Backup & Storage Specialist (Systems Engineer)

Job description

Hiring Backup & Storage Specialist (System Engineer) Qatar

Responsible for designing, implementing, and maintaining robust backup, recovery, and storage solutions to ensure data integrity, availability, and business continuity across hybrid cloud, hyperconverged, and on-premises environments.

This role involves proactive monitoring, optimization, and troubleshooting of storage systems, backup processes, and virtualization technologies (including vSAN, VMware, and Nutanix HCI) to minimize downtime and support organizational data management strategies.

The specialist will collaborate with cross-functional teams to align storage and backup operations with enterprise security, compliance, and performance requirements.

General System Management
Maintain the overall health, security, and documentation of backup, storage, server,virtualization, and hyperconverged systems tosupport reliable operations and compliance.
• Perform routine system maintenance tasks,including patching, firmware updates, and healthchecks across Windows/Linux servers,VMware/vSAN/Nutanix environments, SAN/HCIarrays, and Azure/GCP resources.
• Ensure system security through access controls,encryption management, vulnerability scanning,and adherence to organizational policies andstandards (e.g., GDPR, ISO 27001).
• Maintain comprehensive documentation forconfigurations, procedures, and runbooksrelated to backup schedules, storage mappings,and recovery processes.
• Provide tier-2 support to end-users and IT teamson storage and backup queries, includingcapacity reporting and performance optimizationrecommendations.


Backup and Recovery Management
• Oversee the implementation and maintenance of enterprise backup solutions using tools like Commvault to ensure reliable data protection and rapid recovery.
• Configure and manage Commvault backup policies, schedules, and retention strategies for physical, virtual, cloud-based, and hyperconverged workloads.
• Perform regular backup integrity checks, testing, and disaster recovery drills to validate restore capabilities.
• Troubleshoot backup failures, optimize performance, and generate reports on backup success rates and storage utilization.
• Integrate backup solutions with monitoring tools for automated alerts on anomalies or compliance issues.


Enterprise Storage & Hyperconverged Operations
Administer SAN, NAS, and hyperconverged storage systems (including vSAN and HCI platforms such as VMware vSAN, Nutanix, or HPE SimpliVity) to provide scalable, high-availability storage infrastructure supporting critical business applications.
• Design, deploy, and maintain SAN and HCI environments, including provisioning, zoning, LUN management, and vSAN datastore configuration for optimal I/O performance.
• Monitor storage capacity, performance metrics, and health using tools like EMC Unisphere or vendor-specific HCI dashboards; perform capacity planning and forecasting.
• Implement data tiering, replication, and snapshot technologies to enhance data resilience and efficiency.
• Collaborate with application teams to ensure storage configurations align with workload demands and SLAs.


Cloud and Hybrid Infrastructure Support
• Manage storage and backup integrations in multi-cloud environments (Azure and GCP) alongside on-premises and hyperconverged systems for seamless hybrid operations.
• Provision and manage Azure Blob Storage, Azure Files, and GCP Cloud Storage for hybrid backup workflows, including data migration and synchronization.
• Configure cloud-native backup services (e.g., Azure Backup, GCP Persistent Disk snapshots) and integrate them with Commvault for unified management.
• Optimize cloud storage costs through lifecycle policies, archiving, and deduplication while ensuring data sovereignty and compliance.
• Conduct security assessments for cloud storage access controls, encryption, and integration with on-premises VMware/vSAN/Nutanix environments.


Server and Virtualization Administration
• Support Windows and Linux server operations (with emphasis on Red Hat Enterprise Linux, CentOS, Ubuntu, and other major distributions) within virtualized and hyperconverged environments, focusing on storage integration and performance tuning.
• Administer Windows Server and Linux systems, including patching, scripting (PowerShell/Bash), and configuration for storage attachments.
• Manage VMware vSphere and Nutanix AHV environments, including VM provisioning, vMotion, storage vMotion, and vSAN for non-disruptive operations.
• Integrate virtualization hosts with enterprise storage arrays and HCI platforms via protocols like iSCSI, FC, and NFS; monitor for bottlenecks and resource contention.
• Develop automation scripts for routine tasks such as storage provisioning in virtual environments and server backup orchestration.


Incident, Problem, and Change Management
Apply ITIL best practices to manage incidents, perform root cause analysis for problems, and oversee changes in backup, storage, and hyperconverged environments to ensure minimal disruption and continuous improvement.
• Respond to and resolve incidents related to backup failures, storage outages, or performance degradations in Windows/Linux servers, VMware/vSAN/Nutanix clusters, Azure/GCP resources, and SAN/HCI systems, adhering to defined SLAs.
• Conduct root cause analysis for recurring problems using tools like Commvault reporting or VMware Log Insight, implementing preventive measures such as enhanced monitoring or configuration hardening.
• Evaluate, plan, and execute changes (e.g., firmware updates on storage arrays, policy modifications in Commvault, or cloud resource scaling) through the change management process, including risk assessments, testing in non-production environments, and post-implementation reviews.
• Document incidents, problems, and changes in the IT service management system (e.g., ServiceNow), collaborating with stakeholders to drive process improvements and knowledge base updates.

 

5+ years of hands-on experience in enterprise backup and storage administration, with proven expertise in hybrid cloud, hyperconverged, and virtualization environments.
• Demonstrated experience managing large-scale data protection using Commvault, including multi-site deployments and deduplication technologies.
Education:
Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Information Technology, or a related field.
• Relevant certifications such as Commvault Certified Administrator (CCA), VMware Certified Professional Data Center Virtualization (VCP-DCV), Nutanix Certified Professional (NCP), Microsoft Certified: Azure Administrator Associate (AZ-104), or Google Cloud Professional Cloud Architect.
• Additional preferred certifications: Red Hat Certified System Administrator (RHCSA), or ITIL Foundation for service management.


Required Skillset:
Proficiency in Commvault Complete for backup orchestration, including Simpana console, IntelliSnap for application-consistent backups, and cloud connectors.
•Expertise in enterprise storage systems (SAN/HCI) with skills in array management, thin provisioning, and replication (e.g., EMC SRDF, HPE 3PAR, VMware vSAN, Nutanix).
• Strong command of Azure and GCP services for storage and backup, with scripting in ARM Templates or Terraform.
• Advanced Windows and Linux server administration: Active Directory integration, Linux kernel tuning (especially Red Hat and other major flavors), and multi-pathing software (e.g., MPIO, DSM)
• In-depth knowledge of VMware technologies: vCenter management, NSX for storage networking, vSAN for hyperconverged infrastructure, and Nutanix AHV.
• Scripting and automation proficiency in PowerShell, Python, or Bash for storage provisioning and monitoring tasks.
• Familiarity with monitoring tools like SolarWinds, Nagios, or Splunk for storage performance analytics and alerting.

Required Skill Profession

Other General