Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!usc!wuarchive!emory!gatech!ukma!morgan
From: morgan@ms.uky.edu (Wes Morgan)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.large
Subject: Re: Difference between "operator" and "system administrator"?
Message-ID: <16321@s.ms.uky.edu>
Date: 6 Nov 90 22:12:36 GMT
References: <680@dynasys.UUCP>
Reply-To: morgan@ms.uky.edu (Wes Morgan)
Organization: The Puzzle Palace, UKentucky
Lines: 53

In article <680@dynasys.UUCP> jessea@dynasys.UUCP (Jesse W. Asher) writes:
>A local company is going unix in a big way and one of the MIS Dept. 
>managers posed a question I was unable to answer.  They have AS400's and
>a couple of VAXs for which they have "operators".  The question was:  What
>is the difference between a system administrator and an operator?  They are
>trying to figure out the definition of system administrator in relation
>to what an operator does.  Can anyone give me an idea of how to answer this
>question?  I'm not familiar with what an "operator" does, so I couldn't
>answer the question.  Any suggestions would be welcome.

Since I'm currently serving as both operator and system administrator
for a UNIX site, I thought I'd take a stab at this one.  Therefore, 
here's *one person's* opinion of the division of duties:

Operator:
   - Mounts tapes/datasets/peripherals/disk partitions
   - Manages daily tasks, such as backups
   - Manages peripherals on a hardware level
   - Handles peripheral output for those devices not user-accessible
     <plotters, special purpose devices>
   - Daily supervision of facilities, including such things as DASDs,
     peripherals, and perhaps network connections 
   - Generally isolated from users; deals primarily with staff
   - Usually is *not* expected to write code of any sort

System Administrator:
   - Primary daily concern is resource utilization
   - Reviews accounting data, adjusting system for optimization
   - Integrates new software/hardware with existing environment
   - Assists in formulation of policies and procedures
   - Implements said policies and procedures
   - Responsible for resource allocation 
     <disk partitions, quotas, and the like>
   - Manages the user base
     <additions, deletions, in-house transfers, et cetera>
   - Large responsibility for security
   - Deals with users in the "can we do this?" type of situation,
     i.e. system/software configuration questions 
   - Usually somewhat of a "senior consultant"; the last refuge of the 
     confused user   8)
   - Writes code as necessary to implement above functions 

Of course, I'm assuming the existance of systems programmers and user
consultants in this scenario........currently, two people are filling 
all four of these theoretical positions at my site.....8(

Comments?

-- 
    | Wes Morgan, not speaking for | {any major site}!ukma!ukecc!morgan | 
    | the University of Kentucky's |        morgan@engr.uky.edu         |
    | Engineering Computing Center |   morgan%engr.uky.edu@UKCC.BITNET  | 
     Lint is the compiler's only means of dampening the programmer's ego.