<s>
A	O
system	B-Application
administrator	I-Application
,	O
or	O
sysadmin	B-Application
,	O
or	O
admin	O
is	O
a	O
person	O
who	O
is	O
responsible	O
for	O
the	O
upkeep	O
,	O
configuration	O
,	O
and	O
reliable	O
operation	O
of	O
computer	B-General_Concept
systems	I-General_Concept
,	O
especially	O
multi-user	B-Operating_System
computers	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
servers	B-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
system	B-Application
administrator	I-Application
seeks	O
to	O
ensure	O
that	O
the	O
uptime	B-Device
,	O
performance	O
,	O
resources	B-General_Concept
,	O
and	O
security	O
of	O
the	O
computers	O
they	O
manage	O
meet	O
the	O
needs	O
of	O
the	O
users	O
,	O
without	O
exceeding	O
a	O
set	O
budget	O
when	O
doing	O
so	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
To	O
meet	O
these	O
needs	O
,	O
a	O
system	B-Application
administrator	I-Application
may	O
acquire	O
,	O
install	O
,	O
or	O
upgrade	B-General_Concept
computer	B-Architecture
components	I-Architecture
and	O
software	B-Application
;	O
provide	O
routine	O
automation	O
;	O
maintain	O
security	O
policies	O
;	O
troubleshoot	O
;	O
train	O
or	O
supervise	O
staff	O
;	O
or	O
offer	O
technical	B-General_Concept
support	I-General_Concept
for	O
projects	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Many	O
organizations	O
staff	O
offer	O
jobs	O
related	O
to	O
system	B-Application
administration	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
a	O
larger	O
company	O
,	O
these	O
may	O
all	O
be	O
separate	O
positions	O
within	O
a	O
computer	B-General_Concept
support	I-General_Concept
or	O
Information	O
Services	O
(	O
IS	O
)	O
department	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
a	O
smaller	O
group	O
they	O
may	O
be	O
shared	O
by	O
a	O
few	O
sysadmins	B-Application
,	O
or	O
even	O
a	O
single	O
person	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
database	B-General_Concept
administrator	I-General_Concept
(	O
DBA	O
)	O
maintains	O
a	O
database	O
system	O
,	O
and	O
is	O
responsible	O
for	O
the	O
integrity	O
of	O
the	O
data	O
and	O
the	O
efficiency	O
and	O
performance	O
of	O
the	O
system	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
network	O
administrator	O
maintains	O
network	O
infrastructure	O
such	O
as	O
switches	B-Protocol
and	O
routers	B-Protocol
,	O
and	O
diagnoses	O
problems	O
with	O
these	O
or	O
with	O
the	O
behavior	O
of	O
network-attached	O
computers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
security	O
administrator	O
is	O
a	O
specialist	O
in	O
computer	O
and	O
network	O
security	O
,	O
including	O
the	O
administration	O
of	O
security	O
devices	O
such	O
as	O
firewalls	B-Application
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
consulting	O
on	O
general	O
security	O
measures	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
web	O
administrator	O
maintains	O
web	O
server	B-Application
services	O
(	O
such	O
as	O
Apache	B-Application
or	O
IIS	B-Application
)	O
that	O
allow	O
for	O
internal	O
or	O
external	O
access	O
to	O
web	O
sites	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Tasks	O
include	O
managing	O
multiple	O
sites	O
,	O
administering	O
security	O
,	O
and	O
configuring	O
necessary	O
components	O
and	O
software	B-Application
.	I-Application
</s>
<s>
Responsibilities	O
may	O
also	O
include	O
software	B-Application
change	O
management	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
computer	O
operator	O
performs	O
routine	O
maintenance	O
and	O
upkeep	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
changing	O
backup	O
tapes	O
or	O
replacing	O
failed	O
drives	O
in	O
a	O
redundant	B-Architecture
array	I-Architecture
of	I-Architecture
independent	I-Architecture
disks	I-Architecture
(	O
RAID	B-Architecture
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Such	O
tasks	O
usually	O
require	O
physical	O
presence	O
in	O
the	O
room	O
with	O
the	O
computer	O
,	O
and	O
while	O
less	O
skilled	O
than	O
sysadmin	B-Application
tasks	O
,	O
may	O
require	O
