Validation Engineer - Windows supporting Nvidia

Sustainable Talent; Santa Clara (CA); On-site; USD 68,880 - 110,208; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Full benefits

Paid time off

Collaborative company culture

Job summary

Sustainable Talent is seeking a Validation Engineer to join Nvidia in Santa Clara, CA. This full-time position focuses on Windows system-level testing, driver validation, and ensuring CI/CD quality. Ideal candidates should have 5-8 years of relevant experience and proficiency in using debugging tools.

The role offers competitive compensation ranging from $50/hr to $80/hr, alongside full benefits and a dynamic work culture.

Qualifications

• 5-8 years of Windows system-level or driver-level testing experience.
• Hands-on experience with Windows platform validation and driver installation.
• Strong understanding of Windows power management including Modern Standby.

Responsibilities

• Set up and configure Windows OS builds; validate SoC and platform drivers.
• Perform validation across functional, stress, and performance scenarios.
• Analyze memory dumps and support root-cause analysis with platform teams.

Skills

Windows system-level testing

Driver-level validation

Windows debugging tools

Defect triage and analysis

CI/CD pipelines

Tools

WinDbg

KDNET

Windows Driver Kit (WDK)

Job description

Sustainable Talent is partnering with Nvidia, a global leader in computer graphics, PC gaming, and accelerated computing, to fill a Validation Engineer position onsite in Santa Clara, CA.

This is a full-time (W-2) 6-month contract role. Compensation ranges from $50/hour to $80/hour based on experience, education, and location, with full benefits, paid time off, and a collaborative company culture.

Job Summary

The Validation Engineer will test and analyze issues across internal and OEM Windows platform configurations, ensuring CI/CD quality, Windows driver compliance, OEM readiness (HLK/WHQL where applicable), and release readiness across system-level builds.

Responsibilities

• Device Setup & Configuration: Flash Windows OS builds onto boards and OEM devices; install and validate SoC, GPU, USB, display, and platform drivers; configure Windows debugging tools (e.g., WinDbg/KDNET); enable and collect crash dumps and system logs.
• Perform Windows system-level and driver-level validation across functional, stress, power management (Modern Standby, S3/S4), and performance scenarios.
• Investigate Windows system crashes (e.g., BSOD), analyze memory dumps and Windows event logs, and support root-cause analysis with driver and platform teams.
• Develop and execute automated and manual test plans across internal and OEM Windows configurations, validating multiple driver and software build versions.
• Conduct exploratory testing to identify subsystem-level issues (USB, display, PCIe, power management, etc.).
• Triage internal and OEM defects; reproduce failures, collect logs and crash dumps, document findings, and track issue resolution through release readiness.
• Work closely with BSP, driver, OEM QA, and automation teams to ensure CI/CD build stability, validation coverage, and certification readiness (HLK/WHQL where applicable).
• Prepare detailed test execution reports and communicate validation results to internal and external stakeholders.

Qualifications

• 5-8 years of Windows system-level or driver-level testing experience (application-level QA experience alone is not sufficient).
• Hands-on experience with Windows platform validation, driver installation, and driver debugging.
• Proficiency using Windows debugging tools such as WinDbg or KDNET; experience analyzing crash dumps, memory dumps, and Windows event logs.
• Strong understanding of Windows power management, including Modern Standby, ACPI, and S3/S4 sleep states.
• Experience configuring UEFI/BIOS settings and flashing Windows OS builds onto hardware platforms.
• Demonstrated experience in defect triage, log analysis, reproduction of issues, and root-cause support.
• Experience working with CI/CD pipelines supporting Windows builds and regression validation.
• Familiarity with Windows Driver Kit (WDK), HLK/WHQL certification processes, or OEM device validation is strongly preferred.
• Experience validating USB4, DisplayPort (DP) tunneling, PCIe, or platform drivers is a plus.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Sustainable Talent is a M/F+, disabled, and veteran equal-employment-opportunity and affirmative-action employer.