An IT administrator, system administrator, sysadmin, or admin is a person who is responsible for the upkeep, configuration, and reliable operation of

computer systems A computer is a machine that can be Computer programming, programmed to automatically Execution (computing), carry out sequences of arithmetic or logical operations (''computation''). Modern digital electronic computers can perform generic set ...

, especially

multi-user Multi-user software is computer software that allows access by multiple users of a computer. Time-sharing systems are multi-user systems. Most batch processing systems for mainframe computers may also be considered "multi-user", to avoid leavi ...

computers, such as servers. The system administrator seeks to ensure that the

uptime Uptime is a Measurement, measure of system reliability, expressed as the period of system time, time a machine, typically a computer, has been continuously working and available. Uptime is the opposite of downtime. It is often used as a measure ...

performance A performance is an act or process of staging or presenting a play, concert, or other form of entertainment. It is also defined as the action or process of carrying out or accomplishing an action, task, or function. Performance has evolved glo ...

resources ''Resource'' refers to all the materials available in our environment which are Technology, technologically accessible, Economics, economically feasible and Culture, culturally Sustainability, sustainable and help us to satisfy our needs and want ...

, and

security Security is protection from, or resilience against, potential harm (or other unwanted coercion). Beneficiaries (technically referents) of security may be persons and social groups, objects and institutions, ecosystems, or any other entity or ...

of the computers they manage meet the needs of the users, without exceeding a set

budget A budget is a calculation plan, usually but not always financial plan, financial, for a defined accounting period, period, often one year or a month. A budget may include anticipated sales volumes and revenues, resource quantities including tim ...

when doing so. To meet these needs, a system administrator may acquire, install, or

upgrade Upgrading is the process of replacing a product with a newer version of the same product. In computing and consumer electronics, an upgrade is generally a replacement of hardware, software or firmware with a newer or better version, in order to ...

computer components and

software Software consists of computer programs that instruct the Execution (computing), execution of a computer. Software also includes design documents and specifications. The history of software is closely tied to the development of digital comput ...

; provide routine automation; maintain security policies;

troubleshoot Troubleshooting is a form of problem solving, often applied to repair failed products or processes on a machine or a system. It is a logical, systematic search for the source of a problem in order to solve it, and make the product or process ope ...

; train or supervise staff; or offer

technical support Technical support, commonly shortened as tech support, is a customer service provided to customers to resolve issues, commonly with consumer electronics. This is commonly provided via call centers, online chat and email. Many companies provid ...

for projects.

Related fields

Many organizations staff offer jobs related to system administration. In a larger company, these may all be separate positions within a computer support or Information Services (IS) department. In a smaller group they may be shared by a few sysadmins, or even a single person. * A

database administrator A database administrator (DBA) manages computer databases. The role may include capacity planning, installation, configuration, database design, migration, performance monitoring, security, troubleshooting, as well as backup and data re ...

(DBA) maintains a

database In computing, a database is an organized collection of data or a type of data store based on the use of a database management system (DBMS), the software that interacts with end users, applications, and the database itself to capture and a ...

system, and is responsible for the integrity of the data and the efficiency and performance of the system. * A

network administrator A network administrator is a person designated in an organization whose responsibility includes maintaining computer infrastructures with emphasis on local area networks (LANs) up to wide area networks (WANs). Responsibilities may vary between or ...

maintains network infrastructure such as switches and routers, and diagnoses problems with these or with the behavior of network-attached computers. * A security administrator is a specialist in computer and network security, including the administration of security devices such as firewalls, as well as consulting on general security measures. * A web administrator maintains web server services (such as

Apache The Apache ( ) are several Southern Athabaskan language-speaking peoples of the Southwestern United States, Southwest, the Southern Plains and Northern Mexico. They are linguistically related to the Navajo. They migrated from the Athabascan ho ...

or IIS) that allow for internal or external access to web sites. Tasks include managing multiple sites, administering security, and configuring necessary components and software. Responsibilities may also include software change management. * A

computer operator A computer operator is a role in IT which oversees the running of computer systems, ensuring that the machines, and computers are running properly. The job of a computer operator as defined by the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics is to " ...

performs routine maintenance and upkeep, such as changing backup tapes or replacing failed drives in a redundant array of independent disks (RAID). Such tasks usually require physical presence in the room with the computer, and while less skilled than sysadmin tasks, may require a similar level of trust, since the operator has access to possibly sensitive data. * An SRE Site Reliability Engineer - takes a software engineering or programmatic approach to managing systems.

Training

Most employers require a bachelor's degree in a related field, such as

computer science Computer science is the study of computation, information, and automation. Computer science spans Theoretical computer science, theoretical disciplines (such as algorithms, theory of computation, and information theory) to Applied science, ...

information technology Information technology (IT) is a set of related fields within information and communications technology (ICT), that encompass computer systems, software, programming languages, data processing, data and information processing, and storage. Inf ...

electronics engineering Electronic engineering is a sub-discipline of electrical engineering that emerged in the early 20th century and is distinguished by the additional use of active components such as semiconductor devices to amplify and control electric current flow ...

, or

computer engineering Computer engineering (CE, CoE, or CpE) is a branch of engineering specialized in developing computer hardware and software. It integrates several fields of electrical engineering, electronics engineering and computer science. Computer engi ...

