Linux Systems Administrator

About the role

University of the Western Cape’s Information and Communication Services department is looking for a Linux Systems Administrator to manage and optimise its enterprise Linux infrastructure within the data‑centre environment. The role involves ensuring stability, security and high availability of systems that support institutional applications, research workloads and web services.

Key responsibilities

• Install, configure and maintain Linux operating systems in production.
• Support Linux‑based services such as web servers, databases and authentication systems.
• Manage Linux instances on virtualisation platforms (e.g., KVM, VMware).
• Perform patching, upgrades and lifecycle management.
• Monitor performance, availability and security, and respond to incidents.
• Develop and maintain automation scripts and configuration management using tools like Ansible, Puppet or Chef.
• Maintain technical documentation, system configurations and backup procedures.
• Participate in disaster recovery and business continuity initiatives.

Required profile

• National Qualification Framework Level 7 (or higher) in IT, Computer Science or related field, with at least three years of Linux systems administration experience in a production or data‑centre environment, or a National Senior Certificate with at least five years of relevant experience.
• Relevant professional certification such as RHCSA, RHCE, LPIC or CompTIA Linux+.

Required skills

• Strong experience with Linux operating systems.
• Virtualisation platforms: KVM, VMware (or similar).
• Automation and configuration‑management tools: Ansible, Puppet, Chef.
• Scripting for system automation.
• System monitoring, security hardening, backup and disaster‑recovery procedures.