Melvin Williams — IT Support Specialist

Greater Philadelphia Area · 19013 · 1st / 2nd / 3rd Shift Available

Melvin Williams

IT Support Specialist · Junior Systems Administrator · Network Technician

I am a Junior IT Support Technician and Tier 1 Service Desk professional with a strong technical foundation in modern infrastructure. I hold the CompTIA A+, Network+, Security+, and Microsoft Azure Fundamentals (AZ-900) certifications.

My hands-on technical experience includes managing an enterprise-grade infrastructure lab utilizing Proxmox VE virtualization on a Lenovo ThinkCentre M920Q server. Through this environment, I administer Active Directory, manage user provisioning, execute password resets, configure Windows Server 2022, and utilize ServiceNow for ticketing management. To enforce strict data governance, I utilize Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) to implement security groups, break inheritance, and configure NTFS permissions.

On the networking and cloud side, I configure physical Cisco 2901 routers and Cisco 3750X switches to implement VLANs, routing protocols, and active troubleshooting while managing Microsoft 365 tenants. This technical skillset is strongly backed by 17 years of high-volume operational experience. Throughout my career, I have specialized in lifecycle asset management, critical inventory tracking, meeting strict Service Level Agreements (SLAs), and customer de-escalation under pressure.

I am available immediately for contract, contract-to-hire, or full-time IT support specialist and help desk technician roles. I am targeting opportunities across the Greater Philadelphia area, including Delaware County, Montgomery County, Chester County, Bucks County, South Jersey, and the Wilmington, Delaware area.

MWilliams719@gmail.com (610) 241-4166 linkedin.com/in/melvinwilliams1 github.com/melvin79m

Active Certifications

Currently studying: Microsoft AZ-104 (Azure Administrator Associate). Future targets: SC-300 (Identity and Access Administrator), Cisco CCNA.

Hands-On Technical Projects & Enterprise Infrastructure

Multi-Node Virtualization & Cisco Network Infrastructure

Self-Directed · Ongoing

Designed and deployed a segmented enterprise network on physical Cisco hardware, backed by a single-node Proxmox VE hypervisor hosting 15 LXC containers and 2 virtual machines.

  • Built a 4-VLAN segmented topology (Servers/Engineering, Operations, Media, and a BlackHole VLAN 999) with 802.1Q trunking across all inter-device links.
  • Configured inter-VLAN routing on a Cisco 2901 using router-on-a-stick architecture — logical Gi0/0 sub-interfaces per VLAN, eliminating the need for additional routing hardware.
  • Implemented LACP EtherChannel (802.3ad) between two Catalyst 3750X switches, bonding two ports into a single logical trunk for link redundancy and doubled inter-switch bandwidth.
  • Hardened Layer 2 by assigning all unused switch ports to a gateway-less dead VLAN, blocking rogue device connectivity.
  • Ran OSPF (process 1, Area 0, router-ID 1.1.1.1) on R1 to advertise all three VLAN subnets and the R1-to-R2 WAN link; set VLAN 10 as passive to suppress OSPF hellos on the Engineering segment.
  • Applied a standard ACL for NAT overload (permitting only the Proxmox subnet for internet-bound traffic) and an extended ACL as a directed-broadcast filter on the Operations VLAN, restricting UDP traffic by source host.
  • Deployed Proxmox VE 9.1 on an i7-8700T / 32 GB host with a dual-bridge architecture — a physical VLAN trunk bridge plus an isolated internal service bridge — and configured IP forwarding with static container routes for controlled cross-bridge traffic.
  • Established zero-trust remote access via a 9-node Tailscale WireGuard mesh with the hypervisor as exit node, keeping all administrative services off the public internet.
  • Fronted 15+ internal services with a Caddy reverse proxy handling path- and port-based routing, TLS termination, and header rewriting.
  • Monitored availability with Uptime Kuma across 10+ service monitors, with alerting on downtime events.
  • Cisco IOS
  • Catalyst 3750X
  • VLANs / 802.1Q
  • EtherChannel / LACP
  • OSPF
  • ACL / NAT
  • Proxmox VE
  • LXC / KVM
  • Tailscale
  • Caddy
  • Ubuntu / Debian

Enterprise Active Directory & Identity Management

Self-Directed · Phases 1–6 Complete

Deployed a Windows Server 2022 domain from bare metal and built it out through user provisioning, role-based access control, file services, and disaster recovery validation.

  • Promoted a Windows Server 2022 domain controller (AD DS + co-located DNS) on a UEFI Secure Boot VM with TPM 2.0 and VirtIO SCSI storage.
  • Designed an enterprise-aligned OU hierarchy separating administrative accounts from four department OUs (IT, HR, Finance, Sales).
  • Provisioned 20 user accounts under an enforced naming standard and implemented a tiered administrator model with a primary Domain Admin and a delegated secondary admin (ThomasA) in a dedicated Admins OU.
  • Built RBAC with global security groups per department, scoping file access and local administrator delegation.
  • Authored GPOs delegating workstation local admin rights via Restricted Groups, and mapping department drives through Group Policy Preferences with Item-Level Targeting.
  • Configured five departmental SMB shares with broken NTFS inheritance for compartmentalized access control.
  • Completed DR implementation: AD Recycle Bin for object-level restore, Volume Shadow Copies for self-service previous-version recovery, and Windows Server Backup bare-metal and system-state jobs.
  • Validated every policy against a domain-joined Windows 11 client using gpupdate /force, gpresult /r, whoami /groups, and Event Viewer.
  • Active Directory
  • Windows Server 2022
  • Group Policy
  • DNS
  • NTFS / SMB
  • AD Recycle Bin
  • Volume Shadow Copy
  • Windows 11
View Documentation

Microsoft 365 Administration Lab

Self-Directed · Steps 1–2 Complete

Provisioned and administered a live Microsoft 365 Business Premium tenant, covering the full user lifecycle, Teams and SharePoint collaboration, mailbox configuration, and OneDrive for Business.

