Adam Collyer
adam@zerosignal.co.uk
Email me for phone #
A diligent, conscientious and attentive systems administrator with 8 years working experience, I am dedicated to my work and
possess excellent skills at planning and executing server, application and network deployments, notably Windows Server and
Linux systems. I can talk to new people and explain technical concepts in layman terms. Able to learn quickly, I can work
exceptionally well on my own or as part of a team. I feel I can adapt my knowledge and skills to contribute thoughtfully to any
situation.
EDUCATION
MCSE 2003 (Aug 2007), MCITP Enterprise Admin (Dec 2010), Cisco CCNA (Jan 2009), CompTIA A+ (May 2005), MCTS SQL Server
2008 (Oct 2011)
A2 Level: Computing (B), Electronics (B), Law (C)
GCSE: 8 As, 1 A* (including Electronics and IT)
SKILLS / TECHNICAL KNOWLEDGE
- Broad knowledge of deployment and administration of
Windows Server 2003 and 2008:
Active Directory
DNS, DHCP, Group Policy, IIS
WSUS, WDS, Roaming Profiles
NTFS security, bulk user import, roles
management, NTBackup
Scripting (KiXtart, PowerShell)
MSI packaging and deployment
Windows client platforms
Cluster & NLB configuration
Terminal Services
MS SQL Server 2005/2008
Exchange Server 2003/2007
SCCM 2007
Forefront Client Security
- Extensive knowledge of Linux systems (Ubuntu):
Apache, PHP, Joomla, Wordpress
Exim (with Active Directory & MySQL
authentication, DNS blacklists, SPF, Spam &
AV scanning, Smart Host configuration)
Dovecot, ProFTPd, MySQL
Compiling daemons / libraries from source
Scripting (PHP)
Firewalls/routers (IPCop/Smoothwall, iptables,
Quagga)
Squid (forward & reverse), SquidGuard
Load balancing, high availability and cluster
synchronisation (Corosync, ldirectord, csync2,
Pacemaker, IPVS)
Nagios/Check_MK, Splunk log analysis
- Networking experience:
IP addressing & subnetting
Cisco routers, firewalls, NAT & DMZ
configuration
Managed Switch configuration (VLANs, LAGs,
STP etc) using Netgear ProSafe, Cisco Catalyst
& HP ProCurve switches
Proficient use of tools to solve obscure
problems e.g. packet sniffers to follow TCP
streams
EMC Fibre Channel SAN
OpenFiler iSCSI SAN
- Other Server Software
Symantec Backup Exec 12.5
Symantec Antivirus Corporate Edition
Symantec Enterprise Vault 8.0
VMware ESX 3 / vSphere 4, VCB, VMware Data
Recovery
ISA Server 2004
CAREER OBJECTIVES
-
Expand my knowledge and gain further experience with enterprise solutions such as Exchange 2010, Sharepoint,
Blackberry BES, Windows clustering and multi-site domains. I am also interested in gaining experience in commercial
cloud computing platforms.
-
Become better qualified in a range of fields (CCNP, Citrix CCA, CEH etc.) I am currently studying for the ROUTE exam of
CCNP. Whether or not training happens on or off job isn’t a concern as I have the drive to research and study on my
own accord (most of my previous study/research has been done this way.)
-
Work with like-minded people and build long-lasting connections with colleagues and contacts from companies I deal
with.
EMPLOYMENT
Chadwell Heath Academy – Systems & Network Administrator
Jul 2003 – Sept 2004 and Apr 2009 - date (Full time)
MAIN ACHIEVEMENTS
- Performed a considerable upgrade on a Windows Server 2003 network. I virtualised all servers onto a 3-node VMware
ESX cluster (later upgraded to vSphere) on Dell PowerEdge and EMC Fibre Channel SAN hardware. I then segmented a
550-workstation network into 16 routed VLANs using HP ProCurve and Netgear switches. This greatly reduced network
background noise, improved performance and made network services more manageable.
-
Over a short summer holiday period of 5 weeks, I installed, configured and tested the installation of SCCM 2007
including 50+ software packages, deployed Forefront Client Security and Office 2010 as well as migrating a Linux-based
mail server to Exchange 2003 including distribution lists, customised Outlook installations etc. I included an Exim smart
host for spam/AV scanning with SpamAssassin and ClamAV.
