Jobs · Full-time

Linux Support Engineer at Canonical - Remote Global — Columbus

LocationColumbus
CompanyCanonical
Sourcejobicy
Posted2026-08-22 16:30:05

Traveler-Friendly Insight

Canonical is one of the most nomad-friendly employers in tech — fully remote since 2004, globally distributed, and explicitly welcoming applicants from anywhere in the world. This role has no stated timezone requirement, which is a strong signal of async-friendly operations.

However, there are two important caveats for travelers:

  • Weekend on-call rotation: You'll participate in a recurring weekend working schedule. This limits total freedom to disconnect and requires reliable, high-quality internet on weekends.
  • International travel ~10% of work time (up to 4 trips/year for team sprints and conferences). You'll need a passport and visa flexibility — an asset for nomads already comfortable with international movement.

Visa considerations: With no country restrictions, popular digital nomad visa destinations are fully viable. Portugal's D8 visa, Thailand's LTR visa, or Colombia's digital nomad visa all work well for remote employees. Ensure your contract structure (employee vs. contractor) aligns with the visa type.

Cost of living comparison (estimated mid-senior engineer salary ~$80K–$120K USD):

  • Lisbon, Portugal: ~$2,500/mo living costs — very comfortable budget surplus
  • Bangkok, Thailand: ~$1,500/mo — excellent purchasing power
  • Medellín, Colombia: ~$1,200/mo — strong runway for savings

The $2,000/year L&D budget and Priority Pass for travel are genuine nomad-friendly perks worth noting.

This is a fast-paced engineering role in Linux-based software-defined infrastructure and applications, covering all layers of the stack, including bare metal, virtualization (KVM) and containerization (Docker and LXC/LXD), storage (Ceph and Linux filesystems), networking (OVS, OVN and Core networking), up to OpenStack and Kubernetes, and the open source applications running on top of them.

This role is an opportunity for a technologist with a passion for Linux and open source to build a career with Canonical and drive success for our customers, community and the company. If you have great communication skills, and a passion for troubleshooting and fixing issues in technology used by millions across the world, then you will enjoy working with some of the best people in the industry at Canonical.

Location: This is a globally remote role.

This role deals with critical issues in the open source stack that require deep debugging and troubleshooting skills. Our engineers have to be able to work productively at any level of the stack above the kernel, in a wide range of applications, to understand and address the software issues at hand. Our group is critical to the success of our enterprise customers, partners and Ubuntu itself.

You will be the final point of escalation for operational troubleshooting and driving issues to resolution with workarounds, guidance, and fixes to be released upstream and in Ubuntu.

What your day will look like

  • Resolve complex customer problems related to Ubuntu, OpenStack, Ceph and/or Kubernetes
  • Maintain a close working relationship with Canonical's field, support and product engineering teams
  • Participate in upstream communities
  • Debug issues, propose workarounds, liaise with Software Engineers on producing a patch
  • Demonstrate good judgment in technical methods and techniques
  • Prioritize work and manage your time effectively against priorities
  • Participate in team activities to improve processes, tools, and documentation
  • Maintain clear, technical and concise communications
  • Participate in a regular weekend working rotation
  • Provide subject matter expertise as the final point of escalation on operational issues
  • Work from home and travel internationally up to 10% of work time for team meetings, events and conferences

What we are looking for in you

  • Professional experience troubleshooting advanced Linux issues
  • Background in Computer Science, STEM or similar
  • Exceptionally strong experience with either Linux, LXD, OpenStack, Ceph or Kubernetes
  • Strong debugging experience with Python, Go, C or C++ on Linux
  • Ability to troubleshoot with gdb, pdb, tcpdump or other tools
  • Familiarity with git source code repositories and branches
  • An exceptional academic track record from both high school and preferably university
  • Willingness to travel up to 4 times a year for internal events

Additional skills that you might also bring

  • You love technology and working with brilliant people
  • You are curious, flexible, articulate, and accountable
  • You value soft skills and are passionate, enterprising, thoughtful, and self-motivated
  • You have interest in, and experience with most of the following: Ubuntu Linux - kernel or userspace, Kubernetes, OpenStack, Ceph, QEMU/KVM, LXC/LXD, Python, Go, C, Postgresql, Mongo, Debian packaging, distributed systems

What we offer you

We consider geographical location, experience, and performance in shaping compensation worldwide. We revisit compensation annually (and more often for graduates and associates) to ensure we recognise outstanding performance. In addition to base pay, we offer a performance-driven annual bonus. We provide all team members with additional benefits, which reflect our values and ideals. We balance our programs to meet local needs and ensure fairness globally.

  • Distributed work environment with twice-yearly team sprints in person - we've been working remotely since 2004!
  • Personal learning and development budget of USD 2,000 per year
  • Annual compensation review
  • Recognition rewards
  • Annual holiday leave
  • Maternity and paternity leave
  • Employee Assistance Programme
  • Opportunity to travel to new locations to meet colleagues from your team and others
  • Priority Pass for travel and travel upgrades for long haul company events

About Canonical

Canonical is a pioneering tech firm that is at the forefront of the global move to open source. As the company that publishes Ubuntu, one of the most important open source projects and the platform for AI, IoT and the cloud, we are changing the world on a daily basis. We recruit on a global basis and set a very high standard for people joining the company. We expect excellence - in order to succeed, we need to be the best at what we do.

Canonical has been a remote-first company since its inception in 2004. Work at Canonical is a step into the future, and will challenge you to think differently, work smarter, learn new skills, and raise your game. Canonical provides a unique window into the world of 21st-century digital business.

Canonical is an equal opportunity employer

We are proud to foster a workplace free from discrimination. Diversity of experience, perspectives, and background create a better work environment and better products. Whatever your identity, we will give your application fair consideration.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is this role truly remote with no location restrictions?
Yes, Canonical explicitly states this is a globally remote role and has operated as a fully distributed company since 2004. There are no geographic restrictions listed for this position.
Does this role require on-call or weekend work?
Yes, the posting mentions participation in a regular weekend working rotation, which is a recurring commitment. Candidates should clarify the frequency and any compensation during the interview process.
How much travel is required for this remote role?
Up to 10% of work time involves international travel, and the posting specifies up to 4 trips per year for internal team events and conferences. Canonical provides Priority Pass and travel upgrades for long-haul company events.
What is the salary for this Linux Support Engineer position?
Canonical does not publish specific salary ranges. Compensation is adjusted based on geographical location, experience, and performance, with an annual review and performance-driven bonus on top of base pay.
What technical stack experience is most important for this role?
The role requires exceptionally strong experience in at least one of: Linux, LXD, OpenStack, Ceph, or Kubernetes, combined with strong debugging skills in Python, Go, C, or C++ and familiarity with tools like gdb, pdb, and tcpdump.
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