Senior Linux Systems Engineer

About the Role You will be a hands-on member of the global Systems team responsible for operating and evolving Cartrack's large-scale, multi-region Linux infrastructure spanning Africa, Europe, and Asia. The estate comprises 1,000+ Linux servers, hyperconverged compute, distributed databases, and container platforms — all supporting a 24/7 fleet telematics platform. What You Will Do Infrastructure & Virtualisation • Provision, configure, and maintain bare metal and virtual machines on Nutanix AHV/Prism hyperconverged infrastructure across ZA, EU, and ASIA data centres • Manage Proxmox virtualisation nodes and VM lifecycle • Deploy and operate Docker containers and Kubernetes clusters (including Rancher-managed K8s) • Implement and maintain Infrastructure as Code (IaC) and configuration management using Ansible, Puppet, or CFEngine • Maintain OS standards across SUSE Linux Enterprise Server, Ubuntu LTS, and RHEL/CentOS fleets Database Administration • Administer large-scale PostgreSQL deployments — performance tuning, replication, patching, backup/recovery — across hundreds of database instances globally • Monitor and optimise query performance; respond to lock contention and capacity events • Maintain database standards, schema migrations, and DR runbooks Basic Networking (Server-side) • Configure server network interfaces, bonding, VLANs, and static routes on Linux hosts • Manage host-based firewalls (firewalld / iptables) and basic DNS resolution • Liaise with the Network team for advanced firewall policy, routing, VPN, and switching requirements Identity & Access Management • Administer FreeIPA (Kerberos, PKI/CA, HBAC, sudo policy) and Samba AD / LDAP identity services • Manage user and host enrolment, group policy, and SSH key distribution Monitoring & Observability • Operate and extend Zabbix monitoring across the full server estate • Maintain Graylog centralised log management • Perform capacity planning and periodic performance reporting; make recommendations for upgrades Messaging & Streaming • Support Apache Kafka and RabbitMQ message queue infrastructure underpinning the comms engine and mswitch layers CI/CD & Developer Tooling • Maintain GitLab (primary, secondary, registry) and Jenkins CI infrastructure • Collaborate with Software Engineers on pipeline design and deployment automation Operations • Enforce automated backup operations and validate recovery procedures • Apply OS patches and security updates on a regular, scheduled basis • Support the Zammad ticketing system and respond to escalated incidents • Administer Zimbra mail infrastructure • Contribute to GRC compliance activities tracked in Eramba What You Bring Essential • 5+ years Linux system administration (SUSE, Ubuntu, RHEL/CentOS) • Hands-on Nutanix AHV/Prism administration — node management, storage pools, VM provisioning, cluster operations • Solid PostgreSQL DBA skills — replication, PITR backup, vacuum tuning, connection pooling • Configuration management experience — Ansible preferred; Puppet or CFEngine also relevant • Kubernetes and Docker — deploying, scaling, and troubleshooting containerised workloads • FreeIPA / Samba AD / LDAP identity management and Kerberos • Experience with Zabbix or comparable monitoring platforms • Linux server networking fundamentals — bonding, VLANs, routing, firewalls/iptables • Scripting proficiency — Bash; Python advantageous • Hybrid on-premises + cloud (AWS) environment experience Advantageous • Kafka and RabbitMQ operational experience • GitLab administration and CI/CD pipeline development • Graylog or ELK log management • Proxmox virtualisation • Eramba or other GRC tooling • BS Computer Science or equivalent industry qualification Personal Attributes • Self-disciplined, reliable, and accountable • Strong documentation and communication habits • Comfortable operating across time zones in a globally distributed team • Willingness to participate in on-call rotation