Software Maintenance Engineer

Canonical is a leading provider of open source software and operating systems to the global enterprise and technology markets. Our platform, Ubuntu, is widely used in breakthrough enterprise initiatives such as public cloud, data science, AI, engineering innovation, and IoT. Our customers include the world’s leading public cloud and silicon providers, and industry leaders in many sectors. With 1,200+ colleagues in 75+ countries and very few office-based roles, teams meet two to four times yearly in person in interesting locations around the world to align on strategy and execution.

The company is founder‑led, profitable, and growing.

Location: This is a remote role; we have teams in all time zones.

Canonical is a pioneering tech firm 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 of software. We recruit on a global basis and set a very high standard for people joining the company.

We expect excellence; to succeed, we need to be the best at what we do. Most colleagues at Canonical have worked from home since our inception in 2004. Working here is a step into the future and will challenge you to think differently, work smarter, learn new skills, and raise your game.

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.

We are hiring a Software Maintenance Engineer to work in a dynamic and exciting engineering role in Linux‑based infrastructure and applications, covering all layers of the stack including bare metal, virtualization (KVM), containerization (Docker/LXC/LXD), storage (Ceph and Linux file systems), networking (OVS, OVN and Core networking), Open Stack, Kubernetes, and the open source applications running on top of them. You will tackle critical issues in the open source stack that require upstream bug fixes, working at any level of the stack, in a wide range of languages, to understand and address software issues  group is critical to the success of our customers, partners and Ubuntu itself.

• Resolve complex customer problems related to Ubuntu, Kernel, Ceph, Open Stack, or Kubernetes and other open source software
• Maintain a close working relationship with Canonical’s Field, Support and product engineering teams
• Participate in upstream communities
• Develop bug fixes, backport patches, and work with upstream for inclusion
• Review code produced by other engineers
• Demonstrate good judgment in technical methods and techniques
• Prioritize work and manage your time effectively against those priorities
• Participate in team discussions to improve processes, tools, and documentation
• Maintain clear, technical and concise communications
• Work from home and travel internationally up to 10% of work time for team meetings, events and conferences

• An exceptional academic track record
• Background in Computer Science, STEM or similar
• Experience with Linux and open source software
• Experience with at least one of Python, Go, C or C++ on Linux
• A drive to learn unfamiliar technology and deep‑dive difficult issues
• Willingness to travel up to 4 times a year for internal events

• 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, or willingness to learn about any of the following:
  • Ubuntu Linux – kernel or userspace
  • Kubernetes
  • Open Stack
  • Ceph
  • QEMU/KVM
  • LXC/LXD
  • PostgreSQL
  • Mongo
  • Debian packaging
  • Distributed systems

• Distributed work environment with twice‑yearly team sprints in person
• 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 & Wellness Platform
• Opportunity to travel to new locations to meet colleagues
• Priority Pass and travel upgrades for long‑haul company events

Referrals increase your chances of interviewing at Canonical by 2x.

Entry level

Full‑time

Information Technology

Software Development