Meet a Helpful Human – Dayne Larsen

Responsive, helpful, and dedicated in ways automation simply can’t be. We’re your team.

Each month, we recognize one of our Most Helpful Humans in Hosting. 

Dayne Larsen is a graduate of Montana State University with a degree in Technology Education. After graduating, he worked as a part-time freelance web designer and primary caregiver. He has also worked as a search-result rater for Google, a merchandiser for LEGO, a paraprofessional for Disabled Students, managed a fly fishing shop in New Orleans, and even founded an estate liquidation company. 

Then, in 2017, Larsen joined Liquid Web after graduating from the Open Cloud Academy in San Antonio. Originally from Seattle, he has lived in six states and now resides in California with his wife, an engineer. 

We sat down with Larsen to find out what makes him passionate as a Senior Linux System Administrator at Liquid Web.

I wanted to be part of a growing technology company, and Liquid Web fit the bill. I was in the first group of Linux Support Admins hired in the new San Antonio office, and it was exciting to be part of that expansion. Liquid Web was new to the San Antonio area. It was a small office at the time; six of us in total, all new to hosting (including me). 

My main drivers are helping customers and gaining joy from learning new concepts and skills. I love to troubleshoot and solve technical challenges. In hosting, I get to do this all day, learning new things and helping our customers along the way, which is amazing. 

Liquid Web feels like a big productive family. I enjoy going to work to be a part of that. Much like any family, it’s not always perfect, but from day one, everyone at Liquid Web has been very encouraging, genuine, and team-oriented to meet our goals. I have never been around a group of individuals that connect the way Liquid Web employees do. 

My coworkers are driven, caring, and informal, a combination that is rare to find and extraordinarily inviting. People are always willing to help. Even our senior management is approachable, which is pretty rare. We have regular, transparent Town Halls that keep everyone informed of the big picture, and new and amazing products designed to help grow and protect our customers’ businesses, like our new Alert Logic and Threat Stack security offerings.

Also, we don’t have a stuffy office environment. We come as we are so everyone feels comfortable and relaxed, leading to better customer outcomes. The culture committee here is excellent, with so many virtual events that you can participate in if you choose. The relaxed environment helps me enjoy every day at Liquid Web.

Since being at Liquid Web, my biggest accomplishment has been becoming part of the top tier of support as a Linux System Administrator. When I started at Liquid Web, I was starting fresh. While I was learning from the sysadmins that came before me, I never thought I would reach their proficiency. When I moved into this senior role, it confirmed my hard work had paid off. 

Being entrusted to work with our biggest clients and handle complex support issues is a great honor. I now handle the most complicated infrastructure setups, test new products, create documentation, and interface with our developers. 

I’m known for going above and beyond to help our customers. I am asked to solve some of the most difficult technical hosting issues that come up. 

One customer with a complex setup that handled virtual conferences was expanding rapidly during quarantine and needed lots of assistance. They happened to call in on a day in the middle of a tradeshow, and their dedicated admin was out of the office, so I jumped in to help diagnose the immediate problem and resolve it. They were so grateful.

Since then, I have continued to assist them in optimizing and verifying their numerous server clusters to assure they can serve their customers effectively.

Servers need to be tuned regularly. They are not a set-it-and-forget-it device. That’s why it feels so good to have the backs of our Managed Hosting customers—taking care of their servers is something we can do for them as their Support Team, so they won’t have to think about it.  

Another thing to remember is that software is constantly being updated and improved. That’s something we can help Liquid Web’s customers with. With us, they can rest assured that they have the technology that meets their needs best.

I love being silly with my family. I’m an avid fly fisherman, and I enjoy snowboarding, hiking, working on my 1966 mustang (the exact same car I drove in high school), and tinkering with home automation.

In my house, we have two teenagers, so finding shows we all enjoy is a blessing. We like the Mandalorian because it is in the Star Wars universe and is an easy win in my household, and my wife can’t get enough of Baby Yoda. We enjoy Blacklist for the suspense, mystery, and constant action. 

Home Assistant. I use it to automate my home. It is an amazing open source project and makes my home come alive.

Jesus. No one greater has lived nor changed mankind more. Breaking bread and having a glass of wine with him would be amazing.