Summary
Overview
Work History
Education
Skills
Accomplishments
Timeline
Generic

Richard Jones

Eagan,MN

Summary

Experienced LINUX professional with 9+ years of expertise in system administration, network security, and troubleshooting. Proven ability to install, configure, and upgrade LINUX systems with a strong understanding of system performance tuning. Skilled in automating tasks to streamline processes, and providing technical support for complex issues.

Overview

9
9
years of professional experience

Work History

UNIX / Linux Monitoring Engineer - ESM Tools

(Peraton) TEKsystems
12.2022 - Current
  • Designing, developing, deploying, and supporting monitoring systems in a Linux/Unix enterprise environment, using UNIX shell scripting, Java, and Python.
  • Performed scripting to engineer integrations between the ESM tools and other enterprise monitoring tools, such as AppDynamics, SolarWinds, and Everbridge.
  • Experience in the installation, integration, troubleshooting, and administering of Unix/Linux systems in a monitoring environment for a network of a large enterprise.
  • Wrote bash scripts that were needed in the updating and patching of AppDynamics agents for each application in CAT by researching a new AppDynamics agent version, installing the new version, and creating the installation script, once CAT testing was completed successfully applied it to the scripts and updated PROD environment in a maintenance window.
  • Generates weekly reports by providing metrics and data to users and managers to help them understand the state of the monitored systems.
  • Provides an action plan for the resolution of any/all faults detected.
  • Develops and implements operational management processes and procedures.
  • Develop and implement procedures that support proactive problem detection and avoidance, including disaster recovery planning and implementation.
  • Installed, integrated, troubleshot, administered, and engineered all products on Linux/UNIX-like systems.
  • Improved the efficiency of the team by 100% by scripting in Python, Selenium, Perl, and BASH to automatically log into the Linux servers and complete the job of monitoring the servers every day.
  • Implemented and evaluated the effectiveness of change management tickets for UNIX/Linux monitoring tools in a large enterprise.
  • Managed Linux versions of SUSE (80% of Linux deployments) and Red Hat (20% of Linux deployments) on a daily basis to detect and prevent performance issues with minimal business impact.

UNIX / Linux Monitoring Engineer

Pyramid
10.2020 - 07.2021
  • Reduced the number of server outages by 75% and the mean time to repair by 50% by managing a team of Linux administrators to perform systems administration on Linux and Windows Servers and event management monitoring of networks and hosts in an MSP environment.
  • Implemented custom monitoring scripts for UNIX and Linux systems to monitor metrics and alert the paging groups for response to issues.
  • Cleaned up files taking up 90% of space on a Linux server to prevent downtime and resolved related monitoring alerts.
  • Restart services on Windows servers, improving availability metrics to 99.99%.
  • Restart servers (rolling reboot) and restart services, monitoring system health and performance metrics.
  • Reviewed the service-level agreement (SLA) metrics of a managed service provider (MSP) and worked with the client to meet their required SLA metrics.
  • OS: HPUX, AIX, RHEL, CentOS, Windows Server 2012-2016.
  • Software: VMware, Jira, NewRelic, ServiceNow, Zabbix.
  • Services: JVM, Active Directory, Tomcat.
  • Automation: Ansible automation, Ansible scripting and configuration, python and bash scripting.
  • Documentation: Writing documentation and creating SOPs, Gathering information, and documenting processes and procedures.
  • Documented bridge calls and associated tickets.
  • Hosting Bridges: Hosting bridge lines and directing lines till resolution, Paging teams needed to resolve issues reported, Documenting the issue reported, and the resolution.

