About the Job
At Cloudflare, we are on a mission to help build a better Internet. Today the company runs one of the world’s largest networks that powers millions of websites and other Internet properties for customers ranging from individual bloggers to SMBs to Fortune 500 companies. Cloudflare protects and accelerates any Intern...
At Cloudflare, we’re not looking for people who wait for a polished roadmap; we’re looking for the builders who see the cracks in the Internet that everyone else has simply learned to live with. We value candidates who have the instinct to spot a "normalized" problem and the AI-native curiosity to create a solution ...
As a pivotal technical contributor within the Network Hardware Engineering (NetHW) team, you will drive the selection and qualification process for network devices used in Cloudflare's Global Network. The NetHW team manages the New Product Introduction (NPI) process for all network devices. Our responsibilities also...
Key Responsibilities
You will be involved in every stage of the New Product Introduction (NPI) process, including requirements gathering, device selection, Device Validation Testing (DVT), Production Validation Testing (PVT), and Operational Acceptance. Furthermore, you will be responsible for creating and automating test plans that align with both operational needs and hardware limitations, as well as driving efforts to improve testing efficiency.
Network Hardware Systems Engineering Responsibilities:
Product Lifecycle Management: Lead the introduction of new network hardware systems, including detailed engineering validation in lab environments
Qualification & Validation: Gather requirements, contribute to network architecture, and execute hardware design and product validation
Cross-Functional Collaboration: Partner with Network Engineering & Operations, Datacenter Engineering & Operations, and other operational teams to make network hardware decisions
Automation & Performance Testing: Develop tools and automation to effectively evaluate network hardware performance
Operational Support: Assist operational engineers by troubleshooting, reproducing, and resolving network hardware issues
Communication: Document and share results and updates via blog/wiki posts, ticketing systems, and internal presentations
Required Skills & Abilities
BS, MS, or PhD in Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, or equivalent practical experience
Proven ability to conduct thorough evaluation and experimentation, including testing, measurement, and/or simulation of hardware performance
Extensive experience with networking hardware architecture, validation, performance benchmarking, debugging, and deployment
Deep knowledge of network engineering and protocols used in data center switching and routing as well as Internet routing
Track record of driving engineering projects from idea to experiment to implementation
Demonstrated success in working with OEM/ODMs and technology vendors
Professional-level proficiency in Python or similar programming and/or scripting languages
Familiarity with various coding agents and other AI tools and technologies
Adept at automating traffic generation equipment (Spirent/Ixia) and test cases
In-depth hardware knowledge of platforms (ASICs, TCAMs, Packet-Pipelines, etc)
Experience with Optical Line Systems and troubleshooting transceiver issues
Familiarity with different network operating systems such as Junos, IOS-XR, EOS, SONiC, and ArcOS
Experience with white-box network switches and open source projects
Proficient in using observability and monitoring tools like Prometheus and Grafana, with the ability to analyze and observe trends over time.
Hands-on experience with configuring and validating RoCEv2 (RDMA over Converged Ethernet) fabrics, specifically implementing Priority Flow Control (PFC) and Explicit Congestion Notification (ECN) on network devices.
This role is eligible to participate in Cloudflare's equity plan.