-
Wrote a variety of scripts. These included a KiXtart script to fully automate VCB backups (automatically backing up new
VMs without intervention – the script was later adopted by the University of Greenwich via my blog), another script to
generate Outlook signatures for staff based on data from Active Directory and another PHP script that generates a
weekly report to email users that have spam waiting for delivery, giving them a summary of emails and the option to
manually deliver them.
-
Scaled out the school’s overloaded web content filter by installing and configuring a Linux cluster running Squid and
SquidGuard URL filter. Wrote a custom admin interface in PHP to aid the modification of blacklists, starting/stopping
services, controlling configuration replication between nodes and monitoring the cluster status. Implemented
transparent Kerberos authentication combined with Active Directory / LDAP group querying for fine-grained control.
Installed a central server for log analysis (Splunk) that allows extensive querying of proxy accesses. I documented this in
detail on my blog.
OTHER DUTIES
-
Installed and configured Nagios & Check_MK for infrastructure & server monitoring. Wrote a number of local checks for
Linux hosts (bash) and Windows (PowerShell).
Supported 30 virtual & physical servers (15 Linux, 15 Windows), 1200 users and 550 workstations.
Designed the physical and logical network topology.
Migrated a Novell Netware system to Active Directory (Summer 2004.)
Wrote an experimental PHP script to log user login/logout times and visited websites (Summer 2003.)
Authored MSIs for all software and created RIS images for Windows client installation.
Installed a Linux mail server (Summer 2004) and later migrated to Exchange 2003 (Summer 2010.)
Answered support requests on the school’s custom-built ticketing system.
Set up and configured video conferencing units as required.
Repaired/replaced faulty workstations as required.
Rolled out network printers and assigned to relevant users/workstations.
Maintained the asset register of hardware location, users and serial numbers.
Liaised with external parties/suppliers.
South Park School – Systems & Network Administrator
Nov 2004 – Apr 2009 (Full time)
MAIN ACHIEVEMENTS
-
Installed and configured a Linux mail server designed as an open source Exchange alternative using the Horde
framework to provide contacts, calendaring, tasks and email services. The IMAP and Exim SMTP backend authenticated
to Active Directory via LDAP. It featured AV & spam filtering as well as sender/recipient verification and DNS blacklist
checking. I wrote a PHP script to fully automate the creation of mailboxes for new Active Directory users. This allowed
for user account renaming (tracked by the account SID), creating aliases for old addresses and archiving deleted users’
mailboxes.
-
Wrote a KiXtart script to dynamically copy and remove desktop shortcuts at logon and logoff respectively. The script
recurses through a central repository of shortcuts, only copying those whose target exists on the local workstation,
then removing them again at logoff. Therefore, no user would have dead shortcuts on their desktop when moving from
computer to computer.
-
Wrote a series of spreadsheets to aid teachers in assessing pupils and monitoring their progress. Data was
automatically collated for the school's Data Manager in a central spreadsheet to generate statistics for the whole
school by using VBA macros and various other techniques in Excel.
OTHER DUTIES
-
Supported over 900 users and 130 Windows XP workstations/laptops on a Windows Server 2003 network.
Worked with the school’s curriculum ICT Co-ordinator as the sole point of technical support.
Installed and configured a Terminal Server for staff remote access.
Implemented Openfire internal instant messaging server
Wrote a variety of KiXtart scripts to ease administrative effort, including mapping drives, setting registry keys, installing
printers depending on workstation location and running nightly backups.
Installed and maintained a PHP-based CMS to run the school’s website on a Linux web server.
Supported staff and students with end user software including Office 2003 and a wide range of educational software.
INTERESTS
Any spare time I have at work I spend researching or exploring new projects that may be of benefit to my workplace. I am a keen
reader of IT websites such as The Register, Engadget and Gizmodo. I also run a blog (www.zerosignal.co.uk) on one of my
Ubuntu VPSes. I am a user of Twitter (@AdamJCollyer) and frequently use it to keep up to date with the news. I use a Mac at
home, but remain a keen user of Windows, Linux and OS X and am always looking for ways to retain interoperability between
them.
Outside of work, I enjoy socialising with my friends and colleagues. Aside from the usual interests of films etc, I am a big
music and comedy fan and have a large and varied collection. I enjoy going to gigs (both music and comedy) whenever I can.
REFEREES
Email me for details