a	O
similar	O
level	O
of	O
trust	O
,	O
since	O
the	O
operator	O
has	O
access	O
to	O
possibly	O
sensitive	O
data	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
An	O
SRE	B-Application
Site	B-Application
Reliability	I-Application
Engineer	I-Application
-	O
takes	O
a	O
software	B-General_Concept
engineering	I-General_Concept
or	O
programmatic	O
approach	O
to	O
managing	O
systems	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Most	O
employers	O
require	O
a	O
bachelor	O
's	O
degree	O
in	O
a	O
related	O
field	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
computer	B-General_Concept
science	I-General_Concept
,	O
information	B-General_Concept
technology	I-General_Concept
,	O
electronics	O
engineering	O
,	O
or	O
computer	O
engineering	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Some	O
schools	O
also	O
offer	O
undergraduate	O
degrees	O
and	O
graduate	O
programs	O
in	O
system	B-Application
administration	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
addition	O
,	O
because	O
of	O
the	O
practical	O
nature	O
of	O
system	B-Application
administration	I-Application
and	O
the	O
easy	O
availability	O
of	O
open-source	B-Application
server	B-Application
software	I-Application
,	O
many	O
system	B-Application
administrators	I-Application
enter	O
the	O
field	O
self-taught	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Generally	O
,	O
a	O
prospective	O
employee	O
will	O
be	O
required	O
to	O
have	O
experience	O
with	O
the	O
computer	B-General_Concept
systems	I-General_Concept
they	O
are	O
expected	O
to	O
manage	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
most	O
cases	O
,	O
candidates	O
are	O
expected	O
to	O
possess	O
industry	O
certifications	O
such	O
as	O
the	O
Microsoft	O
MCSA	O
,	O
MCSE	O
,	O
MCITP	O
,	O
Red	O
Hat	O
RHCE	O
,	O
Novell	O
CNA	B-Operating_System
,	O
CNE	B-Operating_System
,	O
Cisco	O
CCNA	O
or	O
CompTIA	O
's	O
A+	O
or	O
Network+	O
,	O
Sun	O
Certified	O
SCNA	O
,	O
Linux	O
Professional	O
Institute	O
,	O
Linux	O
Foundation	O
Certified	O
Engineer	O
or	O
Linux	O
Foundation	O
Certified	O
System	B-Application
Administrator	I-Application
,	O
among	O
others	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Sometimes	O
,	O
almost	O
exclusively	O
in	O
smaller	O
sites	O
,	O
the	O
role	O
of	O
system	B-Application
administrator	I-Application
may	O
be	O
given	O
to	O
a	O
skilled	O
user	O
in	O
addition	O
to	O
or	O
in	O
replacement	O
of	O
his	O
or	O
her	O
duties	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
subject	O
matter	O
of	O
system	B-Application
administration	I-Application
includes	O
computer	B-General_Concept
systems	I-General_Concept
and	O
the	O
ways	O
people	O
use	O
them	O
in	O
an	O
organization	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
entails	O
a	O
knowledge	O
of	O
operating	B-General_Concept
systems	I-General_Concept
and	O
applications	O
,	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
hardware	B-Architecture
and	O
software	B-Application
troubleshooting	O
,	O
but	O
also	O
knowledge	O
of	O
the	O
purposes	O
for	O
which	O
people	O
in	O
the	O
organization	O
use	O
the	O
computers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Perhaps	O
the	O
most	O
important	O
skill	O
for	O
a	O
system	B-Application
administrator	I-Application
is	O
problem	O
solving	O
—	O
frequently	O
under	O
various	O
sorts	O
of	O
constraints	O
and	O
stress	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
sysadmin	B-Application
is	O
on	O
call	O
when	O
a	O
computer	O
system	O
goes	O
down	O
or	O
malfunctions	O
,	O
and	O
must	O
be	O
able	O
to	O
quickly	O
and	O
correctly	O
diagnose	O
what	O
is	O
wrong	O
and	O
how	O
best	O
to	O
fix	O
it	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
They	O
may	O
also	O
need	O
to	O
have	O
teamwork	O
and	O
communication	O
skills	O
;	O
as	O
well	O
as	O
being	O
able	O
to	O
install	O
and	O
configure	O
hardware	B-Architecture
and	O
software	B-Application
.	I-Application
</s>
<s>
Sysadmins	B-Application
must	O
understand	O
the	O
behavior	O
of	O
software	B-Application
