Ronny Roethof
Profile
Principal Infrastructure & Security Engineer with 25+ years of experience designing, building, securing, and modernizing complex IT infrastructures. Specialized in open source, high availability, infrastructure automation, security, platform architecture, and operational resilience. Experienced in architecture, engineering, security, consultancy, and leadership roles within business-critical and large-scale environments. Combines strategic technical vision with deep hands-on experience and focuses on reliable, secure, scalable, and vendor-independent infrastructure.
Experience
SPIE Data Solutions B.V.
Den Bosch, The Netherlands
Expert in Open Source, Security & High Availability
Sep 2025 – Present
- Acts as Business Unit Security Officer, fulfilling the CISO responsibility at business-unit level.
- Advises management and teams on security strategy, risks, and information security.
- Acts as the technical conscience for complex infrastructure, security, and architecture challenges.
- Advises on open-source, vendor-independent, and high-availability solutions.
- Assesses technical designs and solutions for security, reliability, manageability, and long-term impact.
- Connects security governance with hands-on infrastructure engineering and technical architecture.
Lead Platform Architect
Business Unit Security Officer
ISO27001
ISO27002
NIS2
Proxmox
High Availability
Open Source
GDPR
Fortigate
AnyLinQ B.V.
Den Bosch, The Netherlands
CISO / Security Officer / DevOps Engineer / Internal IT
Jun 2022 – Sep 2025
- Developed and implemented security policies, technical security measures, and governance.
- Ensured compliance with ISO 27001 / 27002, NIS2, and privacy requirements in processes and technical infrastructure.
- Designed and managed secure and reliable IT infrastructure, including virtualization, networking, and cloud.
- Combined security governance with hands-on infrastructure engineering and automation.
- Performed security assessments and pentests and translated findings into concrete technical improvements.
VMware
Proxmox
Debian
CentOS
FreeBSD
Windows Server
Azure
Ansible
Huawei
Fortigate
GDPR
ISO27001
ISO27002
NIS2
Security Consultant / Pentester
Nov 2021 – Jun 2022
- Performed blackbox, graybox, and whitebox tests.
- Improved security levels for clients.
- Prepared advisory reports following security assessments.
Kali Linux
Debian
Ubuntu
VMware
Cisco
Juniper
Huawei
Fortigate
RIVM / KNMI (Seconded via AnyLinQ B.V.)
Bilthoven, The Netherlands
Area Product Owner / Team Lead / Senior DevOps Engineer
Oct 2020 – Nov 2021
- Technically led a specialized hosting team and helped determine the technical direction.
- Designed and implemented Infrastructure-as-Code and High Availability architectures using Puppet and Ansible.
- Automated provisioning, testing, and deployments through CI/CD.
- Designed and built the infrastructure for the COVID-19 registration system and National Vaccination Programme.
- Developed automation that enabled infrastructure to be scaled quickly and reproducibly.
- Ensured continuity and delivery speed under exceptional time and operational pressure.
VMware
Red Hat
Ansible Tower
Puppet
GitLab
Satellite
IPA
MySQL
PostgreSQL
Oracle
Confidential Client (Seconded via AnyLinQ B.V.)
Confidential, The Netherlands
Developer / Senior System Engineer
Jul 2019 – Sep 2020
- Developed a PHP framework for internal development.
- Created custom dashboards and tools for internal use.
- Implemented complex automation projects with Ansible Tower.
- Managed more than 100 virtual servers on VMware/Red Hat platforms.
VMware
Red Hat
PHP
Python
Ansible Tower
GitLab
Satellite
Neostrada B.V.
Lelystad, The Netherlands
Senior System Engineer
May 2017 – Jun 2019
- Designed, built, and managed high-availability infrastructure with 99.995% uptime.
- Designed and built the 5 PB FreeBSD/ZFS-based Autobackup platform.
- Automated infrastructure and application deployments with Ansible.
- Implemented 24/7 monitoring, alerting, and operational tooling.
- Worked on scalable infrastructure with availability, recoverability, and manageability at its core.
