Sysadmin in neaytishnoy company. The unbearable burden of being?

Being a system administrator in a small company not from the IT sphere is still an adventure. The head considers you a parasite, the staff in bad time is the network and hardware deity, in good time the beer and tank lover, the bookkeeping as an application to 1C, and the whole company as a driver for the success of printers. While you are dreaming about a good Tsisk and not about Yota's whistle-box for organizing a corporate access point, they are already methodically preparing a new dirty trick: a virus from the home collection, crooked hands wound on a wire (or vice versa), playing on a production server, unlicensed Photoshop and downloading the entire new series to see on the road in traffic. Oh yeah, they also asked me to repair the electric kettle. It’s not up to Kubernetes and DevOps to survive, survive, and get out of this raid by the boss. Oh, damn you, execute KPI and do not die. Allegorical? No, the way it is.

Non-IT companies: guys at risk

Small and medium-sized businesses from outside the IT sphere sometimes use the achievements of this very IT sphere cautiously, casually and with a great deal of skepticism - you never know, this software on that server will work, and then clean up after us, posting a line ... And, oddly enough, relations with system administrators develop very differently, and it is they who determine how effective a company is, how it approaches customer management and whether it survives on the market in principle. We list the possible combinations.

• The company has no system administrator, all work is carried out by the staff or enikei who comes by call. In this case, the threats are obvious: idle in workflows, excessive costs due to the randomness and often urgency of service, security holes, lack of IT infrastructure as such. In fact, the principle of “each admin to himself” works, and the technology makes you wonder if there is a failure in telephony or the Internet.
  
• The company has its own enikey on the salary - a student, a beginning system administrator or a very unlucky developer. In this case, much depends on the diligence and interest of the responsible, but most often limited to solving basic problems and the minimum life support of IT processes in the company. On the infrastructure, as a rule, we are not talking.
  

Prepare the cooling system correctly
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• The company has a programmer, he's a programmer, he's a system administrator. The variant is slightly better than the previous one, at least due to the fact that the programmer can easily cope with setting up, configuring, and even refining corporate software (for example, 1C or CRM), and, being a developer, automates its activities using scripts, cmdlets, etc. The main problem in such a situation is employee congestion, the second problem is superficial performance of sysadmin duties (relatively speaking, why should he lovingly build the topology of a small network for a company when heaps of requests for data upload or revision of the next software business hang on it? okay, let them say thanks.).
  
• The company does not have a sysadmin, but an agreement with an outsourcing company. This is a good option for small and medium-sized businesses: experienced guys (you will not save and find an outsourcer by ad at the entrance?) Are responsible for the IT infrastructure, and you sit on a subscriber and breathe freely (well, or sit on one-time hourly pay and breathe not so free). There are many advantages: efficiency, experience, best tools, responsibility. Not less minuses: expensive, strictly regulated amount of work (a little more - pay), the imposition of services and software (for example, RegionSoft CRM would suit you , because business processes, planning, KPI and the primary organization would be important to you, and Romashka CRM would be sold to you without of all this, but because Romashka-Soft LLC removes dealer percentage to an outsourcer), extra charges for urgency in case of force majeure and for complexity in case of major changes in the company.
  
• The company has a good, experienced system administrator for the CIO level - the person who is responsible for the development of the entire IT infrastructure. This is logical, convenient, but quite rare. It is always available, the entire infrastructure is in the same hands, it is responsible for physical and information security, it is actively involved in business processes and from the inside knows how to optimize costs and what the business really needs. However, for some reason, the management of small companies believes that it is costly to maintain such an administrator, while forgetting that they do not just give money, but pay at the same time for the stability of equipment and software, security, availability of quick solutions to incidents, qualified communication with vendors, no problems with licensing and so on. In the IT field, they understand this much better (in fairness - not always).
  

At the same time in such companies there are a number of problems that should be solved, otherwise you can get to unplanned costs, fines or inefficient work.

• Difficulties with the organization of infrastructure - you need to keep a balance between requirements, quality, economy and convenience. At the same time, the leadership may consider IT at all a fashionable thing, and not an essential tool.
  
• High costs of equipment. Indeed, the purchase of equipment, server, update of the fleet of working machines is a significant waste for a small company.
  
• Difficulties with the implementation and support of business software. We need an internal expertise, which will help to do this correctly, in accordance with the requirements and business processes (which may also not be).
  
