Hybrid Software Engineer

at Cisco

• Job title: Software Engineer
• Job type: Full Time
• Experience level: Senior, Lead
• Salary: $165,000 - $241,400 per year
• Degree requirement: Bachelor's Degree
• Tech skills: Ansible, Docker, GRPC, Linux, Python, Redis
• Location requirements: Hybrid, Milpitas, United States

About the role

• SONiC Platform Engineer at Cisco optimizing SONiC for high-end routers & switches. Leading porting efforts and ensuring performance for networking hardware in diverse environments.

Responsibilities

• Porting and optimizing the SONiC operating system to run on models of Cisco's highest end routers & switches
• Leading the effort to port SONiC onto new Cisco ASICs (Silicon One) and virtual platforms
• Configuring ONIE (Open Network Install Environment), managing bootloaders, and ensuring the Debian-based OS initializes correctly on bare-metal hardware
• Integrate and fine-tune the Switch Abstraction Interface (SAI) and Syncd layers
• Own the 'bring-up' of peripheral components through Platform APIs and BSP (Board Support Packages)
• Design and execute end-to-end qualification cycles
• Develop and maintain massive regression test suites using Pytest, PTF (Packet Test Framework), and Ansible
• Perform deep-dive root-cause analysis of failures during bring-up using tools like GDB, Tcpdump, and ASIC-level registers
• Optimize development workflow using cutting edge LLM based tools

Requirements

• Bachelors + 7 years of related experience OR Masters + 4 years of related experience OR PhD + 1 year of related experience
• 4+ years of experience in Hardware Bring-up or NOS Platform Engineering
• Experience qualifying networking platforms for high-scale data center deployments
• Experience with Python for building automated test frameworks and interacting with REST/gRPC APIs
• Experience with Linux
• Strong understanding of SONiC architecture, specifically the interaction between Redis (ConfigDB/StateDB), SwSS, and Syncd
• Experience with ASIC SDKs and the SAI (Switch Abstraction Interface) standard
• Expert knowledge of Linux kernel drivers, systems, and containerization (Docker) in a networking context
• Hands-on experience with traffic generators (Spirent, IXIA) and open-source test tools like Scapy and PTF

Benefits

• Medical, dental and vision insurance
• 401(k) plan with a Cisco matching contribution
• Paid parental leave
• Short and long-term disability coverage
• Basic life insurance
• 10 paid holidays per full calendar year, plus 1 floating holiday for non-exempt employees
• 1 paid day off for employee’s birthday
• Paid year-end holiday shutdown
• 4 paid days off for personal wellness determined by Cisco
• Non-exempt employees receive 16 days of paid vacation time per full calendar year
• Exempt employees participate in Cisco’s flexible vacation time off program
• 80 hours of sick time off provided on hire date and each January 1st thereafter
• Up to 80 hours of unused sick time carried forward from one calendar year to the next
• Additional paid time away may be requested to deal with critical or emergency issues for family members
• Optional 10 paid days per full calendar year to volunteer
• Eligible to earn annual bonuses subject to Cisco’s policies