Sr Systems Administrator

Peraton; North Carolina; On-site; USD 110,000 - 140,000; Full time

Job summary

Peraton is seeking a Sr Systems Administrator to support E-Mail systems, virtualization technologies, and Windows Active Directory. The role covers on-prem Exchange, Proofpoint security, and modern DNS-based authentication protocols such as DKIM, SPF, and DMARC.

The position begins with a 6-week orientation onsite in Boston, 5 days per week, followed by a hybrid onsite schedule with a minimum of 3 days per week at the Boston location. The role may revert to full-time onsite at any time.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent with 5+ years of experience, or 7+ years with an Associate degree, or 9+ years with a high school diploma.
• U.S. Citizenship or Green Card and ability to pass background check.
• Hands-on administration, troubleshooting, patching, and support of MS Exchange, VMware infra and Windows AD.
• Experience with Active Directory, DNS and Windows core services.
• Experience managing private cloud environments and designing highly available virtualized infra with monitoring standards and procedures.
• Knowledge of HPE ProLiant servers and ESXi v8/v9.
• Experience working with vendors and end users on system troubleshooting.
• Ability to automate processes with scripts (PowerShell, Perl, VBS).
• Strong multitasking, communication, analytics, and organizational skills.

Responsibilities

• Monitor health and performance of on-premises Microsoft Exchange environments.
• Keep Exchange up to date with latest supported versions.
• Collaborate with backup teams to test and secure backups and participate in monthly restore tests.
• Manage E-Mail retention and archiving to meet legal requirements.
• Administer Proofpoint and DNS-based E-mail authentication (DKIM, SPF, DMARC).
• Maintain Windows/Active Directory performance and VMware virtualization environment health.
• Recommend and implement changes to improve Exchange performance and resiliency.
• Plan hardware builds to refresh resources and right-size guest machines.
• Architect ESXi-host performance and availability, and ensure alignment with business needs.
• Support after-hours rotations as needed.

Skills

Exchange administration

VMware virtualization

Windows Active Directory

DNS

PowerShell scripting

Vendor coordination

Troubleshooting

Documentation

Networking basics

Automation

Education

Bachelor's degree in IT/CS

Associate degree

High School diploma with 9 years experience

Tools

HPE ProLiant servers

ESXi v8/v9

Proofpoint E-mail security

DKIM SPF DMARC

Job description

Basic Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree and 5 years of experience or an Associate's degree and 7 years of experience or a High School diploma and 9 years of experience.
• Must be a U.S. Citizen or Green card holder and can pass a background check.
• Demonstrated hands on experience performing administration, troubleshooting, patching, and support of MS Exchange, VMware virtual infrastructures and Windows AD
• Experience and in-depth understanding of Active Directory, DNS and other Windows core services
• Experience managing private cloud environments as well as developing highly available virtualized environments including defining monitoring standards, operational procedures and growth plansrequired
• Knowledge and experience with HPE ProLiant servers
• Proven experience designing and implementing an enterprise-wide virtual infrastructure using ESXi v8/v9
• Demonstrated experience working with vendors and end users on system troubleshooting
• Ability to automate processes through the effective application of scripts (PowerShell, Pearl, VBS)
• Ability to handle multiple tasks while prioritizing and delivering results on time
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills
• Must have strong analytical skills
• Ability to think strategically with technical vision
• Attention to detail and strong organizational skills

Preferred Qualifications:

• Certifications:
• Microsoft/VMware certifications preferred
• ITIL certification preferred

Peraton has an opening for a Sr Systems Administrator with a comprehensive skill set in E-Mail systems, virtualization technologies and Windows Active Directory.

The person who takes this role will spend their first 6 weeks (orientation) onsite, 5 days a week, in our Boston office at 1 Ashburton Place.

Candidates will ONLY be considered if they live local to Boston. Candidates who live more than 2 hours from downtown Boston will not be considered.

After the orientation period, the person in this role will be on a hybrid onsite schedule with a minimum of 3 days per week, at the same Boston location. The role could revert to full time onsite in Boston 5 days per week at any time.

The System Administrator is responsible for management of all Windows / Active Directory environments. This includes both physical and virtual systems and the services running on them. We are looking for a System Administrator with a strong background in on premise E-Mail system support. They should have extensive experience supporting Microsoft Exchange E-Mail servers, Proofpoint E-Mail security appliances and be able to implement and manage newer DNS based E-Mail authentication protocols such as DKIM, SPF, DMARC and others in this rapidly evolving space.

• Monitor the health and analyze/maintain the performance of our on prem Microsoft Exchange environments.
• Keep Exchange patched and up to date with latest supported versions.
• Work with our backup administrators to maintain valid, tested and secure backups of the E-Mail system including participation in our monthly restore testing process.
• Manage E-Mail retention and archiving policies to keep E-Mail data according to legal requirements and maintain healthy Exchange mailboxes.
• Manage E-Mail security devices like Proofpoint along with DNS based E-Mail authentication requirements to help secure our communications.
• Assist in searches of E-Mail related to public record requests.
• Monitor the health and analyze/maintain the performance of our Microsoft Windows/Active Directory environment.
• Monitor the health and analyze/maintain the performance of our VMware virtualization environment.
• Make recommendations and implement changes to improve the overall performance and resiliency of MS Exchange.
• Manage hardware buildouts to expand and refresh available physical resources.
• Manage Active Directory core services:
• DHCP and DNS services.
• Group policy design and management
• OU structure and AD replication
• Test, upgrade, and migrate virtual environments as new versions of software and hardware become available.
• Participate in rotation for after-hours support.
• Monitor the health and analyze performance of the VMware environment.
• Keep ESXi and vCenter patched and updated to latest supported levels.
• Make recommendations and implement changes to improve the overall performance of the various VMware host clusters.
• Hardware build-out to expand and refresh available physical resources.
• Create a strategy that right sizes guest machines to ensure our production environment is free from contention.
• Architect an environment that optimizes ESXi host performance, reliability and availability.
• Test, upgrade, and migrate old host servers/clusters to new and align the resources with the requirements of the business.
• Work with our Cyber Security Team to harden our VMware environment guided by CISA recommendations.
• Create and document procedures regarding virtualization standards within the organization.
• Set up layers of protection against ransomware and other modern-day threats to data.