• Low speed of fixing problems: either an outsourcer requires money for urgency, or an admin is overloaded with tasks, or problems are detected with a delay. And if you also need to find some resource, consider everything stuck.
  

By the way, we will immediately make a reservation about outsourcing, so that no one would consider it a magic pill for everything.

Sysadmin or outsourcing - which is better?

A question that concerns many companies. We tried to analyze the prices and draw conclusions.

We walked through the sites of Moscow IT-outsourcers of the standard category (not large system integrators and not eminent offices), calculated on their calculators on the site the average price tag for admin duties based on the configuration of 15 people and 1 server. The scattering turned out to be colossal, from 6300 to “hoo, not the order we are doing,” but the average cost per month was 19 700 p. with 2 scheduled trips, minimum salary of 1C. The median value of the system administrator's salary according to the My Circle service is 70 thousand rubles, according to Trud.com data - 35–50 thousand rubles, according to our data for the designated sphere - 40–50 thousand rubles. Let us stop at a moderately optimistic 60 thousand rubles. In the normal month 176 slaves. hours, total 340 p. / hour. “Why do you think the clock, once the stump is clear, that 60,000 is more than 19,700 ?!”, some readers might think. But why? If the basic package of services sharply ceases to solve the company's problems, outsourcers have an average price of 1,200 rubles per hour for basic services and 1,800 rubles per hour for server services (almost everyone with a minimum reservation of 2 hours). That is, an outsourcer is cheaper exactly before the first extraordinary event (which happens quite soon).

In addition, the outsource provider with a high probability will not be at all or will be at an additional cost:

• collect requirements and communicate with the vendor in the implementation of corporate software;
  
• work with peripherals, consumables and each flash drive;
  
• solve various cloud tasks and butt with the provider for SLA compliance;
  
• help with personal questions to employees and, most importantly, to management;
  
• not just making backups, but also testing them;
  
• solve security problems if they arise due to human factors or are a fact of unlawful behavior of employees.
  

In fact, this list is easy to continue, since most of the services outsourcers see “above the package”, and it would be strange to condemn them - only business.

Your system administrator on staff is a professional who will know the entire infrastructure, provide security, work with users and you can ask him, because he has professional responsibility. But this does not mean that he needs to be turned into a slave to the lamp of the server and the network.

He also has a figurative understanding of the absolute power ring.

Let's look at what is included in the tasks of the system administrator in a non-IT company of small and medium-sized businesses.

The duty of the sysadmin in the company

He really owes

• Provide network and information security. We, as a developer of security-sensitive software, CRM-systems , know about the problem firsthand. This, of course, is the topic of the Information Security hub, but in general there are several basic tasks. First of all, you need to set up user security policies and provide “fool protection” to minimize the influence of employees on the IT system. Next is to protect the business data, customer base and processes: set up a firewall, use intrusion detection systems, etc. In corporate systems, such as CRM, it is necessary to configure separation of access rights, provide backup and verification of backups, if necessary, use additional protection measures, such as a physical USB key for access, etc. A separate huge task is the management of passwords and access to all systems, anti-spam mail protection, antivirus, etc. In order not to miss anything, draw the whole network, mark weak points and potential gaps and start protecting them. Well, a banal tip: remember, the main security hole sits in front of each monitor.
  
• Create a streamlined office IT infrastructure. The infrastructure must be coherent, stable, stable. It should not be a collection of disparate machines, devices and networks - largely because it is easier to maintain, monitor and administer a logical and unified structure.
  
• Maintain cloud services. This is only cloud vendors say that they have “set and forget”. No, well, if you are ready to store your data in a public cloud, then yes, it is, your interface only (as long as you rent it). And so the cloud requires management, configuration, security (the same backups). Therefore, it is better to choose your cloud server, configure policies and configuration for yourself, and then roll services.
  
• Support users and solve their technical problems within the framework of work tasks. A sysadmin must create and configure user profiles for hiring, manage policies, kill or archive records after an employee is fired. In the course of work, an important (in many respects key) task is to work with incidents, preferably in some kind of ticketing system, so that all knowledge and data are stored centrally and tasks and problems are described as accurately as possible.
  
• Plan infrastructure development and provide data for budgeting (to budget yourself). This is a mandatory item, because any costs for small and medium businesses (read - the owner) is a very painful thing. The more practical, more accurate and more rational you plan and calculate the budget, the higher the probability of convincing management and modernizing the infrastructure. Although there is no sadder story in the world than the story about the wrapped up budget :-)
  
• Maintain uninterrupted work of the Internet, IP-telephony and telephony (if required), create access points. Ideally, if you do it with the use of professional routers, because it is safe, stable and functional.
  
