Free Sample
The Complete Guide to Becoming A Network and Computer Systems Administrator
The real pay, the real path, and the real day-to-day of the role that keeps every network running
by Alumigogo Books
Chapter 1: What Does a Network and Computer Systems Administrator Actually Do?
The title "Network and Computer Systems Administrator" sounds like it belongs on a government form, and in a way, it does. The Bureau of Labor Statistics uses it as an official classification, but the people who do this job usually call themselves something simpler: sysadmins, network admins, or just "the IT guy." That last one is a bit of a joke among the people in the field, because there is rarely just one "IT guy." A real network and computer systems administrator is the person who makes sure the digital infrastructure of an organization keeps working, day after day, so that everyone else in the building can do their jobs.
Let's be concrete about what "making sure it works" actually means. In a typical week, an administrator is responsible for the servers that hold the company's files, the network switches and routers that connect everyone's computers to those servers and to the internet, the backup systems that copy data off-site in case the building burns down, and the user accounts that let people log in to their machines. If a server crashes, the administrator is the one who gets it back up. If a new employee is hired, the administrator creates their account and makes sure they can get to the shared drives. If the Wi-Fi is slow, the administrator is the one who takes the call. It is a job of keeping things running, and the job