Network Hardware Engineer

Cloudflare; United States; On-site; USD 120,000 - 165,000; Full time

Job summary

Cloudflare is seeking a Network Hardware Engineer to drive selection, validation, and deployment of network devices for the global network. You will champion NPI processes, develop test plans, and automate validation workflows.

You will work with Ops, Datacenters, and Engineering to optimize hardware performance, analyze data trends, and improve reliability using scripting and monitoring tools.

Qualifications

• Thorough evaluation and experimentation of hardware performance.
• Experience with network hardware validation and benchmarking.
• Knowledge of data-center routing and switching protocols.

Responsibilities

• Lead New Product Introduction for network hardware devices.
• Develop and automate test plans aligning with hardware limits.
• Collaborate across teams to drive hardware decisions.
• Create tests and reproducible scripts for testing efficiency.
• Troubleshoot hardware issues and document results.

Skills

Bachelor/Master/PhD in Computer/EE/CS

Hardware evaluation

Networking hardware

Networking protocols

Project leadership

OEM/ODM collaboration

Python scripting

AI tooling familiarity

Education

BS/MS/PhD in Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, CS

Tools

Spirent/Ixia

Python

Prometheus

Grafana

JunOS IOS-XR EOS SONiC ArcOS

Spirent

Job description

About Us

At Cloudflare, we are on a mission to help build a better Internet. Today the company runs one of the world's largest networks that powers millions of websites and other Internet properties for customers ranging from individual bloggers to SMBs to Fortune 500 companies. Cloudflare protects and accelerates any Internet application online without adding hardware, installing software, or changing a line of code. Internet properties powered by Cloudflare all have web traffic routed through its intelligent global network, which gets smarter with every request. As a result, they see significant improvement in performance and a decrease in spam and other attacks. Cloudflare was named to Entrepreneur Magazine's Top Company Cultures list and ranked among the World's Most Innovative Companies by Fast Company.

At Cloudflare, we're not looking for people who wait for a polished roadmap; we're looking for the builders who see the cracks in the Internet that everyone else has simply learned to live with. We value candidates who have the instinct to spot a "normalized" problem and the AI-native curiosity to create a solution using the latest tools. Our culture is built on iteration, leveraging AI to ship faster today to make it better tomorrow, while ensuring that every improvement, no matter how small, is shared across the team to lift everyone up. If you're the type of person who values curiosity over bureaucracy, and that AI is a partner in solving tough problems to keep the Internet moving forward, you'll fit right in.

Available Location: Austin, TX

Job Title

Network Hardware Engineer

Role Summary

As a pivotal technical contributor within the Network Hardware Engineering (NetHW) team, you will drive the selection and qualification process for network devices used in Cloudflare's Global Network. The NetHW team manages the New Product Introduction (NPI) process for all network devices. Our responsibilities also include the evaluation and qualification of new production network operating system images and versions. Furthermore, we provide essential support by reproducing bugs to assist Operations with TAC cases and testing new features and major configuration updates.

Role Responsibilities

You will be involved in every stage of the New Product Introduction (NPI) process, including requirements gathering, device selection, Device Validation Testing (DVT), Production Validation Testing (PVT), and Operational Acceptance. Furthermore, you will be responsible for creating and automating test plans that align with both operational needs and hardware limitations, as well as driving efforts to improve testing efficiency.

Network Hardware Systems Engineering Responsibilities:

• Product Lifecycle Management: Lead the introduction of new network hardware systems, including detailed engineering validation in lab environments
• Qualification & Validation: Gather requirements, contribute to network architecture, and execute hardware design and product validation
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Partner with Network Engineering & Operations, Datacenter Engineering & Operations, and other operational teams to make network hardware decisions
• Automation & Performance Testing: Develop tools and automation to effectively evaluate network hardware performance
• Operational Support: Assist operational engineers by troubleshooting, reproducing, and resolving network hardware issues
• Communication: Document and share results and updates via blog/wiki posts, ticketing systems, and internal presentations

Role Requirements (Must-Have Skills)

Must-Have Skills

• BS, MS, or PhD in Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, or equivalent practical experience
• Proven ability to conduct thorough evaluation and experimentation, including testing, measurement, and/or simulation of hardware performance
• Extensive experience with networking hardware architecture, validation, performance benchmarking, debugging and deployment
• Deep knowledge of network engineering and protocols used in data center switching and routing as well as Internet routing
• Track record of driving engineering projects from idea to experiment to implementation
• Demonstrated success in working with OEM/ODMs and technology vendors
• Professional-level proficiency in Python or similar programming and/or scripting languages
• Familiarity with various coding agents and other AI tools and technologies

NIce-to-Have Skills

• Adept at automating traffic generation equipment (Spirent/Ixia) and test cases
• In-depth hardware knowledge of platforms (ASICs, TCAMs, Packet-Pipelines, etc)
• Experience with Optical Line Systems and troubleshooting transceiver issues
• Familiarity with different network operating systems such as Junos, IOS-XR, EOS, SONiC, and ArcOS
• Experience with white-box network switches and open source projects
• Proficient in using observability and monitoring tools like Prometheus and Grafana, with the ability to analyze and observe trends over