Unix Engineer
Whitehall Resources require a Unix Engineer to work with a key client on a 6 month contract.
*This role will require on site work in London 3 days per week.
*Inside IR35.
Unix Engineer
Role Overview
We are seeking a highly capable Senior SI‑UNIX Engineer to support and evolve a critical Specialised Infrastructure estate within a regulated financial services environment. This role is designed for hands-on engineers who operate at the intersection of Unix/Linux systems engineering and high-performance infrastructure.
You will play a key role in both run (L2/L3 support) and change (migration, optimisation, transformation) activities, working within a structured, highly governed enterprise environment.
Key Responsibilities
Specialised Infrastructure Engineering
* Design, build, configure, and optimise Unix/Linux systems supporting high-performance or low-latency workloads
* Support infrastructure aligned to market data platforms, real-time processing, or grid/HPC environments
* Work with high-performance networking technologies and infrastructure components, including exposure to accelerator ecosystems (e.g. Mellanox or similar)
* Continuously improve platform performance, stability, and scalability
Production Support & Operations
* Provide L2/L3 support for critical production systems, ensuring high availability and rapid incident resolution
* Perform deep technical troubleshooting and root cause analysis across complex system environments
* Support systems operating under strict SLAs and uptime requirements
Security, Hardening & Compliance
* Implement and maintain secure build standards, OS hardening, and patching processes
* Manage access controls (e.g. sudo, PAM, RBAC) and address vulnerabilities in line with enterprise policies
* Support audit, risk, and compliance activities within a regulated banking environment
Transformation & Change Delivery
* Contribute to data centre migrations, infrastructure modernisation, and platform stabilisation initiatives
* Support performance optimisation programmes for existing and new workloads
* Work closely with engineering and delivery teams on system improvements and architectural evolution (while remaining hands-on)
Operational Governance
* Operate within an ITIL-aligned framework, including incident, problem, and change management
* Maintain strong documentation, operational standards, and audit readiness
* Collaborate effectively with global teams and stakeholders
Required Skills & Experience
Core Technical Capabilities (Baseline)
* Strong experience with enterprise Unix/Linux platforms, including:
* Linux distributions (RHEL, Oracle, SUSE)
* Unix variants (AIX, Solaris, HP-UX)
* Proven experience providing L2/L3 production support in large-scale environments
* Deep command-line proficiency and hands-on system configuration experience
Strong understanding of:
* System performance tuning
* OS patching and lifecycle management
* Monitoring and troubleshooting tools
Security & Regulatory Awareness
* Experience in regulated environments (e.g. financial services, banking)
Practical exposure to:
* OS hardening and vulnerability remediation
* Access management frameworks
* Audit and compliance processes
* Critical Differentiators (Essential for Success)
Specialised Infrastructure Expertise
* Experience working in low-latency, high-performance, or market data environments
Exposure to:
* High-performance computing (HPC) or grid computing frameworks
* Real-time or latency-sensitive systems
* Demonstrated ability to support performance-critical workloads
Hardware & Performance Awareness
* Understanding of high-performance networking and infrastructure acceleration
Exposure to technologies such as:
* Mellanox, Solarflare, or equivalent ecosystems
* Offload engines, FPGA, or similar accelerator technologies (desirable)
Hands-On Engineering Focus
* Strong preference for candidates who are actively hands-on, configuring, troubleshooting, and optimising systems
* Ability to demonstrate technical depth through real-world engineering experience