Linux Systems Engineer

TEKsystems
11.2019 - 07.2020
  • Administered and monitored 200+ Linux CentOS 6-7 servers, pushed updates with Salt automation configurations, and VMware 6.5, using Linux command line, VMware ESXi 6.5, and SaltStack Salt.
  • Managed snap holds on Linux clients, backups, and Linux patching, using a ticketing system to ensure accountability, and implementing trending metrics to detect and react to any problems before they occur.
  • Gathered metrics on resource usage, memory leaks, and throughput, as well as investigated and fixed issues in Python scripts, and Bash scripts, and to optimize EnvisionRX Linux infrastructure.
  • Resolved all vulnerabilities on the Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6-7 systems by applying the appropriate security patches after analyzing the system's vulnerability reports.
  • Wrote a Python script using Salt, for patching Linux servers, and tested it in a development environment.
  • Created and edited bash scripts to automate tasks and improve efficiency.
  • Managed the patching of CentOS 6x & CentOS 7x servers by creating checks, alerting on checks, and removing servers from rotation when the patching process was completed.
  • Client DB Prod clones, Client PBM application servers, CentOS 7x – migration efforts.
  • Create a list of each client’s Prod executable, scripts, and CRON jobs, Jira work requests.
  • PBM software migration tasks, Clone hold requests, Bad Clone Snaps, Service Now tickets, Windows requests, and Linux requests.
  • Monitoring SolarWinds for alerts, defunct SQLMGR processes, filesystems space alerts, and any critical alerts.

Systems Engineer

TEKsystems
03.2019 - 09.2019
  • Administered VMware, SCCM, ManageEngine Desktop Central, Sophos, Active Directory, Citrix, and Alien Vault to maintain virtual machines and monitor network security.
  • Resolved security vulnerabilities and tickets in Jira.
  • Implemented a VMware template from scratch, reducing deployment times from one week to one hour by creating documentation and scripts.
  • Patched workstations and servers with software updates using an SCCM, greatly reducing the number of vulnerabilities.
  • Improved systems monitoring by coordinating with development teams, adding tests to Scrum and Agile software development processes, and adding automated alerts.
  • Understood PowerShell commands and migrated 4 servers from a 2008 environment to a 2016 environment within 4 hours.
  • Assisted in writing a Powershell script to create a Windows 10 image for automated SCCM deployments.
  • Set up new VMs in VMware vSphere 6.5 using a template, to support the development team in the production of new software.
  • Created and tested templates for Windows Server 2016-2019 and deployed to production with a 99.9% success rate.

Systems Administrator II- Site Support

(RLCanning) Honeywell
09.2017 - 12.2018
  • Administered VMware and Dell SAN by monitoring performance, troubleshooting problems, and keeping up with necessary software updates.
  • Reduced the amount of time needed to take VMs offline by taking snapshots of VMs in VMware vSphere 5.5, and patching VMs later.
  • Creating change management tickets in Service Now for the business unit.
  • Assist with mobile device management, including AirWatch MDM and Microsoft Intune, by adding and removing devices from the environment, and helping to identify the root cause of issues with the devices.
  • Assisted in the planning and testing of the business units' disaster recovery (DR) protocols and procedures, which resulted in 100% of business units passing DR testing and compliance.
  • Managed AD accounts and Exchange 2016 email accounts by delegating permissions to the clients to manage their own accounts.
  • Conducted analysis of metrics and remediated violations with Nexthink monitoring to reduce the number of incidents by 20%.
  • Contributed to the planning stage for Azure for Windows 10 deployments by reviewing Azure documentation and creating a document that summarized the pros and cons of various options.
  • Troubleshoot and resolve issues reported by the Dell SAN monitoring agent by restarting the SAN monitoring agent.
  • Learned and applied the Honeywell Aerospace policies and procedures within three months.
  • Improved support for Linux VMs by setting up a centralized log server to monitor and troubleshoot issues.
  • Wrote bash and Python scripts to automate account creation and server setup, which reduced the setup time to 20 minutes.
  • Implemented a new software update system for the Suse Linux version, resulting in the completion of the system update for all systems on time and with no issues.

Linux Systems Administrator II

(Insight Global) Black Knight Financial Services
04.2017 - 09.2017
  • Administered Windows Server, IIS, Linux CentOS 6-7, Puppet, RabbitMQ, VMware, and IBM Urban Code.
  • Created change management tickets in the CA Service Desk.
  • Assisted in patching and updating Linux CentOS 6-7 after hours. First connected to Linux VMs through Citrix, then updated Linux using yum update.
  • Gathered logs and other files using FileZilla from Linux Servers using SFTP protocol.
  • Adhered to governance and risk compliance.
  • Cross-trained three other team members on server auditing tools and processes.
  • Implemented PowerShell scripts which reduced the time it took to perform tasks on Windows Servers from 20 minutes to 1 minute.
  • Provided remote desktop connection for Windows servers using ASG-Remote Desktop.
  • Implemented automation by writing Bash and Python scripts to perform a series of repetitive tasks, which improved the efficiency of the server infrastructure.

