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Would being a Linux "power user" increase my chances of getting a job in IT/tech?

I’m trying to get a job in IT that will (hopefully) pay more than a usual 9 to 5. I’m been daily driving Linux exclusively for about 2 1/2 years now and I’m trying to improve my skills to the point that I could be considered a so-called “power user.” My question is this: will this increase my hiring chances significantly or marginally?

stoy ,

What education do you have in the area?

The IT/Sysadmin sector does have a risk with knowing enough to be dangerous.

Daily driving Linux is great to get used to the command line, but is different from running servers.

If you have no experience with running Linux servers, I would be focusing on that part, rather than daily driving at this point.

Running a server requires a bit of a different mindset to that of just using a desktop.

You need to be far more restrictive about installing software on the server, be more cautios of reboots, and in general focus on stabillity.

You also need to familiarize yourself with Debian/Ubuntu and Red Hat/Fedora based distributions, their package managers, apt and dnf, the general layout of the system, they are mostly similar, but they have their own flavours, especially when it commes to the config files.

Learn the basics of vim, it will allways be installed on a server, I prefer nano but can use vim if needed.

A big part of my job when I was a Helpdesk technician combined with a Linux sysadmin was storage, I had to set up VMs in vSphere and Nutanix and give them the correct ammount of storage, sometimes also expand the storage on a server, and work with mountpoints.

Play around with LVMs, learn the concepts of PVs, VGs and LVs, learn how to expand them, how to move an LV from one PV to another inside a VG, learn how to mount them.

Learn how to set a manual IP, this can change from version to version of a distribution.

Learn to get annoyed at YAML files.

Understand how to secure a system, I’ll admit that I never really had to do this as all servers I worked on was behind strong firewalls and not accessable from the internet, but I did my best with what I had.

LifeCoffeeGaming ,

This is a great response, would heed its points especially the yaml files.

stoy ,

Just make a template, once done you can easily do it while blasting Scooter, get pissed when it breaks due to a change of interface names, switch to Sabaton while you battle it out. After that you go to the local zoo and watch some Lynx just relaxing all day and ask yourself where it all webt wrong.

utopiah ,

Yes if

  • the environment you would work on is Linux based, obviously (which it often is when servers are involved, even with Microsoft due to Azure cloud and containers)
  • you master the command line, i.e you know a bit of e.g bash, can write your own scripts that do basic functions
  • you understand how the OS works, i.e permissions, services, package managers, etc

but not really if you are mostly clicking through buttons of the window manager and/or would work in a Microsoft environment with its own set of tools, conventions, etc.

Which brings up obvious suggestions :

  • do improve your mastery of the command line
  • apply to jobs that put Linux forward (but that might bias to a sysadmin position, which might not be what you prefer)
massive_bereavement ,

I had a job offered based on the fact that if you know bash, you can translate that to powershell, as translating knowledge is easier than learning from scratch.

utopiah ,

Makes sense to me. I would also assume that if one can program in bash they can program in pretty much anything. Yes it will take some time to adapt but a lot less than somebody who can’t program in any language in any environment.

That being said, I would advise against starting in an environment that is possibly alienating and exclusive. Microsoft does everything it can in order to lock-in users but also developers. They find bridge, like PowerShell or WSL, then IT relies on certifications specific to their ecosystem. So if OP is fine with such practices they could start there but I’d suggest to keep that only if more direct alternatives are not available.

digdilem ,

True. Learning your first programming language (or scripting language) is usually the hardest.

digdilem ,

Put it this way - it doesn’t hurt.

Nothing fully replaces real world experience with the exact software and technologies your potential employer uses, but having demonstrable ability to use and understand linux is very transferrable. Ultimately it comes down to the interviewers and what they’re looking for, and to the more technical of those, choosing linux as a daily driver shows you’re more interested in understanding how computers work and that you have a degree of problem solving ability.

Read some adverts of the jobs you want to get, being realistic that you may need to start low to get that experience, and build ability in what’s wanted, especially the bits that are marketable.

velox_vulnus ,

No, it won’t. Corporations in today’s time have this entitlement that you should know everything beforehand. You need a lot more than that. Oh, you don’t know Ansible? Don’t understand Terraform? Can’t fix a Docker config? Haven’t used AWS? Rejected, next?

kionite231 ,

I had the same question. I have rather good understanding of Linux and command line however at my job where Ubuntu is used other people easily caught up with me. They still don’t know much about what exactly a command does but they know when to run it so IMO it doesn’t matter how much Linux you know the only knowledge matters which you could use to have your job done quickly and efficiently.

flamingo_pinyata ,

Specifically for a job of Linix sysadmin, probably yes. If you can afford it do a certification, it will help you stand among other candidates with no work experience.

For other IT jobs it’s not so relevant. Linux is technically on the servers but the infrastructure is hidden from you by multiple levels of abstraction.

cyberpunk007 ,

Probably not. I guess it depends what you want to do in IT. And the org. Some orgs use a lot of Linux, and Linux is a whole different ball game at the enterprise level. It’s not just knowing about Linux, but how to properly manage, secure, and patch it at scale.

It might also depend on if you have previous IT experience. If you’ve got a ton of previous experience it could help.

NeoNachtwaechter ,

the point that I could be considered a so-called “power user.”

There is no certain point. Power user is a rather vague description. It still includes “user” as opposed to admin or developer or guru etc.

If vague is good enough in your area, go for it. Otherwise look for a more formal qualification.

Good luck.

wargreymon ,

absolutely… you know servers are mostly linux right?

1984 ,
@1984@lemmy.today avatar

Depends what you mean with a job in tech. If you want to work as technical problem solver or programmer, then it’s very useful, almost required.

Vinny_93 ,

I’m in data engineering and that market is dominated by Microsoft. Understanding an os is essential if you’re, say, a sysadmin.

I’d recommend looking into some certifications. Some businesses are very sensitive to those.

adespoton ,

When I got into IT, I had years of experience with Mac OS, UNIX, a bit of IRIX and VMS, BSD and even a bit of Linux.

And then I spent 10 years mostly managing a Windows shop. I still ran OpenBSD on the internal support servers, but had to support a full Microsoft stack for anything customer-facing.

What will increase your hiring chances is being adaptable and having a portfolio of success stories to reference during interviews.

BodilessGaze ,

It depends on the role. My first job was doing manual QE on Windows, and knowing Linux wasn’t much help at the time, but it did help me transition to a coding role in the same company a year later. I’m now doing platform engineering at a major tech company, but that has a high barrier to entry, which I suspect is the case for most roles that are Linux-focused. If you’re trying to get your foot in the door, I think you should look at job profiles for low barrier to entry roles (e.g. tech support) and try to work your way up.

MajorHavoc ,

Yes. Yes it does.

Look for job listings that require command line Linux skill.

Three candidate pool who can get around on a Linux command prompt is growing, but it’s still pretty small. It gives you some advantage toward networking, Cybersecurity, systems administration, and cloud deployment.

possiblylinux127 ,

What is a usual 9 to 5?

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