Sr. System Administrator

SMS Data Products Group, Inc.; Fort Belvoir (VA); On-site; USD 110,000 - 140,000; Full time

Job summary

SMS Data Products Group, Inc. seeks a Sr. System Administrator to support the DTRA I3TS Infrastructure Services team at Fort Belvoir, VA.

You will sustain and optimize the Linux production environment, design and deploy new Linux capabilities, and work within ITIL practices on a multi-project basis. You will manage lifecycle tasks from design through development to production, with on‑site duties and occasional remote work as approved, focusing on patching, hardening, and automation using

Qualifications

• Experience administering Linux servers in production and test environments.
• Active DoD Top Secret/SCI clearance.
• Experience with Red Hat Enterprise Linux and Satellite.
• Familiarity with STIGs, cyber hardening, and security compliance.

Responsibilities

• Provision servers and environments.
• Manage user access.
• Full lifecycle management of Linux servers, including patching.
• Automation using shell scripting and Ansible.
• Apply security patches and hardening to meet standards.
• Monitor performance and respond to alerts.
• Maintain NTP services in production.
• Support Docker/Kubernetes/OpenShift environments as needed.

Skills

DoD clearance

Red Hat Linux

Red Hat Satellite

Virtualization

STIG hardening

Log analysis

Troubleshooting

Bash/Python scripting

Education

Bachelor's degree in IT/CS

Master's degree in IT/CS

Tools

Kubernetes

OpenShift

Containers

GitHub

Ansible Tower

Job description

SMS is seeking a Sr. System Administrator at Fort Belvoir, VA to support the DTRA I3TS Infrastructure Services team to maintain and optimize the Linux production environment. The candidate will be responsible for sustaining Linux servers as well as the conceptualization, design, development and implementation of new Linux capabilities. The candidate is expected to work well as a part of the DTRA Systems Administration team using ITIL best practices as well as work independently on assigned tasks. The candidate is expected to support the entire service lifecycle from design through development to production, building and deploying Linux based systems in a virtual environment.

Job Responsibilities

• Provision servers and environments.
• Manage user access.
• Full lifecycle management of Linux servers, including installation, configuration and patching in production and test environments.
• Automation knowledge scripting in Unix shell and Ansible playbooks.
• Perform security patching, upgrades, and hardening to meet compliance standards and remediate critical vulnerabilities.
• Monitor system performance and respond to alerts.
• Establish and maintain NTP services in the production environment.
• Maintain satellite servers for the agency, software releases and patches.
• Experience with the following emerging technologies or equivalent technology: Kubernetes, Open Shift, Containers, GitHub, Ansible Tower.
• Ensure compliance with security standards and practices aligned with DoD STIGs.
• Experience with web servers and use of certificates.
• Open source: Apache Hadoop, Zookeeper, Puppet.
• App servers: JBoss, Tomcat, Jetty, NGINX, HT.
• Be able to work in a fast‑paced environment and must be able to work independently.
• Work on multiple projects, leading projects that fall within the area of responsibility.
• Communicate with internal team members across multiple areas and client team members.
• Provide support on a Monday‑Friday business hours schedule, also responsible for on‑call, extended hour, and weekend support as required by mission or emergency situations.
• Create, maintain, and implement detailed documentation and maintain standard operating procedures.
• This is an onsite work opportunity with remote work available as approved by the customer. The primary work location: Fort Belvoir, VA with some work being completed at the Reston, VA location.

Required Qualifications

• BS with 6‑8 years, or MS degree with 4‑6 years of experience in IT operations working with Linux servers and virtualization.
• Must hold an active, DoD Top Secret/SCI security clearance.
• DoD 8570 IAT Level II or III certification (e.g., Security+ CE, CASP+, CISSP).
• Hands‑on experience administering Red Her​e Enterprise Linux environments.
• Direct experience supporting systems with Red Her​e Satellite.
• Understanding of virtualized infrastructure, server backup and restoral procedures, application of STIGs and cyber hardening approaches.
• Basic experience with log file analysis.
• Strong troubleshooting and problem‑solving skills.

Desired Qualifications

• Red Her​e certifications (RHCSA or RHCE).
• Experience implementing and maintaining DISA STIG compliance using Red Her​e Satellite and Ansible.
• Experience integrating Linux systems with Active Directory or LDAP.
• Familiarity with virtualization platforms (VMware, KVM).
• Scripting experience (Bash or Python) to support automation initiatives.
• Experience supporting classified networks or cross‑domain environments.

SMS is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or status as a protected veteran.