Write and maintain scripts to automate routine administration, monitoring, and deployment tasks

Required Qualifications

• Active DoD security clearance (or clearance-eligible)
• Bachelor's Degree
• 10+ years of systems administration experience, including at least 3 years in a mixed Windows/Linux environment
• Working knowledge of Active Directory, DNS, DHCP, and PKI/Certificate Services
• Experience administering Linux servers in a production environment (Ubuntu, RHEL, Rocky Linux, or similar)
• Demonstrated experience designing and building VMware vSphere environments from the ground up (host configuration, cluster design, storage/network integration) — not just administering an existing environment
• Practical knowledge of networking fundamentals: switching, VPNs, firewalls, and secure communications
• Experience with enterprise-level backup, monitoring, and logging solutions
• Practical scripting ability (Bash, Python, or PowerShell) sufficient to automate tasks and solve problems — deep software engineering expertise not required, but candidate must be able to get things done
• Strong troubleshooting skills across hardware, software, and integrated systems
• Ability to work cross-functionally with engineering and software development teams
• Understanding of DoD/CMMC compliance requirements in a defense contracting environment

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience supporting developer application platforms such as GitLab, Artifactory, MLflow, or similar tools
• Experience supporting software development environments (CI/CD infrastructure, dev/test environments, artifact repositories)
• Experience supporting AI/ML infrastructure — GPU-accelerated compute, model training pipelines, or job scheduling (e.g., SLURM)
• Experience with hybrid cloud environments (Entra ID, GCC High)
• Security certifications (Security+, CISSP, or similar)
• Experience in lab/test environment support

Bonus Qualifications

• Experience with configuration management and automation tools such as Ansible
• Experience designing or building CI/CD pipelines (GitLab CI, Jenkins, or similar)
• Experience with infrastructure-as-code practices in a defense or regulated environment

We are an equal opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, pregnancy, national origin, disability status, genetic information, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. However, please note, based on the requirements of our Government contracts, you must be a U.S. citizen to apply for this position.