I read this article about what it’s like to be a sys admin, and thought, well, without any formal training, that was kind of what I was already doing in previous jobs - being the go-to person for trouble, the person to call or page to handle those last second problems, and drive half an hour on a sunday night in pouring rain to go in and print something for a presentation that was “live or die” and never even ended up happening. I would install new software, made sure the whole department had it, would set up all new accounts for people, would set up permissions on the servers for our folder hierarchy, which I also developed, supervised, and maintained. When we had transitory salesmen in, I was the one folks would call to hook them into the very confusing printer list and pull the drivers from the right places. If you gave me new software to work with, I had it figured out within an hour or two.
I can’t program, I can’t code. I know a couple of things, but not much at all.
But this definition i found:
Sysadmin
An individual responsible for maintaining a multi-user computer system, including a local-area network (LAN). Typical duties include:
• Adding and configuring new workstations
• Setting up user accounts
• Installing system-wide software
• Performing procedures to prevent the spread of viruses
• Allocating mass storage space
The system administrator is sometimes called the sysadmin or the systems administrator. Small organizations may have just one system administrator, whereas larger enterprises usually have a whole team of system administrators.
Thiis sounds like exactly what I’ve done ever since I learned how to use computers. I always became the default person. Of course, if I didn’t know how, I would call the techies, and hang with them to learn, so I would never have to bother them on that particular problem again. And they loved working with my office because the systems were clean, they were up to date, the virus definitions were always current, I would write manuals for my users who were NOT computer literate at all that would begin with things like “In the lower left hand corner of the screen, you should see a box that says: START. Click there first…” and so on.
But in searching out information, I can’t see what it takes to become a sysadmin. Does one have to be proficient in coding? What kind of background in education would I need? I don’t want to sound arrogant, because I am sure there is lots I do not know, and what I don’t know could fill volumes compared to what i do know, so please don’t assume I think I am ready to jump into a position like this, but I am curious about the educational aspects of this, and looking at perhaps bettering myself.
What direction should I start? Is it a certificate or a degree? I really am ignorant about the whole process. Please help? I have a genuine curiosity, and it was one of the few things I can recall enjoying doing at some jobs.
Thanks for the help.
Inky