Tip #26: Choose a Linux SysAdmin/Engineer Job over a Coding Job.

[Knajjd]

Linux Systems Admin is very much easier compared to programming.

The only programming involved is writing small (up to 100 lines) of Bash shell script code.

 

[Rotter]

What about pay?

 

[GeckoBus]

Linux Systems Admin is much easier compared to programming.

The only programming involved is writing small (up to 100 lines) of Bash shell script code.

i had chatgpt write shellscript for me to automatically clean up files but also make backups.
im retarded so now it makes like 100 backups per second but cuz its just small markdown files its fine

 

[Knajjd]

What about pay?

I'm UK so pay is not like the USA but I got a wage increase after switching to Linux SysAdmin. No one wants to do the job because it's all command line and not GUIs.

I'm used to the command line so it's working out nicely for me at the moment.

 

[weaselbomber]

That's what I'm aiming for when I graduate

 

[CruxGammata]

Nah

 

[Knajjd]

That's what I'm aiming for when I graduate

That's a good plan. Learn how to manage disks and network config/troubleshooting. tcpdump is very useful to check if ports are closed or a network service is down from looking at the 3-way handshake.

SELinux is the only hard to understand software but even that made sense after a couple of weeks of study and practice. This is a good video on SELinux:


View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_WOKRaM-HI4


Plus you usually work alone and don't have to fix copy and paste code written by others.

 

[Knajjd]

Nah

Do you prefer programming? Working in large programming teams can be very difficult.

 

[CruxGammata]

im too retarded for coding but pajeets will/are taking over the tech job market anyway and the wages will drop as a result.

 

[Knajjd]

im too retarded for coding but pajeets will/are taking over the tech job market anyway and the wages will drop as a result.

Writing bash scripts is an easy way to learn how to code and the scripts are powerful too and can be used in real world scenarios.

Just a little bash knowledge can go a long way with Linux.

 

[IncelsNeverCry]

Did you study at university and if so what?

I am retarded enough to try and fix my life in my mid 20s by getting my highschool diploma + basic it courses to up the course points

 

[Knajjd]

Did you study at university and if so what?

I am retarded enough to try and fix my life in my mid 20s by getting my highschool diploma + basic it courses to up the course points

No university. I taught myself C programming from The C Programming Language by Kernighan and Ritchie. - enough to find a job fixing bugs. Also read the UNIX Programming Environment by Kernighan and Pike which is a bit dated but still very relevant. Both books are still in print.

All you need is the core ideas. I don't recommended learning C but I would learn bash scripts. From bash then Ansible, which is popular on the job boards, will be easy to pick up. But you don't need Ansible. I've seen many jobs just asking for core Linux.

First thing I did was learn vim, the text editor and then write code.

You'll have to put some hours in everyday. Like 3 hours a day Mon to Fri and rest over the weekend. I've seen many Linux jobs just asking for basics like managing users and other simple commands.

You only need basic networking skills as there is always a network engineer on site.

Do you know what an IP number is? It's made up of two parts, network ID and host ID. The netmask determines the split. The 3 key network parameters are IP number, netmask and default gateway/router. It's usually one of these this is misconfigured.

Ethernet switches use the MAC/Hardware/Physical/Ethernet number to route Ethernet packets. Routers (a computer with more than 2 Ethernet cards) routes suing IP to interconnect switches and network services like Apache, and DNS use TCP /UDP port numbers.

Routers use the IP route table to forward packets to ethernet cards.

Ethernet packets have a src MAC and a dst MAC and a payload. The payload is where the IP/TCP packets sit with the user data. That's enough to get you covered. SELinux is a bit tricky but the key with that is learn how to monitor violations and reset labels on files and directories and use SELinux booleans to allow network port access. Plenty of info and examples on Red Hat's docs.

I'm finding Linux sysadmin much easier than being a developer. Linux has certifications too if you can afford them. I've read they are good quality and companies use them to recruit.

 

[IncelsNeverCry]

No university. I taught myself C programming from The C Programming Language by Kernighan and Ritchie. - enough to find a job fixing bugs. Also read the UNIX Programming Environment by Kernighan and Pike which is a bit dated but still very relevant. Both books are still in print.

We'll be learning C# it's a basic course followed by a more in depth one but first is ordinary computer maintenance and management, thanks for the comprehensive information I am wondering if doing a free coding camp before the course is something worth looking into?

