Research User Computing Linux Specialist

Research User Computing Linux Specialist Job Details | King Abdullah University of Science & Technology Skip to main content Home Professional Life at KAUST Living at KAUST Career Areas Academic and Research Jobs Innovation and Entrepreneurship Jobs Administration and Support Services Jobs Engineering and Facilities Management Jobs The KAUST School Jobs Elevate Program Join our Talent Community Search by Keyword Home Professional Life at KAUST Living at KAUST Career Areas Academic and Research Jobs Innovation and Entrepreneurship Jobs Administration and Support Services Jobs Engineering and Facilities Management Jobs The KAUST School Jobs Elevate Program Join our Talent Community View Profile Search by Keyword Select how often (in days) to receive an alert: Create Alert × Select how often (in days) to receive an alert: Research User Computing Linux Specialist Apply now » Date: Sep 22, 2026 Location: Saudi Arabia Company: King Abdullah University of Science & Technology About the Role The Research User Computing Linux Specialist designs, operates, and continuously improves KAUST's Linux-based research end-user computing platforms, including Ubuntu and Rocky Linux endpoints, physical scientific workstations, and virtual scientific workstation services. This role enables secure, reliable, and high-performance access to scientific desktop environments for faculty, researchers, and students. Responsibilities Administer, maintain, and improve Ubuntu and Rocky Linux end-user platforms to provide stable and secure scientific workstation services for KAUST's research and academic communities. Develop, standardize, and maintain Linux workstation builds and images for physical and virtual scientific desktops, ensuring consistency, reliability, and readiness for research use. Manage and support remote scientific workstation platforms, including NICE DCV and Kasm Workspaces, to enable secure, high-performance access to research desktop environments. Automate provisioning, configuration, patching, monitoring, and compliance activities using scripting, configuration management, Infrastructure as Code, and GitOps-aligned practices. Troubleshoot and resolve complex Linux endpoint, workstation, remote desktop, GPU, driver, performance, identity, storage, and network-related issues, escalating where deeper platform or infrastructure support is required. Integrate Linux desktops and workstations with enterprise IAM, storage, network, monitoring, security, and endpoint management services to support compliant and reliable operations. Partner with faculty, researchers, students, research labs, HPC, storage, security, and advanced computing teams to understand scientific workflows and translate requirements into sustainable workstation solutions. Support installation, validation, and maintenance of scientific and research software on Linux workstation environments, considering compatibility, performance, reproducibility, and user needs. Implement and maintain security and compliance controls for Linux workstation environments, including patching, hardening, audit logging, endpoint security, and alignment with KAUST policies and relevant frameworks. Develop and maintain operational documentation, runbooks, user guidance, dashboards, and service metrics to improve supportability, transparency, and continuous improvement. Evaluate new Linux desktops, remote access, virtualization, automation, and scientific workstation technologies, and provide recommendations to improve service quality and platform capability. Perform other applicable tasks and duties assigned within the realm of the employee's knowledge, skills, and abilities in the field of the position. Qualifications Essential: Bachelor’s degree in computer science, Information Technology, Computer Engineering, Engineering, or a related field. Preferred: Relevant Linux certification such as Red Hat Certified Engineer, Linux Foundation Certified Engineer, LPIC, or equivalent. Certification or formal training in configuration management, automation, security, IT service management, NICE DCV, Kasm Workspaces, or related platforms is desirable. Security, cloud, networking, or endpoint management certifications such as Security+, CISSP, CCNA, ITIL, or equivalent are desirable. Required Skills Strong Linux administration and troubleshooting skills across endpoint, workstation, and scientific desktop environments. Strong automation mindset, with the ability to reduce manual work through scripting, configuration management, Infrastructure as Code, and repeatable operational processes. Good understanding of research and scientific computing needs, including GPU-enabled workstations, specialized software, reproducibility, performance, and secure remote access. Ability to diagnose issues across operating systems, drivers, remote desktop platforms, identity, storage, network, security controls, and user-side configurations. Customer-centric approach, with the ability to work directly with

Bachelor’s degree in computer science, information technology, computer engineering, engineering, or a related field. Preferred: Linux certifications (e.g., Red Hat Certified Engineer, Linux Foundation Certified Engineer, LPIC) or equivalent; experience with configuration management, automation, security, IT service management, NICE DCV, Kasm Workspaces, or related platforms; security, cloud, networking, or endpoint management certifications such as Security+, CISSP, CCNA, ITIL, or equivalent.

Administer, maintain, and improve Ubuntu and Rocky Linux end-user platforms to provide stable and secure scientific workstation services. Develop, standardize, and maintain Linux workstation builds and images for physical and virtual scientific desktops. Manage and support remote scientific workstation platforms (NICE DCV and Kasm Workspaces). Automate provisioning, configuration, patching, monitoring, and compliance using scripting, configuration management, Infrastructure as Code, and GitOps. Troubleshoot Linux endpoint, workstation, remote desktop, GPU, driver, performance, identity, storage, and network issues; escalate as needed. Integrate Linux desktops with enterprise IAM, storage, network, monitoring, security, and endpoint management services. Collaborate with faculty, researchers, labs, HPC, storage, security, and advanced computing teams to translate requirements into sustainable solutions. Install, validate, and maintain scientific software on Linux workstations with attention to compatibility, performance, and reproducibility. Implement security and compliance controls (patching, hardening, audit logging, endpoint security) aligned with KAUST policies. Maintain operational documentation, runbooks, dashboards, and service metrics. Evaluate new Linux desktops, remote access, virtualization, and automation technologies and provide recommendations. Perform other related tasks as needed.