Data Center Engineer

Our client is a leading global investment firm with a highly sophisticated technology environment supporting mission-critical trading and business operations. They are seeking a skilled Data Center Technician to join their infrastructure team in a hybrid role that combines hands-on data center operations with systems engineering responsibilities. This position is ideal for someone who enjoys working with both physical infrastructure and server administration in a fast-paced, enterprise environment. Responsibilities Data Center Operations Rack, stack, cable, and deploy servers, storage arrays, and networking equipment. Install and replace hardware components including CPUs, RAM, SSDs/HDDs, NICs, HBAs, and power supplies. Perform structured cabling and physical layer troubleshooting. Manage hardware lifecycle activities including deployments, decommissions, asset tagging, and equipment disposal. Maintain data center power, cooling, airflow, and physical security. Respond to hardware incidents and participate in an on-call rotation. Coordinate with vendors for hardware installations, smart hands support, and circuit activations. Connectivity & Fiber Infrastructure Troubleshoot copper and fiber connectivity issues across production environments. Test and certify single-mode and multi-mode fiber using OTDRs, optical power meters, and related tools. Inspect, clean, and qualify LC, SC, and MPO/MTP fiber connectors. Diagnose fiber faults including insertion loss, damaged connectors, and signal degradation. Validate SFP, SFP+, QSFP, and QSFP28 transceivers and troubleshoot optical monitoring alarms. Document fiber infrastructure and coordinate with network engineers during deployments and troubleshooting. Build and configure physical and virtual Linux servers (RHEL, CentOS, Ubuntu, Debian). Configure networking, DNS, NTP, SSH, storage, RAID, LVM, and NFS/iSCSI. Integrate systems into configuration management platforms such as Ansible or Puppet. Perform OS patching, firmware upgrades, system troubleshooting, and performance tuning. Windows Server Administration Build and configure Windows Server 2016/2019/2022 environments. Join systems to Active Directory and apply Group Policies. Configure Windows services including IIS, DNS, DHCP, and File Services. Perform Windows updates, security hardening, and post-build validation. Troubleshoot boot issues, event logs, drivers, and network connectivity. Ensure endpoint security tools are properly deployed and maintained. General Responsibilities Maintain accurate asset inventory and CMDB documentation. Create and update build documentation, runbooks, and infrastructure diagrams. Partner with infrastructure, networking, security, and application teams on deployments. Support hardware lifecycle planning and infrastructure capacity management. Participate in after-hours maintenance and on-call support as needed. Required Qualifications: Associate's degree or higher in Computer Science, Information Technology, or a related field. 5-7+ years of experience in a Data Center Technician, Systems Administrator, or similar infrastructure role. Hands-on experience installing, racking, cabling, and supporting enterprise server hardware. Experience building and supporting Windows Server environments with Active Directory. Solid understanding of TCP/IP networking, VLANs, DNS, DHCP, routing, and subnetting. Experience with out-of-band management tools such as iDRAC, iLO, or IPMI. Proven experience troubleshooting copper and fiber infrastructure. Hands-on experience using OTDRs, optical power meters, and fiber inspection tools. Ability to lift up to 50 pounds and work comfortably in a production data center environment. Excellent troubleshooting, communication, and organizational skills. Ability to thrive in a fast-paced environment while managing multiple priorities. Willingness to participate in an on-call rotation and occasional after-hours work. Preferred Qualifications Experience with Ansible, Puppet, Chef, or Salt. Experience with VMware vSphere, Hyper-V, or KVM. Knowledge of PXE, Kickstart, WDS, or automated server provisioning. Experience with SAN or hyperconverged infrastructure. Fiber certifications (Corning, Fluke Networks, BICSI) are a plus. Relevant certifications such as CompTIA Server+, CompTIA Linux+, RHCSA, MCSA/MCSE, or equivalent. Experience with ServiceNow, Jira, or other ITSM platforms. Familiarity with infrastructure monitoring tools including Nagios, Zabbix, or Prometheus. #J-18808-Ljbffr