CloudLinux
CentOS
Debian
FreeBSD
Apache
Nginx
Exim
cPanel
DirectAdmin
NFS
ZFS
Ceph
Ansible
Git
KVM
Proxmox
Docker
Huawei Switches
HP Switches
Dell PowerEdge
HP ProLiant
SuperMicro
Liberty Global B.V. (Seconded via Ultimum B.V.)
Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Senior DevOps Engineer
Jan 2017 – Mar 2017
- Designed, implemented, and documented Ansible roles.
- Automated system installation.
- Realized a real-time analytics environment.
CentOS
Red Hat
Ansible
Docker
Zookeeper
Kafka
Flume
HDFS
Spark
Logstash
Elasticsearch
Dell PowerEdge
Ultimum B.V.
Almere, The Netherlands
Security Consultant
Nov 2016 – Jan 2017
- Designed, implemented, and documented workshop VMs.
- Conducted security workshops.
- Performed blackbox/graybox/whitebox pentests.
- Resolved security incidents.
- Performed migration and maintenance of all Ultimum websites.
Kali Linux
Debian
Ubuntu
VMware vSphere
Ansible
Meyn B.V. (Seconded via Ultimum B.V.)
Oostzaan, The Netherlands
DevOps Engineer / Automation Specialist
Sep 2016 – Nov 2016
- Designed, implemented, and documented virtualization environments.
- Set up and managed configuration management.
- Developed and rolled out software deployments.
CentOS
Ansible
Citrix XenServer
Git
Icinga
Ruby
Perl
Kickstart
Dell PowerEdge
Ultimum Managed Services
Almere, The Netherlands
Linux Engineer
Jun 2016 – Sep 2016
- Provisioned and managed servers and VMs.
- Provisioned Docker environments.
- Automated systems and performed hardening with Ansible.
- Migrated DNS and web servers to managed and hardened platforms.
- Set up VPN connections between networks.
- Migrated client infrastructures to AWS.
- Virtualized databases.
- Rolled out monitoring.
Red Hat
CentOS
Debian
Slackware
Ubuntu
Amazon AWS
VMware vSphere
Ansible
Nagios
Docker
PRTG
Fortigate
Cisco
HP Procurve
SLTN (Seconded via Ultimum B.V.)
Hilversum, The Netherlands
System and Monitoring Architect
Mar 2016 – Jun 2016
- Provided technical input for High Level and Detailed Level Design.
- Designed and implemented Linux monitoring servers.
- Automated the rollout of monitoring nodes and checks.
- Documented and provided technical consultation.
CentOS 7
Nagios
MySQL
Ansible
HP Blades
HP 3PAR Storage
HP Switches
HP Routers
Merus N.V. (Seconded via Ultimum B.V.)
Utrecht, The Netherlands
Linux Engineer / Database Recovery Specialist
Dec 2015 – Mar 2016
- Implemented Linux systems.
- Implemented and fine-tuned PostgreSQL.
- Documented and provided technical consultation.
Ubuntu 14
PostgreSQL
Hyper-V
FD Mediagroep B.V. (Seconded via Ultimum B.V.)
Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Linux Engineer / Network Engineer
Feb 2015 – Nov 2015
- Phased out the Solaris environment in favor of Linux.
- Renewed storage and backup solutions.
- Implemented a failover site.
- Automated with Ansible.
CentOS 6/7
Debian 7/8
Ubuntu 12/14
Solaris 8/9
VMware vSphere 5/6
Ansible
Nagios
Cisco
HP Procurve
HP Lefthand
Tele2 Nederland B.V. (Seconded via Ultimum B.V.)
Diemen, The Netherlands
Senior System Engineer
Feb 2014 – Feb 2015
- Set up HA load balancers with HAProxy, Keepalived, and Nginx.
- Implemented an HA LDAP system.
- Designed central logging with Logstash, Elasticsearch, Kibana, and Graphite.
- Provided daily management of servers and monitoring tools.
Red Hat
CentOS
Debian
Solaris
VMware
OpenLDAP
Active Directory
Dell Netvault
F5 BigIP
A10 Load Balancers
eBay Classifieds Group (Seconded via Ultimum B.V.)