CoPilot SAN Storage Engineer

DELL EMC
09.2016 - 03.2017
  • Configured the Dell-EMC Compellent SAN Storage Controller and enclosure, including MPIO, and Boot from SAN, for customers.
  • Improved network reliability and performance by identifying and fixing network issues such as misconfigured bonding, spanning-tree, and VLAN interfaces.
  • Installed and maintained SAS and iSCSI cabling for the CoPilot SAN Storage System.
  • Configured multiple Brocade switches per customer requirements per their SAN design, resulting in a successful deployment of a Dell EqualLogic SAN for a new customer.
  • Successfully completed zoning and WWN configurations for client fabrics.
  • Learned the CLI commands and replaced disks in one day, resulting in a 100% success rate.
  • As a CoPilot SAN Storage Engineer, leveraged knowledge of software RAID and Storage Tiers to design and implement a highly available and scalable storage solution.
  • Set up and configured CentOS Linux to install and run the CoPilot software, and troubleshoot issues to ensure successful deployments.
  • Wrote Python and bash scripts for automation to automatically create LUNs on SAN clusters, eliminating a manual process that took hours.

Administrator / Desktop Engineer

(Dell) Honeywell
04.2014 - 09.2016
  • Configured VMware vSphere 5.5 for VMs, increasing the performance of IT systems by 20%, and reducing downtime by 9%.
  • Stacked and racked Dell PowerEdge 910, and two 710's servers by using a standard cabling configuration, which was provided by the hardware vendor.
  • Added two Dell 10GB switches to the server rack, using the provided documentation, in order to increase network speed significantly for the office.
  • Implemented AirWatch MDM for mobile devices Samsung and Apple, resulting in an increase of productivity for users and system administrators by 100%.
  • Managed risk compliance and security practices by implementing system standards to protect the organization from IT risks and threats.
  • Staying within the ITILv3 framework, as well as the Honeywell change management process, pushed out an update to the Apple Remote Desktop Agent to mitigate security vulnerabilities and improve the stability of the tool.
  • Tested and debugged scripts, for OS X, on 10.7, 10.8, and 10.9 for developers using Applescript, and Python (measured by the number of OS versions and the number of languages used).
  • Improved quality of service to the agency by configuring and setting up a Mac Mini Server for testing and deploying updates.
  • Assisted with the SAN, and configured hard drives.
  • Involved in audit compliance group at the Honeywell site.
  • Handled Active Directory for Deployments of Apple devices.
  • Installed and configured Linux servers for laboratory users within a virtual environment using VMware ESX hypervisor.
  • Improved the efficiency of the IT team by automating repetitive tasks using Bash and Python scripts.
  • Configured Ubuntu, CentOS, and SUSE Linux versions to support the lab environment.

Education

PC/LAN Certificate - PC/LAN

Brown College
Mendota Heights, MN
03.2001

Skills

  • Software Deployment
  • Monitoring Tools
  • Network Administration
  • Red Hat Enterprise Linux
  • Linux Experience
  • Security Standards
  • Bash Script Design
  • Linux Operating System

Accomplishments

  • CompTIA 2001
  • Red Hat Linux RH124 and RH134 Coursework Online

Timeline

UNIX / Linux Monitoring Engineer - ESM Tools

(Peraton) TEKsystems
12.2022 - Current

UNIX / Linux Monitoring Engineer

Pyramid
10.2020 - 07.2021

Linux Systems Engineer

TEKsystems
11.2019 - 07.2020

Systems Engineer

TEKsystems
03.2019 - 09.2019

Systems Administrator II- Site Support

(RLCanning) Honeywell
09.2017 - 12.2018

Linux Systems Administrator II

(Insight Global) Black Knight Financial Services
04.2017 - 09.2017

CoPilot SAN Storage Engineer

DELL EMC
09.2016 - 03.2017

Administrator / Desktop Engineer

(Dell) Honeywell
04.2014 - 09.2016

PC/LAN Certificate - PC/LAN

Brown College

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Richard Jones