in	O
order	O
to	O
deploy	O
it	O
and	O
to	O
troubleshoot	O
problems	O
,	O
and	O
generally	O
know	O
several	O
programming	O
languages	O
used	O
for	O
scripting	B-Language
or	O
automation	O
of	O
routine	O
tasks	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
typical	O
sysadmin	B-Application
's	O
role	O
is	O
not	O
to	O
design	O
or	O
write	O
new	O
application	B-Application
software	B-Application
but	O
when	O
they	O
are	O
responsible	O
for	O
automating	O
system	O
or	O
application	B-Application
configuration	O
with	O
various	O
configuration	O
management	O
tools	O
,	O
the	O
lines	O
somewhat	O
blur	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Depending	O
on	O
the	O
sysadmin	B-Application
's	O
role	O
and	O
skillset	O
they	O
may	O
be	O
expected	O
to	O
understand	O
equivalent	O
key/core	O
concepts	O
a	O
software	B-General_Concept
engineer	I-General_Concept
understands	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
That	O
said	O
,	O
system	B-Application
administrators	I-Application
are	O
not	O
software	B-General_Concept
engineers	I-General_Concept
or	O
developers	O
,	O
in	O
the	O
job	O
title	O
sense	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Particularly	O
when	O
dealing	O
with	O
Internet-facing	O
or	O
business-critical	O
systems	O
,	O
a	O
sysadmin	B-Application
must	O
have	O
a	O
strong	O
grasp	O
of	O
computer	O
security	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
includes	O
not	O
merely	O
deploying	O
software	B-Application
patches	O
,	O
but	O
also	O
preventing	O
break-ins	O
and	O
other	O
security	O
problems	O
with	O
preventive	O
measures	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
some	O
organizations	O
,	O
computer	O
security	O
administration	O
is	O
a	O
separate	O
role	O
responsible	O
for	O
overall	O
security	O
and	O
the	O
upkeep	O
of	O
firewalls	B-Application
and	O
intrusion	O
detection	O
systems	O
,	O
but	O
all	O
sysadmins	B-Application
are	O
generally	O
responsible	O
for	O
the	O
security	O
of	O
computer	B-General_Concept
systems	I-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
system	B-Application
administrator	I-Application
's	O
responsibilities	O
might	O
include	O
:	O
</s>
<s>
Analyzing	O
system	B-Application
logs	I-Application
and	O
identifying	O
potential	O
issues	O
with	O
computer	B-General_Concept
systems	I-General_Concept
.	O
</s>
<s>
Applying	O
operating	B-General_Concept
system	I-General_Concept
updates	O
,	O
patches	O
,	O
and	O
configuration	O
changes	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Installing	O
and	O
configuring	O
new	O
hardware	B-Architecture
and	O
software	B-Application
.	I-Application
</s>
<s>
System	O
performance	B-Device
tuning	I-Device
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
larger	O
organizations	O
,	O
some	O
of	O
the	O
tasks	O
above	O
may	O
be	O
divided	O
among	O
different	O
system	B-Application
administrators	I-Application
or	O
members	O
of	O
different	O
organizational	O
groups	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
For	O
example	O
,	O
a	O
dedicated	O
individual(s )	O
may	O
apply	O
all	O
system	O
upgrades	B-General_Concept
,	O
a	O
Quality	O
Assurance	O
(	O
QA	O
)	O
team	O
may	O
perform	O
testing	O
and	O
validation	O
,	O
and	O
one	O
or	O
more	O
technical	O
writers	O
may	O
be	O
responsible	O
for	O
all	O
technical	O
documentation	O
written	O
for	O
a	O
company	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
System	B-Application
administrators	I-Application
,	O
in	O
larger	O
organizations	O
,	O
tend	O
not	O
to	O
be	O
systems	O
architects	O
,	O
systems	O
engineers	O
,	O
or	O
systems	O
designers	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
smaller	O
organizations	O
,	O
the	O
system	B-Application
administrator	I-Application
might	O
also	O
act	O
as	O
technical	B-General_Concept
support	I-General_Concept
,	O
database	B-General_Concept
administrator	I-General_Concept
,	O
network	O
administrator	O
,	O
storage	O
(	O
SAN	O
)	O
administrator	O
or	O
application	B-Application
analyst	O
.	O
</s>