Amsterdam, The Netherlands
NOC Engineer
Jan 2013 – Feb 2014
- Migrated and managed servers and virtualization.
- Performed daily management of Debian and Ubuntu systems.
- Set up monitoring with Nagios, Zabbix, Graphite, and Cacti.
- Automated systems with Puppet and Passenger.
- Coached team members and handled inquiries.
Debian
Ubuntu
SVN
Mercurial
Git
Puppet
Nagios
Graphite
Cacti
YourHosting B.V.
Zwolle, The Netherlands
Senior System Engineer
Jan 2012 – Dec 2012
- Designed and managed webmail clusters.
- Designed and managed KVM virtualization clusters.
- Designed and managed Puppet in combination with Passenger.
- Maintained and troubleshot Linux/Unix servers.
- Maintained mail and web hosting clusters.
- Implemented and managed Nagios monitoring.
CentOS
Ubuntu
Apache
MySQL
Postfix
SendMail
Courier
Git
Puppet
Nagios
Graphite
Cacti
News Service Europe B.V.
Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Linux System Administrator / Senior System Engineer
Apr 2011 – Dec 2011
- Designed, implemented, and managed KVM clusters.
- Designed, implemented, and managed Puppet configuration systems.
- Maintained and troubleshot Linux/Unix servers.
- Maintained custom Debian packages and mirrors.
- Maintained Usenet clusters and storage platforms.
- Maintained mail and web hosting clusters.
- Implemented and managed Nagios monitoring.
500+ physical servers
Dell PowerEdge
Dell PowerVault
SuperMicro Storage
Debian 5
MySQL
PostgreSQL
KVM
Apache 2
Postfix
Spamassassin
Nagios
Diablo NNTP
ACN Europe B.V. (Seconded via InWork B.V.)
Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Linux System Administrator / Network Engineer
Aug 2010 – Apr 2011
- Designed, implemented, and managed VMware clusters.
- Designed, implemented, and managed Puppet configuration systems.
- Designed, implemented, and managed Squid web filters.
- Designed, implemented, converted, and migrated Exchange to Zimbra.
- Implemented and managed Zabbix monitoring.
- Backup network management (Juniper SRX240/EX4200, Cisco 9513/3650).
- Backup Windows management (Windows 2003/2008, IIS 7, Exchange 2007).
- Backup storage management (EMC CX3/4, EMC AX5).
100+ physical servers
HP ProLiant
HP BladeCenters
VMware ESX 3/4
CentOS 5.5
Windows 2003/2008
Cisco IOS
JunOS
MySQL 5
Apache 2
Postfix
Spamassassin
Zabbix
Zimbra
Samba
IIS 7
MS Exchange 2003/2010
Active Directory
Cisco Switches/Routers
Juniper Switches/Firewalls
EMC SAN Storage
Leaseweb B.V.
Haarlem, The Netherlands
Senior System Engineer / Internal IT
Dec 2008 – Jun 2010
- Designed and implemented virtualization, networking, DNS, mail, and web hosting platforms.
- Designed and managed VMware, Cisco, and Juniper infrastructure.
- Built and managed high-availability hosting and monitoring platforms.
- Supported development teams with architecture and infrastructure challenges.
- Was responsible for the continuity of business-critical internal services.
250+ physical/virtual servers
5000+ customer servers
HP ProLiant
HP BladeCenters
Dell PowerEdge
SuperMicro Storage
VMware ESX 3/4
Red Hat
CentOS
Debian
Ubuntu
FreeBSD
Windows Server 2003/2008
Cisco IOS
JunOS
MySQL
Apache 2
Postfix
SpamAssassin
Zabbix
Zimbra
Samba
IIS 6/7
MS Exchange 2003/2010
Active Directory
Cisco Switches/Routers
Juniper Switches/Firewalls
EMC SAN Storage
Asterisk
Education
MAVO D
Scholen Gemeenschap Lelystad
1993 – 1995
Certifications
Commvault Certified Professional
Commvault
Jan 2026
Red Hat Certified System Administrator (RHCSA 7)
Red Hat
Jun 2016
ITIL® Foundation Certificate in IT Service Management
EXIN
Nov 2013
LPIC-1, Linux Professional Institute Certified Administrator
Linux Professional Institute
Jan 2013
References
Paul Germanus - Senior Technical Consultant at Databalance
"I have worked with Ronny for the past 3 years on KA ICT systems (Intune, MS365, Entra ID, Docker, monitoring automation, etc.). He consistently delivers working solutions, is proactive when dealing with acute issues, and has deep Linux and OSS knowledge. His curiosity about new technologies (AI, home automation, monitoring) allows him to quickly master new systems. Ronny is a reliable, hard-working engineer and an excellent team player."
