Senior Systems Engineer
ApplyWould you like to work with large-scale infrastructure that enables world-class education and research? We are looking for an experienced systems engineer for our Online Data Services team. Together with system and DevOps engineers, you will build, scale, develop and maintain our infrastructure, supported by consultants who assist our users. You will work on two Nextcloud-based sync-and-share services (SURFdrive for personal storage and Research Drive for research data) and a Ceph-based object store. Our fully on-premises services serve tens of thousands of users and manage petabytes of data, reducing our dependence on hyperscalers. Will you be our new colleague who will further develop and optimise this crucial infrastructure?
Where you will work
SURF is the ICT cooperative for Dutch educational and research institutions. Together with them, we work on digital services and complex innovation challenges to enhance the quality of education and research.
The team you will join
The Online Data Services team manages a number of large-scale data storage systems. We also facilitate the sharing and processing of data for education and research. Our mission is to make the world a better place by contributing to scientific progress and discoveries. We do this by understanding the problems faced by scientists and working together to overcome their challenges.
Our team has an open, collegial atmosphere where everyone is happy to help each other. We also work independently, and personal initiative and new ideas are highly valued. We offer an inspiring, international working environment and an open atmosphere with helpful colleagues. In addition, we work with exciting new technologies to enable world-class scientific research and education. With us, you will be working at the cutting edge of infrastructure technology.
What you will do
Our services currently run largely on Docker Swarm and will be migrated to Kubernetes in the coming year. You will play an important role in this migration and in the further development and management of a large-scale, geographically distributed and highly available Kubernetes environment, with a focus on scalability, monitoring and security.
The storage layer of our services consists of several large Ceph clusters. You will contribute to the management, optimisation and further development of these storage systems and ensure that they are deployed reliably and effectively for our services.
Other tasks you will handle
- You will manage, develop and optimise a large-scale Kubernetes infrastructure and Ceph clusters
- You will guarantee the quality, availability and performance of the services.
- You will develop and improve monitoring and observability.
- You will identify, analyse and resolve incidents and structural problems.
- You will put new hardware into production and phase out existing hardware in a controlled manner.
- You will automate management tasks using scripting.
- You will actively contribute to the further development of our services and the underlying platform.
Your skills and experience
We are looking for a talented systems engineer with thorough knowledge of Linux, network technology and scripting languages. You are accurate, focus on the user without losing sight of performance and stability, and take independent initiative and ownership. In addition, you are driven to develop your skills, embrace new technologies and create innovative solutions within a collegial and ambitious team.
You also have:
- HBO/WO working and thinking level
- Experience with Kubernetes
- A good understanding of Linux operating systems
- Programming experience in Python
- Interest in storage technologies, automation tools and methodologies (e.g. Ansible, Git)
- Excellent verbal and written command of English
It is an advantage if you:
- Have experience with Ceph
- Program in other languages, such as bash/shell scripting
- Have knowledge of web hosting environments
- Are interested in operational IT service management
- Have a good command of the Dutch language
Prior to starting this job, a VOG must be presented.
SURF takes pleasure in doing its recruitment itself; acquisition is therefore not appreciated.