Operations system administrator vs network administrator

The differences between operations system administrators and network administrators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both an operations system administrator and a network administrator. Additionally, an operations system administrator has an average salary of $76,891, which is higher than the $71,357 average annual salary of a network administrator.

The top three skills for an operations system administrator include technical support, linux and customer service. The most important skills for a network administrator are switches, windows server, and troubleshoot.

Operations system administrator vs network administrator overview

	Operations System Administrator	Network Administrator
Yearly salary	$76,891	$71,357
Hourly rate	$36.97	$34.31
Growth rate	5%	5%
Number of jobs	173,494	106,886
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 58%	Bachelor's Degree, 55%
Average age	43	43
Years of experience	2	2

What does an operations system administrator do?

In the information technology industry, an Operations System Administrator is responsible for overseeing and maintaining computer systems, including software, hardware, and applications. They are responsible for supervising staff, spearheading installations and repairs, troubleshooting problems, diagnosing and resolving technical issues and concerns, and ensuring data security and safety by implementing back-ups, firewalls, and other protocols. Moreover, as an operations system administrator, it is essential to lead and encourage staff to reach goals while implementing standards and regulations to maintain the smooth flow of operations.

What does a network administrator do?

A network administrator is responsible for managing an organization's computer systems, ensuring its smooth operations and highest efficiency. Network administrators' duties include inspecting network malfunctions, troubleshooting unresponsive programs, improving system processes, analyzing client's specifications, upgrading existing applications, coordinating with the technology department, and creating a report of network issues resolutions. A network administrator should display a strong command of programming languages. Extensive knowledge in the technology industry and analytical and problem-solving skills to manage network problems immediately is also necessary.

Operations system administrator vs network administrator salary

Operations system administrators and network administrators have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Operations System Administrator	Network Administrator
Average salary	$76,891	$71,357
Salary range	Between $59,000 And $98,000	Between $56,000 And $90,000
Highest paying City	San Francisco, CA	San Francisco, CA
Highest paying state	California	Washington
Best paying company	PayPal	Google
Best paying industry	Utilities	Finance

Differences between operations system administrator and network administrator education

There are a few differences between an operations system administrator and a network administrator in terms of educational background:

	Operations System Administrator	Network Administrator
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 58%	Bachelor's Degree, 55%
Most common major	Business	Computer Science
Most common college	Stanford University	Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Operations system administrator vs network administrator demographics

Here are the differences between operations system administrators' and network administrators' demographics:

	Operations System Administrator	Network Administrator
Average age	43	43
Gender ratio	Male, 76.2% Female, 23.8%	Male, 88.6% Female, 11.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.0% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 12.7% Asian, 9.5% White, 63.4% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%	Black or African American, 8.8% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 12.5% Asian, 9.6% White, 63.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage	9%	9%

Differences between operations system administrator and network administrator duties and responsibilities

Operations system administrator example responsibilities.

Manage VOIP Digium phones for clients.
Manage and update share drive and SharePoint.
Manage DNS, SMTP for Webservers contacting customers.
Manage LDAP accounts on across the enterprise system.
Manage machines and accounts in active directory and dhcp.
Lead a team of 5 engineers providing PC support to 1,000 customers and implement PC disaster recovery efforts for 400 customers.

Network administrator example responsibilities.

Lead and manage desktop standards project.
Manage backups using EMC Networker and Avamar.
Manage Solarwinds to monitor servers and networks for all locations.
Manage all provisioning and technical issues for new customer IP blocks.
Deploy and manage storage (windows file servers and NetApp NAS).
Manage all technology: Novell, Microsoft, Cisco, email, library, labs, dorms, programs

Operations system administrator vs network administrator skills

Common operations system administrator skills

Technical Support, 9%
Linux, 8%
Customer Service, 5%
VMware, 4%
SQL, 4%
Windows Server, 4%

Common network administrator skills

Switches, 7%
Windows Server, 6%
Troubleshoot, 5%
Network Hardware, 5%
Routers, 4%
Lan Wan, 4%

Operations System Administrator vs. similar jobs

Operations System Administrator related careers

Operations System Administrator related jobs

What similar roles do

Zippia Careers
Computer and Mathematical Industry
Operations System Administrator
Operations System Administrator vs Network Administrator

Updated January 8, 2025

Browse computer and mathematical jobs