How to become a level3 support tech/sysadmin

gwndilshan1989

Greetings!

I currently have a part time hosting support job.(US company)
Just about 1 shift per week still.

The owner says I am doing extremely good. I have been a programmer for 7 years but I like to field much more.

I did the 8 hour shift today and I did not even get up to have water. Its very fun.

Do you have an idea on a list of books to read in order to become a very good sysadmin/technician?
Perhaps a certification pathway?

Many thanks
Dilshan

InceptionHosting

Start with the basics and get a solid foundation, while some may laugh or scoff at this suggestion I recommend that you start by going through the Linux+ while it may cover things you already know it will help build a good foundation/base to start from.

mikho

As Anthony says, when you know the foundation, the harder problems are easier to solve as you know what to look for to fix the problems.

InceptionHosting

I did the Linux+ after being a Windows server/desktop admin for about 10 years, there are always gaps unless you start at the beginning.

havoc

Pluralsight is free at the moment

https://www.pluralsight.com/

gwndilshan1989

@havoc said:
Pluralsight is free at the moment

https://www.pluralsight.com/

Thank you but videos are not my thing... Books work for me

comi

@AnthonySmith said: there are always gaps

period ;-)

@gwndilshan1989
"UNIX & Linux System Administration Handbook"
This is IMO the book. It has had many editions over the years.
But as with any book in a fast changing field it's already old when it's printed.
So I suggest you look at this book's index and read the more uptodate online sources on the topics you find in the index.

gwndilshan1989

I have a student subscription to the ACM which gives me free access to several ebook libraries like O'reilly.
Time to browse for the recommendations... Thanks good people!

AK_KWH

try udemy There had many courses related it

willie

Certifications are mostly useless. Don't know about general purpose books: if there's a specific topic you find yourself wanting to know about, read a book about that topic.

bikegremlin

From my experience: start at level 1, kill the boss at the end, then level 2 and so on...

On a more serious note, in addition to what the others here have recommended: you said you already work with a hosting provider. I'd try talking with other, more experienced and knowledgeable colleagues. If you are good and willing to learn, some might even enjoy teaching you - it is a joy teaching someone who is quick on the uptake and happy to learn.

FlamingSpaceJunk

@willie said:
Certifications are mostly useless. Don't know about general purpose books: if there's a specific topic you find yourself wanting to know about, read a book about that topic.

I disgree with this. Certs give people a goal, and they do provide some interesting information. The CCNA is definitely worth it.

Next, they every helpful to contractors as they establish credentials.

WSS

@FlamingSpaceJunk said:

@willie said:
Certifications are mostly useless. Don't know about general purpose books: if there's a specific topic you find yourself wanting to know about, read a book about that topic.

I disgree with this. Certs give people a goal, and they do provide some interesting information. The CCNA is definitely worth it.

Next, they every helpful to contractors as they establish credentials.

Pretty sure he means Network+ and similarly worthless certifications.

willie

New Google SRE book is likely to be interesting. I liked the old one.

https://landing.google.com/sre/books/

Discussion: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=22815453

FlamingSpaceJunk

@WSS said:
Pretty sure he means Network+ and similarly worthless certifications.

The A+ cert, circa 2001, is the only thing from CompTIA I have experience with, so I'm really not sure how the rest of their stuff stacks up. Collecting and maintaining certs isn't a hobby of mine.

I've seen the same argument applied to pretty much everything that isn't real world experience. College degrees, certs, MOOCs, etc. While they aren't a substitute for knowing the how things work in real life, because things generally don't work like they're supposed to, they do provide a base with stubs to explore that wouldn't be there otherwise.

WSS

@FlamingSpaceJunk said:
I've seen the same argument applied to pretty much everything that isn't real world experience. College degrees, certs, MOOCs, etc. While they aren't a substitute for knowing the how things work in real life, because things generally don't work like they're supposed to, they do provide a base with stubs to explore that wouldn't be there otherwise.

Pretty sure most of us don't even remember what a serial mouse looks like or if we need to share an IRQ with a printer and a sound card. In the last 20+ years.

That said, I can still do it in my sleep.

FlamingSpaceJunk

@WSS said:
Pretty sure most of us don't even remember what a serial mouse looks like or if we need to share an IRQ with a printer and a sound card. In the last 20+ years.

That said, I can still do it in my sleep.

I'm pretty sure no one has seen a parallel port printer in the last 20 years either.

gwndilshan1989

@willie said:
New Google SRE book is likely to be interesting. I liked the old one.

https://landing.google.com/sre/books/

Discussion: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=22815453

Thanks man!

gwndilshan1989

Hi everyone, I subscribed to the Linux+ video course by Sander van Vugt. The guy is great.