Brad Knowles
7404 Jester Blvd
Austin, TX 78750

Home: +1-512-346-9073
Mobile: +1-512-964-2949

brad@shub-internet.org
http://www.shub-internet.org/brad/
LinkedIn Profile



Objective To obtain a position that requires design and support for the information and Internet system needs of an enterprise, concurrent with the broadening and deepening of my skills, knowledge, and business experience.

Summary A Unix/Internet systems administration generalist with over eighteeen years of experience, in addition to deep specialist skills in areas relating to mission-critical applications and systems infrastructure (and scalability thereof), at that nexus where traditional host administrators don't understand it because it's not a standard host application and where traditional network administrators don't understand it because it's not a router, switch, or hub.

I've gotten where I am because I love a good challenge, and there are always things that needed to be done and I was around to do them. However, sometimes the best challenges aren't the biggest systems, but instead scaling smaller systems to handle previously unknown loads, or coming up with unique and interesting ways to try to solve old problems.


Experience
Mar 2003-
Present
Self-Employed
Contractor/Consultant
Apr 2002-
Mar 2003
Snow BV
Leading Unix/Internet Consulting Company for the Netherlands
Nov 1998-
Feb 2001
Belgacom Skynet, SA/NV
Premier Internet Access/Services Provider for Belgium
  • Systems Architect/Senior Engineer
    • Responsible for design and implementation of highly scalable systems and their replacements
    • Provided technical leadership resulting in customer base growth of approximately 1000% and systems staff by at least 300%
    • Mail systems architect, DNS systems architect, Newsmaster, TUCOWS/FTPmaster, Proxy cache administrator (FreeBSD, Solaris, Digital Unix/Tru64, Network Appliance, Linux)
  • Program Committee member for SANE 2000 and SANE 2002
  • Invited talk presented at LISA 2000: "Design and Implementation of Highly Scalable Electronic Mail Systems"
Dec 1997-
Jul 1998
Collective Technologies, Inc. (A Pencom Company)
Recognized Leader in Systems Management Services for Highly Complex Environments
  • Senior Consultant & Internet Mail/DNS Process Consultant
    • Strategic and tactical architecture consultation for large "freemail" provider
    • Integration and training services for large anti-virus vendor incorporating their product into Unix firewalls and Internet e-mail gateways/hosts
  • Invited talk presented at SANE'98: Sendmail Performance Tuning for Large Systems
Jun 1995-
Aug 1997
America Online, Inc.
Worlds Largest Provider of Internet and Proprietary Online Services
  • Senior Internet Mail Systems Administrator (HP-UX, SGI Irix, DEC Unix)
    • Architected & administered Internet interface to worlds then-largest known e-mail system
    • Provided technical leadership resulting in system growth of over 1500%
  • Redesigned AOL DNS infrastructure to increase capacity by 10,000%
  • Technical reviewer of second editions of the books sendmail by Bryan Costales and DNS and BIND by Paul Albitz and Cricket Liu
Sep 1989-
Jun 1995
Defense Information Systems Agency
DOD IT Provider for the System Needs of the Services and the Joint Chiefs of Staff
  • Analyst/Terminal Operator on classified World-Wide Military Command and Control System (WWMCCS) for Joint Chiefs of Staff Logistics Directorate Logistics Readiness Center (JCS/J4-LRC) in the National Military Command Center (NMCC)
  • Network & Mail System Administrator for OSD C3I (on special assignment from DISA)
  • DISAnet LAN Engineer & Testbed Manager
  • Internet Mail System Gateway Administrator for DISA & Technical Point-of-Contact for DISA.MIL
Education
University of Oklahoma, College of Engineering
  • Bachelors Degree in Computer Science


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