Chris Dorsman - Experienced Python, Penguin & Whale Whisperer
"“What you see is what you get” is the expression that comes to mind when I think of Ronny. I had the pleasure of working with Ronny for a year at the SC-Campus/RIVM Linux team, where he was interim Area Product Owner/Senior Linux Engineer and I was Senior Linux Engineer. During this year, we dealt with some very challenging and tense projects within the COVID-19 programme, where we delivered projects that seemed almost impossible—and usually succeeded. Apart from his humor, Ronny is one of the hardest-working, most capable, and honest people I know. He would be a great asset to any technical or team-lead position."
Mark Maas - Kubernetes Engineer at the Dutch Ministry of Defence
"Ronny knows his tech! There is nothing Ronny couldn't learn or figure out. Ronny has strong opinions, but knows when to listen and incorporate those opinions into his own thinking. If you've read Ronny's manual, there is nothing you can't achieve with him."
Paul Commandeur - Linux/Unix System Engineer at Xifeo
"I got to know Ronny at Tele2. Ronny is a good Linux engineer with solid knowledge of the field. He is a reliable colleague who works with passion and dedication."
Sebastiaan Koot - IT Quality Lead @ the/experts
"I got to know Ronny as an administrator who works very quickly and effectively. He is always willing to think further and outside the beaten path. He is solution-oriented and professionally competent. Even when he encounters unfamiliar technology, he quickly gets to grips with it because of his broad technical foundation."
Harald Assenberg - Senior Business Operations Advisor - Directorate of Information Technology
"Ronny is a good, honest, hard-working professional. He is highly knowledgeable and not afraid to put in extra hours to achieve his goal. From experience, I can say that he is an asset to any company because of his strong commitment. He has a particular aversion to injustice and unreasonable behavior. A top guy!"
John Gerritse - Linux Engineer at Alliander NV
"Ronny is a capable colleague who strives for the best result. He was a team player and performed his work with the utmost professionalism. I would definitely recommend Ronny and hope to work with him again in the future."
Peter Ponsen - Senior Linux Engineer at BrightCubes
"Ronny is a valued colleague with an extensive technical background across many systems, allowing him to easily see the bigger picture. Thanks, Ron!"
Talip Karabas - Offensive Cyber Security Engineer | Penetration Tester | Ethical Hacker | DevSecOps Engineer
"Ronny is a highly skilled Senior System Engineer with a great deal of experience and is an excellent team player. It was a pleasure working with you, Ronny!"
Richard Pijnenburg - Founder of Eclectic Events, Eclectic DJ Collective and Eclectic Entertainment Group
"Ronny is a highly motivated and fun person to work with. He has enormous knowledge and is never afraid to learn from others."
Tom Carrion Chrisstoffels - Software Architect @ Thales
"Skilled sysadmin. A pleasure to work with!"
Reinier Haasjes - Senior DevOps & Infrastructure Engineer | Scalability & Automation
"Ronny is a great and sociable colleague to work with. He is dedicated, hard-working, and flexible. He has broad knowledge of Linux, Windows, and IT solutions and has no 9-to-5 mentality. I can recommend Ronny for any position he would apply for."
Arjan de Jong - Cybersecurity Architect at Capgemini
"Ronny is a highly skilled administrator. He knows the ins and outs of his products, keeps up with all new developments, and is open to other products and solutions that do not run on the Linux platform. He is a great person to work with, listens to other people's opinions, and has excellent social skills. If you are looking for a highly qualified Linux administrator, Ronny will definitely get the job done!"
