Sr. Engineer II, Sensor - Sensor Performance Engineering (Hybrid)
CrowdStrike · Sunnyvale, United States +1 · 1mo ago
As a global leader in cybersecurity, CrowdStrike protects the people, processes and technologies that drive modern organizations. Since 2011, our mission hasn’t changed — we’re here to stop breaches, and we’ve redefined modern security with the world’s most advanced AI-native platform. We work on large scale distributed systems, processing almost 3 trillion events per day and this traffic is growing daily. Our customers span all industries, and they count on CrowdStrike to keep their businesses running, their communities safe and their lives moving forward. We're proud to work for a mission-driven company leveraging AI to transform the way we work. CrowdStrikers drive their careers through flexibility and autonomy while also being expected to contribute to a culture of responsible AI adoption, experimentation, and innovation. We use an AI-first mindset as a force multiplier to proactively and continuously accelerate execution, build expertise, uncover insights, and solve complex problems. We’re always looking to add talented CrowdStrikers to the team who have limitless passion, a relentless focus on innovation and a fanatical commitment to our customers, our community and each other. Ready to join a mission that matters? The future of cybersecurity starts with you.
About the Role:
The Sensor Performance Engineering team is seeking a Senior 2 Engineer to serve as a deep technical authority on Windows sensor performance. This is a hands-on role for an engineer who bridges kernel-mode internals, ETW/WPA trace analysis, and enterprise customer escalations. You will own the most complex performance investigations, shape the team's diagnostic tooling, and serve as an architectural voice for how the Falcon sensor interacts with Windows subsystems at the lowest levels.
CrowdStrike protects the world's most critical enterprises. The Sensor Performance Engineering team ensures the Falcon sensor does that without impacting the performance of the systems it protects. This role sits at the intersection of kernel engineering, performance science and customer impact — where the problems are genuinely hard, the stakes are high, and the work directly shapes the experience of some of the largest deployments in the world.
Location:
This role is hybrid, requiring 2x days per week on-site at one of the posted locations.
What You'll Do:
Own deep-dive performance analysis of the Falcon sensor on Windows, from initial triage through root cause to shipped fix — including application compatibility and AV/EDR process interaction issues.
Drive development and improvement of ETW-based diagnostic instrumentation, extending WPP providers, adding new event IDs, versioning existing events — to give the team visibility into previously opaque code paths.
Perform WPA/ETL analysis for customer support cases and internal benchmarking, including ETWReader-based bottleneck identification and per-component CPU attribution across sensor subsystems.
Review and author PRs targeting Windows sensor performance improvements: load image callbacks, registry filter drivers, and process/thread notification routines.
Identify sensor observability gaps and push for tooling to close them.
What You’ll Need:
10+ years of hands-on Windows kernel-mode development or deep Windows systems engineering
Expert-level proficiency with Windows Performance Analyzer (WPA), xperf, ETW/WPP tracing, and ETL file analysis — including stack attribution, CPU sampling, and per-component time accounting
Strong working knowledge of Windows kernel APIs relevant to endpoint security: registry filter manager callbacks, process/thread notification callbacks, load image callbacks, access token and impersonation APIs
Experience navigating complex multi-process interactions: file I/O storms, SCM/RPC-driven registry operations, process enumeration overhead, and their cascading effects on application performance
Proven experience utilizing AI technologies to enhance decision-making, streamline workflows and processes, improve efficiency and drive business outcomes.
Bonus Points:
Background in enterprise performance benchmarking/analysis: SQL Server under load, VDI/AVD multisession, AnyConnect/VPN stack interactions, Cluster Shared Volume I/O
Track record of generating architectural ideas and advocating for them constructively within mulit-team environments.
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Benefits of Working at CrowdStrike:
Market leader in compensation and equity awards
Comprehensive physical and mental wellness programs
Competitive vacation and holidays for recharge
Paid parental and adoption leaves
Professional development opportunities for all employees regardless of level or role
Employee Networks, geographic neighborhood groups, and volunteer opportunities to build connections
Vibrant office culture with world class amenities
Great Place to Work Certified™ across the globe
CrowdStrike is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to fostering a culture of belonging where everyone is valued for who they are and empowered to succeed. We support veterans and individuals with disabilities through our affirmative action program.
CrowdStrike is committed to providing equal employment opportunity for all employees and applicants for employment. The Company does not discriminate in employment opportunities or practices on the basis of race, color, creed, ethnicity, religion, sex (including pregnancy or pregnancy-related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity, marital or family status, veteran status, age, national origin, ancestry, physical disability (including HIV and AIDS), mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, membership or activity in a local human rights commission, status with regard to public assistance, or any other characteristic protected by law. We base all employment decisions--including recruitment, selection, training, compensation, benefits, discipline, promotions, transfers, lay-offs, return from lay-off, terminations and social/recreational programs--on valid job requirements.
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CrowdStrike, Inc. is committed to fair and equitable compensation practices. Placement within the pay range is dependent on a variety of factors including, but not limited to, relevant work experience, skills, certifications, job level, supervisory status, and location. The base salary range for this position for all U.S. candidates is $160,000 - $250,000 per year, with eligibility for bonuses, equity grants and a comprehensive benefits package that includes health insurance, 401k and paid time off.For detailed information about the U.S. benefits package, please click here.