Senior Software Engineer - Distributed

About MariaDB

MariaDB is making a big impact on the world. Whether you’re checking your bank account, buying a coffee, shopping online, making a phone call, listening to music, taking out a loan or ordering takeout – MariaDB is the backbone of applications used everyday. Companies small and large, including 75% of the Fortune 500, run MariaDB, touching the lives of billions of people. With massive reach through Linux distributions, enterprise deployments and public clouds, MariaDB is uniquely positioned as the leading database for modern application development.

We’re looking for a Principal Software Engineer (Distributed) who’s excited about solving hard problems in distributed systems and enjoys turning complex challenges into elegant, reliable solutions.

The Role
You’ll join a small, highly skilled team where your work will have a direct impact. Expect to dig deep into replication, sharding, concurrency, and performance optimization—making our systems faster, smarter, and more resilient. You’ll collaborate globally, contribute to open source, and push the limits of what a distributed database can do.

What You’ll Do

• Build and test distributed database solutions that scale.
• Make systems rock-solid in performance and reliability, across both on-prem and cloud.
• Work on replication, sharding, and consistency models (Raft, MVCC, ACID).
• Profile, debug, and fine-tune performance with tools like perf, htop, iostat—and your own tricks.
• Keep code clean and reviewable with Git.
• Shape infrastructure using CMake or Bazel.
• Configure and monitor with YAML/JSONnet, Prometheus, and Grafana.
• Dive into Linux/Unix internals (systemd, cgroups, logging, core dumps).
• Automate testing and performance validation with load-testing scripts (YandexTank or your own).

What You Bring

• 5+ years of professional experience in C++ (Python/Bash scripting a plus).
• Working knowledge of SQL (MariaDB/MySQL/PostgreSQL). 
• Familiarity with distributed systems concepts (concurrency, multithreading, ACID).
• Comfort with Linux/Unix systems. (systemd, cgroups, logging, etc), and debugging tools.
• Understanding of performance profiling approaches.
• Bonus: Raft/MVCC experience, open-source contributions, Prometheus/Grafana, performance/load testing.

Location

Remote - India

Why You’ll Love It Here

• A globally distributed team where your code truly matters.
• Remote or Hybrid work options (location dependent)
• Projects that stretch your skills and make an impact at scale.
• Competitive pay, 25 days paid annual leave (plus holidays), and a culture that values creativity and clean engineering.

How to Apply

If you are interested in this position, please submit your application along with your CV/Resume through our ATS Greenhouse on our MariaDB Careers site.

• At MariaDB we celebrate the diverse experiences and perspectives of our employees because this drives innovation and success. MariaDB is an equal opportunity employer dedicated to creating a welcoming and inclusive workplace for everyone.
• MariaDB does not sponsor work visas or relocation.
• MariaDB is committed to providing accommodations for individuals with disabilities within our application and interview process. To request an accommodation due to a disability, please inform your recruiter.
• MariaDB will not accept agency resumes without a prior contractual agreement with HR. Please do not forward resumes to any recruiting alias or employee directly. MariaDB is not responsible for paying any fees associated with any unsolicited submitted CV/Resumes.

• Show deep DB internals expertise: Fork the MariaDB server source, fix a non‑trivial bug (e.g., a replication edge case) or add a small feature, and submit a pull request. Include the PR link and a brief write‑up in your résumé to prove you can navigate MariaDB’s codebase, understand InnoDB/XtraDB storage engines, and work with the same C/C++ stack they use.
• Demonstrate distributed‑systems chops with concrete artifacts: Build a mini‑project (e.g., a Raft‑based key‑value store or a sharded cache) on Linux, containerize it with Docker, and deploy it to a public cloud (AWS/GCP) using Kubernetes. Publish the repo on GitHub with a detailed README, performance benchmark results, and diagrams of failure‑recovery flows—exactly the kind of design problems MariaDB’s interview will probe.
• Prepare system‑design case studies that match MariaDB’s use cases: Draft 2–3 concise design documents (1–2 pages each) for scenarios like “Scaling multi‑master replication across geo‑distributed data centers” or “Implementing zero‑downtime online schema changes.” Highlight trade‑offs (consistency vs. latency), quorum protocols, and monitoring hooks; bring these documents to the interview to discuss your thought process.
• Leverage open‑source visibility: If you have contributed to any database‑related projects (MariaDB, MySQL, PostgreSQL, Vitess, etc.), list the contribution metrics (lines changed, issues closed, community approvals). Create a one‑page “Open‑Source Impact” slide and attach it to your application; interviewers value proven collaboration in a distributed, global codebase.
• Align your remote‑work workflow with MariaDB’s expectations: Set up a professional home‑office profile (dedicated VPN, Linux workstation, dual monitors, high‑speed internet). In your cover letter, reference MariaDB’s remote‑first culture and describe your daily async communication tools (e.g., Slack, Jira, Confluence) and how you ensure visibility across time zones—this reassures them you can lead distributed teams effectively.
• Negotiate with data‑backed Indian market benchmarks: Research recent compensation surveys for “Principal Software Engineer – Distributed Systems” in India (e.g., levels.fyi, Glassdoor). Prepare a spreadsheet showing base salary, RSU equivalents, and remote‑work allowances from comparable tech firms. During the offer discussion, reference MariaDB’s funding stage and global footprint to justify a package in the INR 30–40 LPA range plus equity.