Senior Software Engineer - Core OS / Windows

Microsoft

Microsoft

Software Engineering
Redmond, WA, USA
USD 119,800-234,700 / year
Posted on Jan 10, 2026
Overview

Would you like to be a part of the team that makes the critical software fabric that runs most of the hosted virtualized computing in today’s datacenters and PCs? For many reasons of scale, reliability, and cost reduction, virtualized computer systems are run on modern host systems with powerful networks, storage, and compute capabilities that are distributed to the instances of virtualized machines. Protecting the use of resources, and the data flow between or externally from them while maximizing the performance is the engineering challenge you can help to grow.

We are looking for an engineer with the ability to learn and lead others in the areas of networking for VMs, such as:

  • Software network switching
  • Routing network packet frames to VM instances
  • Network Virtual Function (VFs) capabilities provided by a network adapter’s advanced server device and the consuming VMs that are tied to them
  • Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) which makes the use of a Linux environment possible in Windows without the overhead of a virtualized machine

In Core OS, we are responsible for the Operating Systems that power Azure, Microsoft's Linux OS, the platforms for Windows Client and Xbox, and our Windows Server ecosystem – through all of these, we support every one of our cloud businesses and billions of customers around the world. In this era of ubiquitous computing, building reliable, efficient, and inclusive systems software is more important for Microsoft. High quality, high-efficiency operating systems and platform components underpin everything we do as a company, from making our systems more reliable for our customers, to increasing our competitiveness by reducing COGS, to delivering new features and capabilities to delight customers – that’s all us!

To deliver on our vision, we are looking for a Senior Software Engineer who is motivated about the prospect of learning and driving innovation across our networking stack, across our partnering teams and across the industry. This is an opportunity that will help deepend your knowledge of networking, system architecture, distributed systems and will provide ample opportunities for industry wide impact.

Microsoft’s mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. As employees we come together with a growth mindset, innovate to empower others, and collaborate to realize our shared goals. Each day we build on our values of respect, integrity, and accountability to create a culture of inclusion where everyone can thrive at work and beyond.



Responsibilities


You will be responsible for design, architecture, and execution in your areas of responsibility, producing and operating high-quality scalable services, and collaboration with partners. We are looking for a Senior Software Engineer who values their craft, works thoughtfully and collaboratively, and helps create a positive and motivating team environement.

Core responsibilities include:

  • Influence architecture requirements and portability of software across varied platforms and implement functionality using the latest software development life cycle techniques and tools.
  • Ship quality code whether it is in kernel or in user mode and ensure it has diagnosability and observability built into it for production level usage.
  • Supprot and contribute to an inclusive and collaborative team culture.
  • Collaborate with internal and external partners to identify requirements, trends and opportunities.
  • Participate and influence a culture with a focus on making customers successful and improving developer productivity.

Other



Qualifications

Required Qualifications:

  • Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field AND 4+ years technical engineering experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python
    • OR equivalent experience.

Other Requirements:

Ability to meet Microsoft, customer and/or government security screening requirements are required for this role. These requirements include but are not limited to the following specialized security screenings:

  • Microsoft Cloud Background Check: This position will be required to pass the Microsoft Cloud background check upon hire/transfer and every two years thereafter.

Preferred Qualifications:

  • Master's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field AND 6+ years technical engineering experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python OR Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field AND 8+ years technical engineering experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python
    • OR equivalent experience.
  • Experience with multi-threaded software development.
  • Experience with software debugging.
  • Understanding of virtual machines for Windows and Linux, and container based computer environments.
  • Understanding of VM/Host architecture on Windows Server.
  • Effective communication and collaboration skills.
  • Proficiency in systems software concepts and experience developing APIs and services in a systems-level environment.
  • Practical architectural skills supported by implementation experience.
  • Proficiency in coding, debugging, testing, and problem-solving skills.
  • Demonstrated experience delivering results across multiple release cycles.
  • Experience with networking protocols and architecture.
  • Thorough understanding of modern computer architectures found in desktop PCs and servers, including networking.

#W+DJOBS



Software Engineering IC4 - The typical base pay range for this role across the U.S. is USD $119,800 - $234,700 per year. There is a different range applicable to specific work locations, within the San Francisco Bay area and New York City metropolitan area, and the base pay range for this role in those locations is USD $158,400 - $258,000 per year.

Certain roles may be eligible for benefits and other compensation. Find additional benefits and pay information here:
https://careers.microsoft.com/us/en/us-corporate-pay


This position will be open for a minimum of 5 days, with applications accepted on an ongoing basis until the position is filled.




Microsoft is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, citizenship, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, immigration status, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran or military status, race, ethnicity, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by applicable local laws, regulations and ordinances. If you need assistance with religious accommodations and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during the application process, read more about requesting accommodations.