 

[ordinaryotaku]

That's my plan if my cybersecurity route goes down the shitter. I did Linux administration classes and liked it, and I also got a networking certificate a few years ago, it wasn't bad.

 

[Knajjd]

We'll be learning C# it's a basic course followed by a more in depth one but first is ordinary computer maintenance and management, thanks for the comprehensive information I am wondering if doing a free coding camp before the course is something worth looking into?

Coding camp will help. Always remember this though. Don't let others confuse you.. At the end of the day there is only a CPU, RAM, disk and Ethernet card for a server. Desktops have a screen, mouse and keyboard of course but lets forget them. Everything is input/output (aka read/write transmit/receive).

A web server reads a string (Ethernet packet) from the Ethernet card. It then reads a file from the disk and outputs (transmits) the file to the Ethernet card (wired or wireless).

Screens are used for output and keyboards and mice are input. Even using variables is input/output to the CPU which then does the logic (decisions and loops) and arithmetic (most code just uses addition).

 

[Knajjd]

That's my plan if my cybersecurity route goes down the shitter. I did Linux administration classes and liked it, and I also got a networking certificate a few years ago, it wasn't bad.

Cyber is in big demand. Most cyber and Linux jobs only involve writing small scripts as all the hard work is done in the commands. It's much more fun and less stress than full development.

 

[Rotter]

Cyber is in big demand. Most cyber and Linux jobs only involve writing small scripts as all the hard work is done in the commands. It's much more fun and less stress than full development.

Hard to break in at entry level though, also might require SC+

 

[MediumDiploma]

No university. I taught myself C programming from The C Programming Language by Kernighan and Ritchie. - enough to find a job fixing bugs. Also read the UNIX Programming Environment by Kernighan and Pike which is a bit dated but still very relevant. Both books are still in print.

All you need is the core ideas. I don't recommended learning C but I would learn bash scripts. From bash then Ansible, which is popular on the job boards, will be easy to pick up. But you don't need Ansible. I've seen many jobs just asking for core Linux.

First thing I did was learn vim, the text editor and then write code.

You'll have to put some hours in everyday. Like 3 hours a day Mon to Fri and rest over the weekend. I've seen many Linux jobs just asking for basics like managing users and other simple commands.

You only need basic networking skills as there is always a network engineer on site.

Do you know what an IP number is? It's made up of two parts, network ID and host ID. The netmask determines the split. The 3 key network parameters are IP number, netmask and default gateway/router. It's usually one of these this is misconfigured.

Ethernet switches use the MAC/Hardware/Physical/Ethernet number to route Ethernet packets. Routers (a computer with more than 2 Ethernet cards) routes suing IP to interconnect switches and network services like Apache, and DNS use TCP /UDP port numbers.

Routers use the IP route table to forward packets to ethernet cards.

Ethernet packets have a src MAC and a dst MAC and a payload. The payload is where the IP/TCP packets sit with the user data. That's enough to get you covered. SELinux is a bit tricky but the key with that is learn how to monitor violations and reset labels on files and directories and use SELinux booleans to allow network port access. Plenty of info and examples on Red Hat's docs.

I'm finding Linux sysadmin much easier than being a developer. Linux has certifications too if you can afford them. I've read they are good quality and companies use them to recruit.

that's all the stuff you need for a job interview?

 

[tndNOW321]

thats what im aiming for after college. love that stuff. im also currently reading the c programming language book and linux command line

 

[Knajjd]

that's all the stuff you need for a job interview?

Network config and network troubleshooting along with SELinux are the most difficult areas of Linux sysadmin/engineer. All the rest is straightforward.

With SELinux learn how to monitor violations. Most are just related to an incorrectly labelled file or directory and that can be fixed easily. Most people I've worked with don't have a clue about SELinux anyway so any knowledge here puts you at an advantage.

 

[Knajjd]

thats what im aiming for after college. love that stuff. im also currently reading the c programming language book and linux command line

Even a little C is worth learning. Play about with the Linux sys calls like exec, fork, read and some interprocess communication calls and that helps too. Doesn't even take that long to learn, a week say.

K&R book is a masterpiece.

 

[Knajjd]

Can you startupmax and become rich using that?

It would be necessary first step I suppose.