Corné van der Vaart - Senior Project Manager at Proximus Group
"Ronny is a highly skilled Senior System Administrator with extensive knowledge of Unix/Linux and even Windows systems. Ronny does not mind working outside office hours or putting in overtime. Because of his flexible attitude and professional IT solutions, he is a stable factor within any organization."
Patrick Schreurs - Senior Privacy Consultant | LLM | BSc | CIPPE | CIPM | CIPT | FIP | DPO
"Ronny is a dedicated engineer with broad knowledge of system administration. I experienced Ronny as a pleasant, easy-going, and dedicated colleague. It was a pleasure working with Ronny."
Rachid Achellal - Security Engineer at Conclusion Enablement
"Ronny has knowledge of BSD, Linux, MySQL, VoIP, and much more. He has no 9-to-5 mentality and is always busy. He is helpful and you can ask him anything. It was a pleasure working with him."
Mark Kerssens - Linux Engineer
"I greatly enjoyed working with Ronny. His dedication and skills taught me much of what I know today. I have no doubt that Ronny has a bright future ahead of him. Besides being a good colleague, he is also a great person to work with."
Patrick Kievit - Integrates Automated Testing with Software Development...
"I have never seen anyone type commands so fast—truly amazing. No migration is too much for him, and he approaches every one with great dedication. His cooperative approach also contributed to the success of our projects. Ronny, thank you, and I wish you all the best for the future."
Thorsten Einig - Product, Domains and Business Development @ WHG
"I have always appreciated Ronny as a highly knowledgeable and helpful colleague. The enjoyment he gets from his work and his colleagues complements his hands-on approach. Ronny tackles problems as they arise and solves them quickly without losing sight of his enormous area of responsibility, and certainly without a 9-to-5 mentality."
Thomas Weaver - Information Security Architect at bet365
"It was a pleasure working with Ronny, both professionally and socially. As the sole Senior Unix Administrator at LeaseWeb, he always had a great deal of work to do, yet still managed to achieve his goals and help others whenever they needed it. I have never worked with a more knowledgeable, helpful, and genuinely nice person."
Paolo Iannelli - Mega Labs
"Ronny is not just a Unix System Administrator. He has broad and extensive knowledge of Unix and Linux distributions and the expertise to decide which one to choose based on specific project requirements. In most cases, he surprised me by discussing Trixbox, Asterisk at an advanced level, as well as Nagios performance tuning. Outside of work, he is a great guy, always around when there is fun to be had. I would trust him with my servers without hesitation."
- +31 6 29 38 35 72
- resume@roethof.net
- roethof.net
- ronnyroethof.nl
- Lelystad, The Netherlands
📄 Download NL CV (PDF)
📄 Download EN CV (PDF)
Skills
- Architecture & Infrastructure Engineering
- High Availability
- Infrastructure Architecture
- Infrastructure Automation
- Infrastructure as Code
- Disaster Recovery
- Virtualization
- Open Source Infrastructure
- Automation & Configuration Management
- Ansible
- Puppet
- Kickstart
- Security
- Infrastructure Security
- PKI
- Data Encryption
- Firewalls
- Pentesting
- ISO 27001
- ISO 27002
- NIS2
- Operating Systems
- Linux
- Debian
- FreeBSD
- Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL)
- Ubuntu
- Arch
- Unix
- Windows Server
- Virtualization & Cloud
- VMware
- KVM
- Proxmox
- Xen
- Hyper-V
- Docker
- Azure
- Amazon AWS
- Programming Languages & Scripting
- Bash
- Python
- PHP
- Networking
- HAProxy
- Keepalived
- VPN (OpenVPN)
- Cisco IOS
- JunOS
- F5 BigIP
- A10 Load Balancers
- Cisco Technologies
- Huawei Switches/Routers
- HP Switches/Routers
- Dell Switches
Languages
- DutchNative language
- EnglishFluent
Interests
- Blogging
- Cars
- Cybersecurity
- Open Source
- Family
- Fishing