Network Device Driver Development Engineer

Job Title

Network Device Driver Development Engineer

Role Summary

Design, implement, optimize and maintain high-performance network device drivers across operating systems to support Intel's data center networking products. Work closely with firmware, hardware, validation teams and OS vendors to diagnose issues, optimize packet processing and ensure interoperability.

Position sits in the Data Center Group (DCG) and focuses on NIC driver functionality, performance, and integration with virtualization and IO-virtualization technologies.

Experience Level

Mid-level — minimum of 6+ years of relevant industry experience preferred.

Responsibilities

Core responsibilities include software development, debugging, and cross-team integration for network drivers and related OS components.

• Develop and maintain network device drivers across Linux, Windows, ESXi and other OS platforms.
• Optimize packet processing paths, DMA, interrupt handling and offloads for performance and scalability.
• Use HW–SW debugging tools to diagnose and resolve issues across the software and firmware stack.
• Implement and validate Ethernet standards, TCP/IP behaviors and NIC configuration flows.
• Design and validate virtualization and IO-virtualization features (PCIe, SR-IOV, VF-PF).
• Collaborate with firmware, hardware, validation and OS vendor teams during design reviews and integrations.
• Analyze and improve OS kernel components for compatibility and performance.
• Contribute to driver programming standards, testing and release processes.

Requirements

Must-have technical skills and experience; preferred items listed separately.

• Must-have: Strong C/C++ programming and solid knowledge of data structures.
• Must-have: Experience with networking subsystems on Linux/Unix, ESXi, or Windows.
• Must-have: Deep understanding of Ethernet protocols, TCP/IP stack, OSI model, subnetting and routing.
• Must-have: Knowledge of OS internals: interrupts, DMA, processes/threads, memory management and synchronization.
• Must-have: Experience using hardware/software debugging tools and working with firmware/hardware teams.
• Must-have: Familiarity with Git, CI/CD practices and cloud development environments.
• Nice-to-have: Exposure to NVMe/TCP, RDMA, SCSI, FCoE and virtualization platform internals (vCenter, ESXi networking stack).
• Nice-to-have: Experience with unit test frameworks, release/compliance processes, hardware design reviews and AI-assisted development tooling.

Education Requirements

Minimum of a Bachelor's or Master's degree in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, or a related technical field. The posting specifies a minimum of 6+ years of industry experience.

About the Company

Company: Intel Corporation

Headquarters: Santa Clara, California, USA

Intel Corporation is a leading multinational technology company known for its innovative semiconductor solutions, including microprocessors, artificial intelligence accelerators, and memory products. Headquartered in the United States, Intel focuses on cutting-edge technology and a collaborative working environment, driving advancements in semiconductor manufacturing to meet global demands. The company emphasizes professional development and aims to shape the future of technology through groundbreaking designs.