IT Support & Systems Administration

Level by level: what to learn and do

1. 1

   Starting out

   0–1 year

   Helpdesk analyst · IT support technician · Service desk agent

   What you do

   Answer calls and tickets, set up laptops and printers, reset passwords, install software and walk users through problems step by step.

   Skills to learn

   • Windows and macOS basics, plus how to read error messages
   • Basic networking: IP addresses, DNS and DHCP
   • Ticketing and writing clear notes
   • Customer service and calm communication

   Certifications to consider: CompTIA A+; CompTIA Network+ (start studying)

   To reach the next level: Learn how accounts and groups are managed centrally, and ask to shadow the server team.

2. 2

   Second-line support

   1–3 years

   2nd-line support engineer · Desktop support engineer · IT technician

   What you do

   Take the problems the helpdesk cannot solve: account and permission issues, device management, mailbox problems, small network faults and hardware swaps.

   Skills to learn

   • Active Directory and Microsoft Entra ID: users, groups, policies
   • Microsoft 365 administration (Exchange Online, Teams, SharePoint)
   • Device management with Intune or similar tools
   • Troubleshooting commands on Windows and Linux
   • PowerShell basics

   Certifications to consider: Microsoft 365 Certified: Endpoint Administrator Associate (MD-102); CompTIA Network+

   To reach the next level: Automate one repetitive task with a script and start looking after a server or two.

3. 3

   Systems administrator

   3–5 years

   Systems administrator · Infrastructure engineer · Microsoft 365 administrator

   What you do

   Build and maintain servers, run patching and backups, manage virtual machines, look after identity and email, and plan small upgrades.

   Skills to learn

   • Windows Server and Linux administration
   • Virtualisation (Hyper-V, VMware, Proxmox)
   • Backup, restore testing and disaster recovery
   • Patch management and basic hardening
   • PowerShell or Bash scripting

   Certifications to consider: Microsoft 365 Certified: Administrator Expert (MS-102), Windows Server Hybrid Administrator Associate (AZ-800 and AZ-801), CompTIA Linux+ or Red Hat RHCSA

   To reach the next level: Learn a cloud platform properly, because most servers you look after will end up there or connected to it.

4. 4

   Senior systems engineer

   5–8 years

   Senior systems engineer · Infrastructure lead · Cloud systems engineer

   What you do

   Design server, identity and backup setups, lead migrations to the cloud, write standards, review changes and mentor the support team.

   Skills to learn

   • Hybrid identity and conditional access
   • Cloud administration (Azure or AWS)
   • Infrastructure as code and configuration management
   • Monitoring and capacity planning
   • Project and change management

   Certifications to consider: Microsoft Azure Administrator Associate (AZ-104), Red Hat RHCE, ITIL 4 Foundation

   To reach the next level: Decide whether you want to go deeper into cloud, security or architecture, or lead an IT team.

5. 5

   Manager or architect

   8+ years

   IT manager · Infrastructure architect · Head of IT

   What you do

   Run IT services for the organisation, set budgets and priorities, choose suppliers, manage risk and make sure IT supports what the business is trying to do.

   Skills to learn

   • Service management and service levels
   • Budgeting and vendor management
   • Security and compliance basics
   • Leading and developing people

   Certifications to consider: ITIL 4 Managing Professional; Microsoft Azure Solutions Architect Expert (AZ-305) for the technical route

   To reach the next level: Treat IT as a service to the business and measure it by how well people can do their jobs.

Years of experience are typical ranges, not rules: some people move faster, others take longer. Certification names and versions change, so always check the exam provider's website before you book.