• To keep equipment in order and in good condition, to provide the minimum necessary replacement fund. The issue of equipment in a business is always acute: it should work fine, be professional, withstand the load (a tiny advertising business can kill a printer in a matter of months on the same primary documentation), be so modern as to solve actual problems (yes, it’s not necessary to buy an HPE server) , but all characteristics should correspond to the current year, and not be used from 2008, although in principle modern used servers are a good option). Try not to save on key equipment and choose business class equipment that will last 3-5 years. If you buy "home" version, you can overpay at the expense of frequent replacement. Create a replacement fund, based on the number of incidents and depreciation, so that there is no downtime. Although, again, everything comes down to the budget: a replacement fund is very difficult to break through when “well, it still works.”
  
• Purchase and store peripherals and consumables in the amount necessary for smooth operation. Trifle, for which you need to strictly follow.
  
• Work with the vendor in the process of software implementation. As our experience in implementing RegionSoft CRM shows , the admin vendor is not always an ally - who wants to take one more business-critical software on board, and even train employees, work on implementation in conjunction with engineers, etc. However, everything should be exactly the opposite: first, you will automate your users and avoid parts of the routine work, secondly, you will receive a means of protecting your client base and you will sleep more easily, thirdly, this is just another skill and an important hook to in which case, to stay at work, because without Word or without mail without spam, users will exist normally, but without CRM, their work will roll back into the Stone Age (well, joking, joking, it will just become a busy routine again and unsafe from the client’s point of view base).
  
• To ensure licensed cleanliness and timely updating of the entire software fleet, to optimize the number of required licenses based on business objectives. Everything is very simple here: there should be no pirated licenses, there should be no extra licenses. If the manager insists on unlicensed software, try to show him law enforcement practices, talk about the amount of fines and cases of landing. Usually impressive from the first time.
  
• Document your work. There are many goals in this action: the transfer of knowledge to the future generation (alas or fortunately, you will outgrow your position sooner or later), appeal to your own practices, accounting system. Through documentation, you can reduce the time to solve work problems, analyze work and learn how to anticipate and prevent potential problems. By the way, documenting your own work is also an excellent document to show your real work.
  
• Make backups. Traditionally we will put this clause as a separate one, although it is nothing but a part of information security. But for some reason everyone either forgets them to do, or does and “puts on the shelf,” which is fundamentally wrong. You need to configure the frequency of backups, develop a backup strategy and test backups. Otherwise, consider what you have done, what you have not - at random. Some time ago we came across an excellent wording: “If you don’t check backups, you don’t have any backups”. It is worth printing and hanging in a prominent place.
  
• Train employees, explain the rules for using infrastructure components, conduct educational campaign on information and physical security.
  

Well, in general, a good sysadmin is an adept of automation, not a fighter with it. This is where professionalism begins.

He is not obliged (although it may)

• To be an errand boy and perform the duties of a secretary: order food and water, clean coolers, order forms, receive and send postal mail, parse documents for approval, ring up clients and so on.
  
• Repair the coffee maker, marketer's bike, salesman's car, wash the cappuccinator, change taps, clean the clogs, etc.
  
• Be a programmer and refine or develop software that is not related to the profile of its activities.
  
• Manage cleaners, porters, warehouse and storekeepers and so on.
  
• Solve personal questions of employees (repair and customize personal gadgets, process photos, download software and books).
  
• Provide a corporate ball for the personal needs of employees.
  

Well, and probably there is a border duty - the provision of physical security. Yes, in a small and medium business in the absence of a security service, her duties are assigned to the system administrator.

What does a system administrator get in a non-IT company?

By the nerves . According to the brain . Lyuley . The highest salary in the market . The current labor market of system administrators has undergone great changes: you can study microservices, Docker, Kubernetes, DevOps, DevSecOps, build up a practice and reach a high level of income. So is it worth starting in a small, and even unprofitable business? Is this career suicide?

pros

1. Work in such companies gives an invaluable skill - the vision of the business entirely. You do not just work on your narrow scope of work, you go through a huge practice and see all the processes in conjunction with the IT infrastructure, in fact you are on the client side and in the future it will give you a huge plus as a specialist.
   
