A role within IT, computer operators oversee the running of computer systems, ensuring that the machines are running and physically secured. The traditional role of a computer operator was to work with mainframes which required a great deal of management day-to-day. Computer operator positions are distinct from system administrators in that they only require a 2-year college Associate's degree (similar to nuclear power plant operators and car mechanics), and are paid significantly less than system administrators, and traditionally used operating systems other than UNIX before the 1990s with far more rudimentary operations than a complex UNIX system. The computer operator works in a computer room (now days known as "data centers"). The employment of operators has greatly decreased due to modern technology making the more traditional roles obsolete. Most of the duties that operations staff undertake is taught on-the-job as the variety of roles is unique to the systems they help manage.
Logging events is also amongst the operator's role, listing each backup that is run or things such as machine malfunctions. Operators assist System administrators and programmers in testing and debugging of new systems and programs prior to their becoming production environments. As modern day computing has led to a greater proliferation of personal computers, the role of the operator has changed to include such other duties. Similar roles such as managing the backup systems, cycling tapes or other media, filling and maintaining printers, indeed anything that is monotonous or in need of legwork for the system or network administrators is handled by the operation staff.
The shifting and changing of duties for the operators has resulted due to the speed of change from older mainframe systems to newer self-managing systems but overall the operator fills in as a lower level system administrator.
A computer operator also has knowledge about sending tapes with backup data offsite in order to recover information after a natural disaster.
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