Resume - Alex Kraker - August 2025

PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY

Results-driven Systems Engineer with 5+ years of experience in Linux engineering and system administration, architecting, automating, and maintaining high-availability server environments across AWS, Azure, and GCP. Specialized in Infrastructure as Code (IaC) using Ansible, Terraform, Packer, and GitLab CI to deliver secure, repeatable, and maintainable deployments. Proven track record in large-scale systems implementations, configuration management, and performance optimization with a strong focus on security hardening and compliance. Collaborative leader and mentor dedicated to fostering team growth, promoting maintainability, and building comprehensive documentation and knowledge bases to ensure long-term operational excellence.

KEY ACHIEVEMENTS

Delivered DISA STIG-hardened RHEL “Golden Image” pipelines achieving 100% compliance baseline within 9 months for federal cloud environments.
Achieved 99.95% infrastructure uptime SLA by establishing consistent configuration baselines and resolving issues surfaced via observability tooling.
Implemented high-availability SAP Pacemaker clusters as a key deliverable in a $400K+ infrastructure project, deploying 3 SAP BW/4 clusters on RHEL/SLES.
Authored 20K+ lines of Infrastructure as Code (Ansible, Terraform, Packer) across 35+ projects, standardizing deployments and improving maintainability.

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Cloud Security Engineer (Contract) Insight Global / Peraton Inc. – Remote | Sep 2024 – Present

Engineered automated DISA STIG-hardened RHEL “Golden Image” build and deployment pipelines using Ansible, Packer, Terraform, and GitLab CI, achieving 95% compliance in 3 months and 100% in 9 months.
Developed configuration automation to patch vulnerabilities and enforce compliance for new RHEL 9 AWS deployments.
Built and maintain RHEL 9-based Docker “tools” image used as the executor for GitLab CI pipeline runners across team-managed projects.
Authored deployment automation for observability and security agents integrating with SOC monitoring, XDR, IdM, vulnerability assessment, and SIEM.
Contributed to 25+ IaC projects (10K+ lines of code) and served as primary maintainer for 10+ infrastructure automation pipelines.

Sr. Linux System Administrator Avvale – Remote | Mar 2024 – Sep 2024

Automated deployments for Linux and Windows infrastructure using Ansible and Jenkins CI, reducing manual configuration tasks.
Implemented security hardening, patch automation, and SSH key rotation across enterprise environments.
Designed maintainable infrastructure using Configuration as Code to improve long-term operability and consistency.

Linux System Administrator Avvale – Remote | Feb 2022 – Feb 2024

Managed automated configuration for 800+ Linux and Windows servers across AWS, Azure, and GCP, balancing maintenance, configuration, and security hardening.
Implemented high-availability SAP Pacemaker clusters on RHEL/SLES as a key deliverable in a $400K+ infrastructure project, including deployment of 3 SAP BW/4 clusters.
Engineered Teleport Kubernetes cluster deployment for Identity Management (IdM) on AWS EKS, enabling secure access and streamlined operations.
Developed Bash and PowerShell scripts for DB2 backups, Prometheus monitoring, and Windows server onboarding.
Achieved 99.95% infrastructure uptime SLA by establishing consistent configuration baselines with Configuration as Code (Ansible) and proactively resolving issues identified through observability platforms such as Prometheus and Grafana.
Authored over 10K lines of Ansible code for standardized deployments and patching processes using Jenkins CI pipelines.

Managed Hosting Analyst I & II InMotion Hosting – Remote | Apr 2021 – Feb 2022

Administered LAMP stack and cPanel hosting environments on virtualization platforms (OpenStack, Virtuozzo).
Scaled and optimized PHP-based CMS platforms (WordPress, Drupal, Joomla, Magento) for enterprise customers.
Co-authored the “Jr. Linux Sysadmin Pipeline” training program to develop internal talent.
Configured and optimized Apache, Nginx, MySQL, PostgreSQL, CSF, and Cisco ASA firewall systems.

Advanced Product Support Specialist InMotion Hosting – Remote | Sep 2020 – Apr 2021

Provided advanced technical support for standalone cPanel servers, resolving escalations and applying security measures.
Migrated internal knowledge base to Zendesk Guide, improving documentation accessibility and support workflows.

Technical Support Specialist Expert InMotion Hosting – Hybrid | Nov 2019 – Sep 2020

Delivered tier-one technical support for shared hosting and cPanel environments.
Managed remote helpdesk operations during COVID-19, troubleshooting RDP and VOIP connectivity for remote staff.

CERTIFICATIONS

CompTIA Security+ – CompTIA | Issued Feb 2024 | Expires Feb 2027
CompTIA Network+ – CompTIA | Issued Mar 2022 | Expires Feb 2027

ADDITIONAL INVOLVEMENT

Contributor, Linux Upskill Challenge (May 2023 – Present) – Contributed to Linux sysadmin skill development program.
Co-Founder, PaperStreet (May 2022 – Present) – Open-source initiative to support IT practitioner growth and skill building.

TECHNICAL SKILLS

Cloud Platforms & Virtualization:
Amazon Web Services (AWS), Amazon EKS, Azure, Google Cloud Platform (GCP), OpenStack, Virtuozzo, Proxmox VE

Infrastructure as Code & Automation:
Ansible, Terraform, Packer, GitLab CI/CD, Jenkins CI, Kubernetes, AWS EKS, Configuration as Code (CaC), Infrastructure as Code (IaC), YAML, Bash, Shell Scripting, PowerShell, Python

Security & Compliance:
DISA STIG, DevSecOps, Security Compliance, Vulnerability Management, Patch Management, Identity Management (IdM), XDR, SIEM, Firewall Configuration (CSF, APF, Cisco ASA, CheckPoint, Fortinet), Access Control, System Hardening

Systems Administration:
Linux System Administration, Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL), SUSE Linux Enterprise Server (SLES), CentOS, Ubuntu, Windows Server Administration, Networking, DNS, System Configuration, Technical Documentation, Mentoring, Knowledge Management

Web & Application Servers:
Apache, Nginx, Varnish, LAMP Administration, PHP, MySQL, PostgreSQL, Bind, Exim, Docker