2. In small companies there are no standards - you will not be forced to suffer from ISO, write endless forms and regulations, work on strictly defined equipment, use only those providers recommended by the technical director, etc.
   
3. You can afford certain experiments (only not during working hours and not on a live system) and try out some schemes and innovations that you yourself designed. In large companies it is difficult to agree.
   
4. You are solely responsible for the entire range of software and hardware, cover all tasks and understand all the connections.
   

Minuses

1. Responsibilities of the system administrator are often combined with the responsibilities of support services.
   
2. Often there are universal tasks: acceptance of goods, tasks of protection and video surveillance.
   
3. There is a career ceiling: there is no place to grow, you will be pumped within the framework of the company's business requirements, but do not master new horizontal skills if they are not demanded by the company.
   

In general, this is an interesting start and interesting work for experienced professionals, so do not neglect such vacancies: the competition is lower, and future skills are more valuable. In any case, this is a complex practice that will serve you well in your career.

We can not say about the important aspect - about the moral. When a manager doesn’t understand IT issues and treats them not as an investment, but as a waste, it’s difficult to work - sometimes it seems that you are beating on armored glass. You need to speak his language - the language of benefits. But employees in such companies, system administrators love :-)

And one more tip from the real and sad story. Perhaps not very fair advice. If an employee actively performs your duties, try to stop this process. The management always strives for optimization and can refuse the work of a sysadmin. By the way, you can agree and offer your services at an outsourcing, thereby giving a start to your business.

Story. In one IT company there was a sysadmin who solved strictly admin tasks, worked responsibly and was a good fellow in general. At some point, the commercial service administrator decided to survive (billing, payments, generating licenses, setting up test and demo stands) - he was able to convince the director that he was ready to take on the duties of a colleague for 50% of his salary, began to catch on trifles, follow behind the fact he is at home or in the dining room, for example. The staff stood behind the admin wall, but he was fired by a strong-willed decision. However, the winner also did not last long - he became noticeably worse doing all the work, and in the end he was fired. Although life has not taught the manager anything: the duties of the guys are spread over developers and testers, as a result, at a large meeting of partners, a burned-out projector, a fallen network and an unpaid service for webinars were waiting.

What to use in work and be sure to do?

Each system administrator chooses his own set of tools with which he likes to work, so you cannot create a universal list. We name several tools that are often found or among which you need to choose something of your own.

• Infrastructure monitoring system - there are paid, there are open source, the main thing is that it is necessary to simultaneously monitor the network, users, equipment and the status of the software (something like ITSM-system). For any business with a web presence, comprehensive monitoring is a business requirement because system failure reduces revenue.
  
• The system of registration of requests and incidents (ticket-system) is a system in which users (employees) will start problems and tasks, and you will be able to note the stages, time, resources, and the result of the work. For example, we have a self-written solution with a web interface. The system documents which requests are received, when and by whom. He also documents the client agreement that the request has been completed. On the net you can find many similar paid and free applications.
  
• Notepad ++ is an ideal notepad with syntax highlighting for configuration, code, scripts, and so on. Comfortable editor.
  
• Wireshark is a traffic analyzer for computer Ethernet networks. It helps to analyze all the packages, find the necessary ones, detect anomalies, remove dumps.
  
• Set up a network inventory system (for example, Spiceworks) - it will additionally help you track incidents and suspicious activities.
  
• It is advisable to explore the possibility of using scripts to automate system administration tasks: Bash, Perl, Python, PowerShell. This will free up a lot of time, especially if a company undergoes frequent changes or it grows (the number of users changes or increases), there are business tasks that depend on the state of the infrastructure component (virtual PBX settings, backup, etc.).
  
• If you are installing an external business software, ask the vendor about the possibilities and ways of integrating, administering and managing the new software. For example, we have RegionSoft Application Server in RegionSoft for creating custom scripts, scheduled backups, data exchange, etc. Application Server solves a number of functionally important tasks for a CRM system and greatly simplifies administration.
  

By the way, what tools do you use? Tell us about the experience in the comments.

The system administrator is no longer a dude with a beard in a sweater and with the Baltic under the table. Today, it is the company's guide to the world of efficiency, fast work and cost reduction in the long run. This is an employee who is not worth saving, and a professional who is always in development (otherwise in a year he will not understand where he is). So, it's time to forget the jokes with bashorga and develop the IT infrastructure to be ahead in two buildings and conquer the market, customers, profit using digital tools, rather than swinging a stone ax. No one is afraid of him.

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