Software Engineer II

Overview

Do you want to be part of a collaborative team building the Linux operating system of choice for Microsoft? Are you interested in the Linux Operating System? Are you excited about systems that operate at scale? The Azure Linux team develops and maintains Microsoft’s Linux distribution that powers large scale production workloads such as Office 365 and Azure Kubernetes Service.

On our team you will design, build, and operate critical tooling and automation that improves security, reliability, and efficiency across our product offerings as well as our build, release, and servicing workflows. You will independently leverage AI in your designs, to accelerate development and test, improve troubleshooting and reduce operational toil. And you will independently contribute to upstream projects as needed to meet business goals and objectives. A successful candidate will have the confidence and flexibility to dive into complex problems, collaborate effectively across teams, and drive clarity in ambiguous situations.

Microsoft’s mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. As employees we come together with a growth mindset, innovate to empower others and collaborate to realize our shared goals. Each day we build on our values of respect, integrity, and accountability to create a culture of inclusion where everyone can thrive at work and beyond.

Responsibilities

• Propose and engineer new features and tooling that support the Azure Linux build, release, and service infrastructure.
• Improve automation, reliability, and efficiency across operating system release workflows.
• Write high‑quality, well‑tested code with a focus on security, performance, and maintainability.
• Integrate, update, and release open‑source packages used by Microsoft Linux platforms.
• Contribute fixes and enhancements upstream (Linux kernel, tooling, and other open-source dependencies) as needed to meet business goals and customer commitments.
• Service existing components by diagnosing and addressing security vulnerabilities and operational issues.
• Design solutions with a strong customer mindset, emphasizing simplicity, correctness, and minimalism.

Qualifications

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field AND 2+ years technical engineering experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, C, C++ or Python OR equivalent experience.

Other Requirements:

• Ability to meet Microsoft, customer and/or government security screening requirements are required for this role. These requirements include, but are not limited to the following specialized security screenings: Microsoft Cloud Background Check: This position will be required to pass the Microsoft Cloud Background Check upon hire/transfer and every two years thereafter.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Master's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field AND 3+ years technical engineering experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python OR Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field AND 5+ years technical engineering experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, C, C++, or Python
• Familiarity with Linux OS Fundamentals including Bash
• Familiarity with AI and Azure DevOps and Services

Key skills/competency

• Linux Operating System
• C/C++ Programming
• Python Programming
• Automation
• Tooling Development
• Open-Source Contribution
• System Design
• Azure Services
• Security Vulnerability Analysis
• Reliability Engineering