  • Established a live M365 Business Premium tenant (Melvin79m.onmicrosoft.com) and configured the global admin account and tenant-wide settings.
  • Provisioned 11 test user accounts with Business Premium license assignments and enforced mandatory password change at first login.
  • Created three departmental Microsoft Teams (IT, Sales, HR) with defined membership and 5 channels each for structured internal communication.
  • Stood up three private SharePoint sites linked to each Team with custom folder hierarchies and explicit permission assignments: Owner (Full Control) and Member (Edit) role separation.
  • Configured mailbox delegation and OneDrive for Business with verified external sharing and document collaboration workflows.
  • Tested internal email routing via Exchange Online and simulated secure document collaboration using OneDrive shared links.
  • Microsoft 365
  • Exchange Online
  • Microsoft Teams
  • SharePoint
  • OneDrive for Business
  • M365 Admin Center
  • License Management
View Documentation

Security Operations & SIEM Monitoring

Self-Directed · Ongoing

Stood up a full security monitoring stack across the lab — centralized log collection, automated threat response, DNS filtering, and credential management — applying Security+ concepts to live infrastructure.

  • Deployed Wazuh 4.14 as an all-in-one SIEM (Manager, OpenSearch indexer, and Dashboard) and enrolled 7 agents covering every critical container plus the bare-metal hypervisor.
  • Configured active response rules including firewall-drop, host-deny, and account disable — automating containment rather than relying on manual intervention.
  • Monitored file integrity, authentication events, process activity, and hypervisor VM/container lifecycle events across all endpoints.
  • Deployed AdGuard Home as the network-wide DNS resolver with 6 curated blocklists, enforced across every enrolled mesh device via DNS override, with conditional forwarding to the AD domain.
  • Self-hosted Vaultwarden for encrypted credential management, reachable only over the private mesh network.
  • Enforced least-exposure architecture: exactly one service is publicly reachable; all remaining services are mesh-only or LAN-only, with no inbound ports forwarded from the internet.
  • Wazuh SIEM
  • OpenSearch
  • File Integrity Monitoring
  • Active Response
  • AdGuard Home
  • Vaultwarden
  • WireGuard
  • Network Segmentation

Technical Skills

Systems & Virtualization

  • Proxmox VE — LXC provisioning, KVM/QEMU, LVM-thin, snapshots
  • Windows Server 2022 — AD DS, DNS, file services, backup
  • Linux administration (Ubuntu / Debian), systemd services
  • Docker containerization, reverse proxy configuration

Networking & Security

  • Cisco IOS — routing, switching, trunking, EtherChannel
  • VLAN design, subnetting, inter-VLAN routing, DHCP, DNS
  • Wazuh SIEM, file integrity monitoring, active response
  • WireGuard / Tailscale mesh VPN, network segmentation, firewall rules

Operations & Administration

  • Microsoft 365 Admin Center — user provisioning, license management, Teams / SharePoint / Exchange administration
  • ServiceNow — incident lifecycle and ticketing architecture (coursework)
  • IT asset management, inventory tracking, hardware handling
  • Bash and PowerShell scripting, cron scheduling, automation workflows
  • Technical documentation, network mapping, uptime monitoring

Leadership & Execution

  • Team leadership and shift coordination
  • SLA adherence under high-volume, time-critical conditions
  • End-user support and customer-facing communication
  • Full schedule flexibility — 1st, 2nd, and 3rd shift

Professional Experience

Courier Team Lead

Federal Express Corporation · Sep 2009 – Present · 16+ Years
  • Managed daily high-volume delivery operations under strict SLA deadlines — the same accountability model that drives ticket response and resolution targets in an IT service desk.
  • Tracked and maintained chain-of-custody accuracy for all physical assets across a high-throughput operation, including time-sensitive and high-value freight.
  • Served as the direct customer-facing point of contact, de-escalating service disruptions and translating problems into clear resolutions for non-technical people.
  • Diagnosed and resolved operational failures independently in the field, without on-site supervision.
  • Worked reliably across first, second, and third shifts with a consistent attendance record spanning 16+ years.
  • SLA Adherence
  • Asset Tracking
  • Customer De-escalation
  • Independent Troubleshooting
  • Shift Flexibility

Education & Continuous Training

Chichester Senior High School

High School Diploma · 2008
  • Self-directed IT certification track: CompTIA A+, Network+, and Security+ completed (2025–2026).
  • Microsoft Azure Fundamentals (AZ-900) completed November 2025.
  • Cisco Packet Tracer coursework — VLAN segmentation, inter-VLAN routing, and trunk configuration.
  • ServiceNow coursework — incident lifecycle management and ticketing system architecture.
  • Currently studying Microsoft AZ-104 (Azure Administrator Associate). Future targets: SC-300 and Cisco CCNA.