Senior Linux Systems Engineer

Ampere; Santa Clara (CA); On-site; USD 159,000 - 239,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

401K retirement plan

Unlimited flextime

10+ paid holidays

Job summary

Ampere is seeking a Senior Linux Systems Engineer to join our Santa Clara team. You will design, deploy, and maintain Linux infrastructure, including virtualization, storage, containers, and HPC components.

Mentor junior staff and ensure high availability, security, and performance across our systems. The role emphasizes automation with Ansible and Terraform, container orchestration with Kubernetes/OpenShift, and experience with HPC schedulers (Slurm/LSF).

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent in a technical field.
• 5+ years of Linux system administration experience in RHEL/Ubuntu/Rocky environments.
• Proven experience with virtualization (KVM, XEN, VMware).
• Experience with enterprise storage (SAN, NAS, Ceph).
• Automation and config management with Ansible and Terraform.
• Docker and orchestrators like Kubernetes or OpenShift.
• Familiarity with HPC cluster management and schedulers (Slurm, LSF).
• Strong Python scripting for automation.

Responsibilities

• Install, configure, and maintain Linux servers (RHEL/Ubuntu/Rocky).
• Manage virtualization platforms (KVM, XEN, VMware).
• Develop automation scripts with Ansible, Terraform, and related tools.
• Build and manage containerized apps with Docker; run Kubernetes/OpenShift clusters.
• Support HPC environments with schedulers and parallel file systems.
• Maintain security, patching, and compliance; document procedures.

Skills

Linux system administration

RHEL

Ubuntu

Rocky Linux

Virtualization

KVM

XEN

VMware

Automation

Ansible

Terraform

Docker

Kubernetes

OpenShift

HPC

Slurm

LSF

Python

Ceph

Security

Education

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or related field

Tools

VMware

KVM

XEN

Job description

Invent the future with us. Ampere is a semiconductor design company for a new era, leading the future of computing with an innovative approach to CPU design focused on high-performance, energy efficient AI compute.

As a pioneer in the new frontier of energy efficient high-performance computing, Ampere is part of the Softbank Group of companies driving sustainable computing for AI, Cloud, and edge applications.

Join us at Ampere and work alongside a passionate and growing team.

About The Role

We are seeking an experienced Senior Linux Systems Engineer to join our dynamic team in Santa Clara. The ideal candidate will have extensive expertise in Linux system administration, virtualization, storage solutions, container orchestration, and HPC environments. This role requires a proactive engineer who can design, deploy, and maintain complex infrastructure, automate workflows, and mentor junior staff while ensuring high availability, security, and performance of our systems.

What You'll Achieve

• Linux System Administration: Install, configure, and maintain Linux servers primarily running Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), Ubuntu, and Rocky Linux distributions. Perform routine system monitoring, tuning, and troubleshooting to ensure optimal performance and reliability.
• Virtualization Management: Deploy and manage virtualization platforms including KVM, XEN, and VMWare. Optimize virtual machine configurations and resource allocation to meet workload demands.
• Automation and Infrastructure as Code: Develop and maintain automation scripts and playbooks using Ansible, Terraform, and other DevOps tools to streamline system provisioning, configuration management, and deployment processes.
• Containerization and Orchestration: Build, deploy, and manage containerized applications using Docker. Administer Kubernetes or OpenShift clusters to orchestrate container workloads efficiently.
• High-Performance Computing (HPC): Support HPC cluster environments by managing job scheduling systems (e.g., Slurm, LSF), optimizing parallel file systems such as Lustre and GPFS, and tuning system parameters for maximum throughput and scalability.
• Security and Compliance: Implement security best practices including patch management, vulnerability assessments, access controls, and compliance auditing to safeguard infrastructure.
• Documentation and Knowledge Sharing: Create and maintain detailed documentation of system configurations, procedures, and troubleshooting guides. Provide training and mentorship to junior engineers and team members. Incident Response and On-Call Support: Participate in on-call rotations to provide timely response to system incidents, perform root cause analysis, and implement corrective actions to minimize downtime.

About You

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or a related technical field. Equivalent work experience may be considered.
• Minimum of 5+ years of professional experience in Linux system administration with strong hands-on expertise in RHEL, Ubuntu, and Rocky Linux environments.
• Proven experience managing virtualization technologies including KVM, XEN, and VMWare.
• Solid understanding and practical experience with enterprise storage solutions such as SAN, NAS, and distributed storage platforms like Ceph.
• Proficiency in automation and configuration management tools such as Ansible and Terraform.
• Experience with container technologies including Docker and orchestration platforms like Kubernetes or OpenShift.
• Familiarity with HPC cluster management, job schedulers (Slurm, LSF), and parallel file systems (Lustre, GPFS) is highly desirable.
• Strong scripting skills in Python for automation and system integration tasks.
• Excellent analytical, problem-solving, and communication skills. Ability to work independently and collaboratively in a fast-paced environment.
• Demonstrated ability to mentor junior engineers and contribute to team knowledge sharing.

Preferred Certifications

• Red Hat Certified Engineer (RHCE) or equivalent Linux certification.
• Certifications in virtualization (e.g., VMware Certified Professional) and container orchestration (e.g., Certified Kubernetes Administrator) are a plus.

What We'll Offer

At Ampere we believe in taking care of our employees and providing a competitive total rewards package that includes base pay, cash long-term incentive, and comprehensive benefits. The full base pay range for this role is between $159,000 and $239,000.

Our benefits include health, wellness, and financial programs that support employees through every stage of life.

Benefit Highlights Include

• Premium medical insurance, dental insurance, vision insurance, as well as income protection and a 401K retirement plan, so that you can feel secure in your health and financial future.
• Unlimited Flextime and 10+ paid holidays so that you can embrace a healthy work-life balance.
• A variety of healthy snacks, energizing espresso, and refreshing drinks to keep you fueled and focused throughout the day.

And there is much more than compensation and benefits. At Ampere, we foster an inclusive culture that empowers our employees to do more and grow more. We are excited to share more about our career opportunities with you through the interview process. Our benefits include health, wellness, and financial programs that support employees through every stage of life.

The role is based at Ampere's Santa Clara, CA office. This role is full-time onsite.

Ampere is an inclusive and equal opportunity employer and welcomes applicants from all backgrounds. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, national origin, citizenship, religion, age, veteran and/or military status, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, physical or mental disability, or any other basis protected by federal, state or local law.