Open since Aug 2026
Lead System Administrator Level IIIVantage Systems · Washington
Lead System Administrator Level III
WashingtonOn-siteFull-time
AI Summary
Administers and supports complex UNIX, Linux, Windows, VxWorks and VMware systems, plus networks, databases and configuration management, for spacecraft and research programs at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory. Provides Tier I and Tier II help desk support and manages third-party development tool licenses.
About this role
This is a journeyman-level position working on-site at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory's Naval Center for Space Technology in Washington, DC
Key Responsibilities:
- Administer desktop, server, storage, network, and mobile systems connected to local and wide area networks.
- Monitor user accounts, system security, operating system installations, and other local-area system administration functions.
- Support the implementation, troubleshooting, operation, and maintenance of IT systems
- Manage IT infrastructure and the technical processes associated with those systems.
- Provide day-to-day operational support, monitoring, and problem resolution for client, server, storage, network, and mobile devices.
- Provide Tier I help desk and Tier II advanced troubleshooting support, including problem identification, diagnosis, escalation, and resolution.
- Track system and hardware problems and remain involved through final resolution.
- Communicate system status, incidents, and resolution activities to agency management and internal customers.
- Configure and administer UNIX, Linux, Windows, Wintel, VxWorks, and VMware environments.
- Install and load operating systems, application software, patches, updates, and system enhancements.
- Isolate and resolve problems involving applications, operating systems, hardware, communications infrastructure, or combinations of these components.
- Configure and troubleshoot network components and implement operating system enhancements to improve reliability, security, and performance.
- Integrate new technologies into existing and newly developed systems, including system transition and migration activities.
- Define hardware, server, workstation, and network requirements for the NCST spacecraft and payload development environment.
- Design, implement, test, and maintain server and workstation system services.
- Manage the virtual machines required by the division using VMware, VMPlayer, or comparable virtualization technologies.
- Manage licenses, renewals, installations, and administrative support for third-party software, including Jira, VxWorks, Crucible/Fisheye, Klocwork, Red Hat, Jama, GitLab, and related development tools.
- Provide database design and administration support for SQL-based spacecraft interface databases.
- Maintain databases used to define software communication protocols, packet formats, data fields, field constraints, and embedded flight-software interfaces.
- Support automated generation of flight-software source code, ground-system data structures, data-handling procedures, interface specifications, and interface control documents.
- Continue the growth, maintenance, and adaptation of the existing spacecraft interface database for current and future space missions.
- Provide configuration management and defect-tracking support for software, procedures, documentation, plans, deliverables, and other program components.
- Maintain and improve configuration management and problem-reporting systems supporting multiple spacecraft programs, common software baselines, and mission-unique processing.
- Support configuration management requirements applicable to NCST personnel, subcontractors, and other Government customers.
Minimum Qualifications:
- Education: Bachelor of Science degree in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Physics, Computer Science, Mathematics, or a closely related technical discipline.
- Experience Level: Level III, with senior-level experience administering complex technical environments supporting spacecraft, payload, engineering, scientific, research, or mission-critical systems.
- Demonstrated experience supporting the infrastructure, database, configuration management, and defect-tracking requirements
- Ability to support both stable production systems and rapidly changing research and development environments.
- Experience operating within DoD cybersecurity, information assurance, and system-security requirements.
- U.S. citizenship is required for this position.
Clearance:
Active, final DoD-granted Top Secret security clearance with SCI eligibility.
Personnel must be able to maintain TS/SCI access throughout performance.
Required Skills:
- In-depth systems administration experience with UNIX, Linux, Windows/Wintel, VxWorks, and VMware.
- Experience administering desktop, server, storage, network, and virtualized infrastructure.
- Experience with system monitoring, account administration, cybersecurity controls, patching, operating system installation, and incident resolution.
- Experience providing Tier I and Tier II technical support.
- Experience troubleshooting integrated hardware, software, operating system, application, and network problems.
- Strong knowledge of network routing, service distribution, shared file systems, and NFS.
- Experience with multisite and multivendor network environments.
- Experience with relational and non-relational database technologies, including SQL and MongoDB.
- Experience administering configuration management, issue-tracking, requirements-management, and development tools such as Jira, Jama, GitLab, Crucible/Fisheye, and Klocwork.
- Experience managing software licenses, renewals, and third-party technical products.
- Experience supporting software-development environments using C, C++, Python, Bash, Java, or assembly languages.
- Ability to document technical requirements, system configurations, operating procedures, incidents, and corrective actions.
Preferred Skills:
- Experience supporting spacecraft, satellite, payload, embedded, or flight-software development programs.
- Experience with embedded processor architectures such as PowerPC, R3000, 8051, I960, and MIPS 3081.
- Experience with embedded software development, device control, and system operations.
- Experience designing and administering databases used to define spacecraft communication protocols, command and telemetry packets, software interfaces, and message structures.
- Experience supporting automated source-code and technical-document generation from structured database content.
- Experience maintaining common software baselines used across multiple programs and mission-unique implementations.
- Experience with MS Access, Red Hat Enterprise Linux, VMware, GitLab, Jira, Jama, SQL, and MongoDB.
- Familiarity with Navy, NRL, or other DoD research and development environments.
- Experience supporting highly available mission-critical systems while maintaining compliance with Government security requirements.
Location:
On-site at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory, 4555 Overlook Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20375.
Skills
BashCC++Configuration ManagementCrucible/FisheyeDoD CybersecurityGitLabJamaJavaJiraKlocworkLinuxMongoDBNetwork RoutingNFSPythonRed Hat Enterprise LinuxSQLUnixVMwareVxWorksWindows
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