Articles, blogs, and news outlets are reliable sources of information that should be in your daily IT rotation. But with millions of users, Reddit bridges the gap between a traditional online forum and a more inclusive “town hall” vibe.
For instance, finding the right sysadmin subreddit can help you glean many actionable insights. In this article, we’ll point you in the right direction and help you find the best of the bunch.
As high-value employees, system administrators are responsible for system performance, design, reliability, and the total security optimization of the computer systems where you run everything else.
So, articles or wikis are pretty good resources to help with their daily work. However, sometimes, engaging with a been-there-done-that expert can help overcome significant hurdles. Plus, you can get to share your expertise with others too.
Let’s dive right in!
The 10 best sysadmin subreddits
Now, if you’re looking for places that breathe IT, these are for you. We’ve genuinely chosen a little something for everyone with these subreddits. Plus, as you know, there’s one for practically every information technology niche, so we’ve carefully selected the must-have ones that should have a place of honor on your bookmarks.
Of course, a little caveat on our part: these are not sanitized, family-friendly places necessarily; these are real professionals and experts, each with their own story, views, and way of communicating. While you’re an adult, it’s safe to say that not every conversation or reply will be perfectly SFW. Just a tiny word to the wise.
But, if you don’t mind things being a little more rough-and-tumble, there’s a wealth of information you just can’t find anywhere else, with professionals from all over the world bringing their know-how and experience to the table.
This list is in no particular order.
1. r/sysadmin
r/sysadmin is a subreddit is dedicated to system administrators, so it’s no surprise that we’ve put it right at the beginning of our list. With nearly three quarters-of-a-million users, it’s packed with IT experts worldwide. There, you’ll find everything from good-faith discussions about new automation developments, advice for newbies in the field, personal experiences, complaints about sysadmins not doing their job right, and anything in between.
2. r/CCNA
If you’re considering obtaining your CCNA (that is, becoming a Cisco-certified Network Associate), then r/CCNA subreddit is for you. With how much people use Cisco worldwide, it’s no surprise that they’ve got over 80k active users sharing information about how they became certified. If you’ve got questions about whether you can use docs on your exam, practice tests, interviews, or how much you can make after you get certified, then look no further.
3. r/msp
Are you a managed service provider? Then this is where you live now. With over 130k users, r/msp is the best place to understand how to streamline your IT needs, get the best tools available (with daily tool reviews by competent users), free webinars, and deep, deep resources of knowledgeable professionals who are always ready to help out. Sure, there’s always a bit of spam (everyone’s always got some miracle tool coming out), but you can skip those posts. In our mind, the great community is definitely worth your time.
4. r/DevOps
Are you looking for the latest and greatest about DevOps? Then r/DevOps is as good a resource as any, with a quarter-of-a-million (that’s 250k) users active, it’s got a little bit of everything for everyone. And by everything, we mean monthly “welcome to DevOps” threads, FAQs, tool reviews, in-depth discussions about best practices, and plenty of advice from people deep in the DevOps trenches.
Plus, it’s not all dry info about tools or practices. Sometimes, the human side of DevOps shines through, like in this thread about a user struggling at their new job. Fortunately, the supportive community seems to have done them a world of good:
“Thank you all for your support! Feeling much more positive today and reminded myself that I picked this company because I wanted to learn this stuff. I felt the imposter syndrome bad as it seemed every task was going wrong.”
5. r/iiiiiiitttttttttttt
Sometimes, saying things is not enough. Sometimes, you must scream at the top of your lungs. Only, you’re sitting in front of your computer, consumed by rage at the latest IT mishap. That’s where r/iiiiiiitttttttttttt comes in. This sysadmin subreddit compiles every story about information technology going wrong, from glitchy airport signs to massive outages that cost millions of dollars. With over 245k members, you know that many system administrators are telling funny stories that left them prematurely grey and you in stitches.
6. r/Windows
Everything windows-related is on r/Windows. In this subreddit, you’ll find anything from shareable memes, in-depth user experiences, questions about upcoming versions, information about patches or tools, people pitching their apps, and anything and everything in between, as the +250k users will attest.
7. r/Linux
If you’ve got Windows, you’ve got Linux. Of course, things will be far less corporate and a bit more unique here, with users sharing mods, custom builds fanzines, and general stories about using Linux successfully — or unsuccessfully. But, if you’ve got any questions, the +750k users in r/Linux will get you sorted out in no time.
8. r/linuxadmin
With nearly 200k users, this sysadmin subreddit is a must-have resource for the Linux system administrator. In r/linuxadmin, you can ask general questions. If you’re experiencing SNAFU, these are the people to help you put out that fire. They’ve got information about job interviews and Linux-based tools and will help you troubleshoot. If resourcefulness is one thing the Linux community is famous for, it’s resourcefulness.
9. r/commandline
Do you ever catch yourself staring at the command line without knowing what to do next? Whatever operating system you’re running, the 80k-strong membership in r/commandline will help you find the next bit of inspiration or guidance you need. No joke, it’s incredible what you can do with the command line alone — one user is even developing an audio reader for books!
10. r/virtualization
This subreddit doesn’t have as many users as the above, with only about 20k active users. It makes up for it with a healthy, engaged community that doesn’t stop answering questions and even offers job postings. Take a look at this post, for instance! But overall, r/virtualization has plenty to love for the enterprising sysadmin who’s not afraid to dig deep.
Summing up
Some people may look down on forums like Reddit. And we completely understand where these concerns may come from; after all, isn’t the whole point of informative blog posts and articles that provide fact-checked information from dyed-in-the-wool industry experts? While the answer to that is a resounding “Yes!” you can still find much to love on Reddit.
Building communities is part of what we do as humans and one of our greatest strengths. By bringing together professionals and IT enthusiasts worldwide, Reddit has created a massive network of contacts, connections, information, and resources. So, if you make good use of it — and take some of the content there with a grain of salt — you can find infinitely valuable niches for practically every professional need out there.
So, being active in Reddit (and in all these sysadmin subreddits) can mean finding like-minded experts who can help you grow and evolve professionally in real-time. And that’s the kind of human connection that money can’t buy — and even the deepest wiki can’t touch.
