Gemstone DevOps Engineer ( Contractor)

Momentum; Centurion; On-site; ZAR 420,000 - 660,000; Full time

Job summary

Momentum is seeking a Linux/Windows Systems Administrator to manage Linux servers hosting GemStone/S environments, ensuring stability, security, and performance across production, test and development systems. This DevOps role collaborates with development and infrastructure teams to support deployments and automation.

The ideal candidate has 5+ years in Linux administration, a Diploma/Degree in IT, and familiarity with GemStone/S.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of Linux systems administration experience.
• Diploma or degree in IT, CS, or related field.
• Experience with GemStone/S is highly advantageous.

Responsibilities

• Configure and maintain Linux OS across development, test, prelive and production environments.
• Monitor and maintain GemStone/S environments and processes.
• Support deployment pipelines and environment configuration changes (Jenkins, Ansible, OS Scripts).
• Assist development teams with performance analysis and troubleshooting.
• Document architecture changes and system dependencies.

Skills

Linux administration

GemStone/S

CI/CD support

Automation scripting

Security best practices

Education

Degree in IT / Computing

Tools

Jenkins

Ansible

Git

DataDog

Job description

Through our client-facing brands and our other specialist brands, Momentum Group enables business and people from all walks of life to achieve their financial goals and life aspirations.

We help people grow their savings, protect what matters to them and invest for the future. We help companies and organisations care for and reward their employees and members. Through our own network of advisers or via independent brokers and utilising new platforms Momentum Group provides practical financial solutions for people, communities and businesses.

Disclaimer As an applicant, please verify the legitimacy of this job advert on our company career page.

Role Purpose

The Linux/Windows Systems Administrator is responsible for the installation, configuration, administration, monitoring, maintenance, and optimisation of Linux servers hosting GemStone/S application environments. The role ensures the stability, security, performance, and availability of production, test, and development systems while working closely with application development teams, infrastructure teams. This is the primary DevOps role for the Gemstone/s environment.

Requirements

• Diploma or Degree in Information Technology, Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field.
• Relevant Linux certifications will be advantageous.
• 5+ years of Linux systems administration experience.
• 2+ years supporting enterprise application platforms.
• Experience administering mission-critical production environments.
• Experience supporting GemStone/S environments is highly advantageous.

Duties & Responsibilities

Linux Server Administration

• Configure, and maintain Linux operating systems across development, test, prelive, and production environments.
• Coordinate operating system upgrades, patching, and security updates with I&O and other stakeholders.
• Manage user accounts, permissions, groups, and access controls.
• Monitor and maintain storage, file systems, network services, and system services.
• Troubleshoot server, operating system, and infrastructure issues.

GemStone/S Administration

• Monitor and maintain GemStone/S environments.
• Configure and upgrade GemStone/S environments with senior devs.
• Monitor GemStone processes (stone, netldi, gem, and repository).
• Monitor user and bulk processes.
• Monitor GemStone backups, replication and recovery procedures.
• Monitor repository integrity checks and report repository-related issues.

Deploy Pipeline

• Monitor deployment pipelines and respond to issues.
• Support application deployments and environment configuration changes (Jenkins, git, Ansible, OS Scripts).
• Assist development teams with performance analysis and troubleshooting.

Monitoring and Performance Management

• Monitor server health, application availability, disk usage, memory utilisation, and system performance.
• Implement proactive monitoring and alerting mechanisms.
• Enhance observability by integrating with organisation tools (DataDog)

Security and Compliance

• Enforce Linux security standards and best practices.
• Manage SSH access, certificates, firewall configurations, and vulnerability remediation.
• Ensure compliance with company security policies and audit requirements.
• Participate in security reviews and incident response activities.

Backup, Recovery and Business Continuity

• Monitor daily restore procedures.
• Develop, maintain, and test backup and recovery procedures.
• Perform regular disaster recovery validation exercises.
• Ensure recovery time and recovery point objectives are met.
• Maintain documentation of recovery procedures.

Automation and DevOps Support

• Maintain and enhance automation scripts for administration and operational tasks (Jenkins and Ansible).
• Support CI/CD processes and deployment automation (Jenkins, Ansible, terragrunt and bat/bash).
• Implement configuration management and infrastructure-as-code practices where applicable.
• Improve operational efficiency through automation.

Documentation

• Maintain accurate technical documentation for systems, configurations, procedures, and support activities.
• Create and update operational runbooks and troubleshooting guides.
• Document architecture changes and system dependencies.

Support and Incident Management

• Support the investigation of production incidents.
• Conduct root cause analysis and implement preventative measures.
• Work with internal teams to resolve complex issues.

AI

• Use approved AI-assisted tools to enhance coding, testing, troubleshooting, and documentation activities.
• Validate and apply appropriate governance to AI-generated outputs, ensuring quality, security, and compliance requirements are met.

Competencies

Technical Competencies Required

Linux Administration

• Red Hat Enterprise Linux, Ubuntu, or similar distributions.
• Shell scripting (Bash, Python, or similar).
• Systems, networking, storage management, and performance tuning.
• MQ configuration

Gemstone

• GemStone/S Skills will be advantageous
• Backup and recovery procedures.
• Performance monitoring and capacity planning.
• MFA integration - Client / tokens

Infrastructure

• Cloud platforms - AWS advantageous.
• TCP/IP networking.

Monitoring and Automation

• DataDog (Prometheus).
• Git version control.
• Ansible or similar automation tools.
• CI/CD tooling knowledge advantageous.

Behavioural Competencies

• Self driven to learn.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving abilities.
• Excellent troubleshooting skills.
• Ability to work independently and take ownership of systems.
• Strong communication and documentation skills.
• Attention to detail and commitment to operational excellence.
• Ability to perform effectively under pressure during incidents.
• Collaborative team player with customer-focused attitude.