. Some schools also offer undergraduate degrees and graduate programs in system administration. In addition, because of the practical nature of system administration and the easy availability of

open-source Open source is source code that is made freely available for possible modification and redistribution. Products include permission to use and view the source code, design documents, or content of the product. The open source model is a decentrali ...

server software, many system administrators enter the field self-taught. Generally, a prospective employee will be required to have experience with the computer systems they are expected to manage. In most cases, candidates are expected to possess industry certifications such as the Microsoft MCSA, MCSE, MCITP, Red Hat RHCE, Novell CNA, CNE, Cisco

CCNA CCNA (Cisco Certified Network Associate) is an entry-level information technology (IT) certification offered by Cisco Systems. CCNA certification is widely recognized in the IT industry as the foundational step for careers in IT positions and netw ...

or CompTIA's A+ or Network+, Sun Certified SCNA, Linux Professional Institute, Linux Foundation Certified Engineer or Linux Foundation Certified System Administrator, among others. Sometimes, almost exclusively in smaller sites, the role of system administrator may be given to a skilled user in addition to or in replacement of their duties.

Skills

The ''subject matter'' of system administration includes computer systems and the ways people use them in an organization. This entails a knowledge of

operating system An operating system (OS) is system software that manages computer hardware and software resources, and provides common daemon (computing), services for computer programs. Time-sharing operating systems scheduler (computing), schedule tasks for ...

s and applications, as well as hardware and software troubleshooting, but also knowledge of the purposes for which people in the organization use the computers. Perhaps the most important skill for a system administrator is

problem solving Problem solving is the process of achieving a goal by overcoming obstacles, a frequent part of most activities. Problems in need of solutions range from simple personal tasks (e.g. how to turn on an appliance) to complex issues in business an ...

—frequently under various sorts of constraints and stress. The sysadmin is on call when a computer system goes down or malfunctions, and must be able to quickly and correctly diagnose what is wrong and how best to fix it. They may also need to have teamwork and communication skills; as well as being able to install and configure hardware and software. Sysadmins must understand the behavior of software in order to deploy it and to troubleshoot problems, and generally know several

programming language A programming language is a system of notation for writing computer programs. Programming languages are described in terms of their Syntax (programming languages), syntax (form) and semantics (computer science), semantics (meaning), usually def ...

s used for scripting or automation of routine tasks. A typical sysadmin's role is not to design or write new application software but when they are responsible for automating system or application configuration with various configuration management tools, the lines somewhat blur. Depending on the sysadmin's role and skillset they may be expected to understand equivalent key/core concepts a software engineer understands. That said, system administrators are not

software engineer Software engineering is a branch of both computer science and engineering focused on designing, developing, testing, and maintaining software applications. It involves applying engineering principles and computer programming expertise to develop ...

s or developers, in the job title sense. Particularly when dealing with

Internet The Internet (or internet) is the Global network, global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a internetworking, network of networks ...

-facing or business-critical systems, a sysadmin must have a strong grasp of

computer security Computer security (also cybersecurity, digital security, or information technology (IT) security) is a subdiscipline within the field of information security. It consists of the protection of computer software, systems and computer network, n ...

. This includes not merely deploying software patches, but also preventing break-ins and other security problems with preventive measures. In some organizations, computer security administration is a separate role responsible for overall security and the upkeep of firewalls and

intrusion detection system An intrusion detection system (IDS) is a device or software application that monitors a network or systems for malicious activity or policy violations. Any intrusion activity or violation is typically either reported to an administrator or collec ...

s, but all sysadmins are generally responsible for the security of computer systems.

Duties

A system administrator's responsibilities might include: * Analyzing system logs and identifying potential issues with computer systems. * Applying

updates, patches, and configuration changes. * Installing and configuring new hardware and

. * Adding, removing, or updating

user account A user is a person who uses a computer or network service. A user often has a user account and is identified to the system by a username (or user name). Some software products provide services to other systems and have no direct end use ...

information, resetting

password A password, sometimes called a passcode, is secret data, typically a string of characters, usually used to confirm a user's identity. Traditionally, passwords were expected to be memorized, but the large number of password-protected services t ...

s, etc. * Answering technical queries and assisting users. * Responsibility for

. * Responsibility for documenting the configuration of the system. * Troubleshooting any reported problems. * System

performance tuning Performance tuning is the improvement of system Computer performance, performance. Typically in computer systems, the motivation for such activity is called a performance problem, which can be either real or anticipated. Most systems will respond t ...

. * Ensuring that the network infrastructure is up and running. * Configuring, adding, and deleting file systems. * Ensuring parity between dev, test and production environments. * Training users * Plan and manage the machine room environment In larger organizations, some of the tasks above may be divided among different system administrators or members of different organizational groups. For example, a dedicated individual(s) may apply all system upgrades, a Quality Assurance (QA) team may perform testing and validation, and one or more

technical writer A technical writer is a professional communicator whose task is to convey complex information in simple terms to an audience of the general public or a very select group of readers. Technical writers research and create information through a vari ...

s may be responsible for all technical documentation written for a company. System administrators, in larger organizations, tend not to be

systems architect The systems architect is an information and communications technology professional. Systems architects define the architecture of a computerized system (i.e., a system composed of software and hardware) in order to fulfill certain requirements ...

s, systems engineers, or

systems design The basic study of system design is the understanding of component parts and their subsequent interaction with one another. Systems design has appeared in a variety of fields, including sustainability, computer/software architecture, and sociolog ...

ers. In smaller organizations, the system administrator might also act as technical support,

, network administrator, storage (SAN) administrator or

application analyst An application analyst (also applications systems analyst) is someone whose job is to support a given application or applications. This may entail some computer programming, some system administration skills, and the ability to analyze a given p ...

References

External links

Communication Workers of America
{{DEFAULTSORT:System administrator * Information systems Computer occupations Computer systems