Virtualization and Systems Administrator

Result of Service

The IC will deliver a series of infrastructure, virtualization, and application support outputs over the course of the 6 month assignment. The required deliverables comprise: a complete Proxmox cluster optimization and high-availability (HA) baseline consisting of a health check, resource tuning, and failover configuration for production virtualization nodes; a storage expansion and virtual machine provisioning framework detailing the successful integration and masking of new LUNs alongside resource allocation strategies; and dedicated operational support for hosted applications, including resolution logs and step-by-step troubleshooting runbooks for on-premises, customer-facing platforms to minimize operational downtime. Furthermore, the IC will provide a legacy system assessment and modernization blueprint encompassing the technical solution designs and architecture roadmaps necessary to phase out outdated environments; implement a robust backup, recovery, and cluster monitoring stack that establishes automated VM backup/snapshot lifecycles and performance monitoring dashboards for compute, storage, and network layers; and conclude with a formal operational handover and technical documentation package consisting of full administration manuals, infrastructure topology diagrams, and a structured internal knowledge-transfer workshop for the team.

Work Location

Hybrid: UN-House/Remote

Expected duration

6 months

Duties and Responsibilities

Background: The Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA) forms part of the United Nations Secretariat and, like the other regional commissions, operates under the supervision of the United Nations Economic and Social Council. ESCWA comprises 21 Arab countries in Western Asia and North Africa. ESCWA provides a framework for the formulation and harmonization of sectoral policies for member countries, a platform for congress and coordination, a home for expertise and knowledge, and an information observatory. ESCWA activities are coordinated with the divisions and main offices of the Headquarters of the United Nations, specialized agencies, and international and regional organizations, including the League of Arab States and its subsidiary bodies, and the Gulf Cooperation Council. This position is located in the Decision-Support and Data Science Division (DSDSD). The Decision-Support and Data Science Division is part of ESCWA's broader modernization and innovation efforts, providing advanced analytics, secure digital platforms, and decision-support services within ESCWA, other UN entities, and Member States. Aligned with the UN 2.0 agenda and grounded in operational resilience, DSDS leverages cutting-edge infrastructure, enterprise virtualization, and scalable technology frameworks to ensure high availability, security, and performance for critical digital assets. Its core functions include virtualization cluster management, ...