Consulting since 2000. Based in Utah, working your hours.
Virtualization, Kubernetes, and automation at enterprise scale.
CPIO is a consulting firm. We send senior platform engineers into enterprise and government teams, usually for a year or more. Lately that means VMware exits, Kubernetes, and automation. Contract with us directly or through your vendor management program.
Our team has trained and advised engineers at
Apple
Practices
| Practice | Since | Scope |
|---|---|---|
| vmware-migration | 2020 | Getting off VMware. We start with an inventory of what actually runs, then map the networking and storage onto KubeVirt or OpenShift Virtualization. Cutover happens one cluster at a time, on a schedule the application owners agreed to. |
| kubernetes | 2015 | OpenShift, Rancher, or plain upstream. We build the clusters, wire up storage and networking, put the configuration in Git, and stay for the part nobody budgets for: keeping it running. |
| automation | 2005 | Ansible, Automation Platform, and Satellite. We replace hand-tuned servers with builds you can rerun on demand and a self-service front end your teams will use without being told to. |
| ai-integration | 2023 | Connecting language models and agents to systems you already run, on OpenShift AI or your own GPUs. We handle model serving, access control, logging, and the automation that keeps a pilot from turning into an unsupported production dependency. |
| enterprise-linux | 2000 | We have run RHEL and its derivatives since the 2.4 kernel. Most of this work is hardening, performance tuning, and patch lifecycle across thousands of hosts, and the goal is for none of them to be interesting. |
| security-compliance | 2000 | We apply STIG and CIS baselines in a way that passes the audit without stopping people from doing their jobs. That usually means leaving SELinux enforcing and fixing whatever made someone want to turn it off. |
| enablement | 2000 | Runbooks, design reviews, and time spent sitting with your team until they can run the platform without calling us. |
Engagement models
Embedded consultants
A senior engineer placed inside your team for months or years, using your tooling and following your process.
Project delivery
Fixed-scope VMware migrations, cluster builds, automation programs, and AI pilots with a defined outcome and a defined end.
Advisory
Retained access to senior architects for design decisions, escalations, and reviews.
Vendor programs
Experienced with managed service provider and VMS onboarding. Our operations team handles supplier paperwork so delivery is not delayed.
How we staff
Senior only. Every consultant we place has run production platforms for years, not months.
We hire experienced engineers, not generalists, and match them to the platform and scale of your environment. Every engagement has a named escalation path inside CPIO, so problems get a senior answer fast.
Clients tend to keep us. Most engagements run for years, and we structure contracts so continuity is easy for procurement, whether you work with us directly or through a managed vendor program.
Team
Consultants with production scars, not certifications alone.
Our consultants come from enterprise operations, platform engineering, virtualization, and Red Hat ecosystem backgrounds, with many years each on production systems. Several have taught the platform as well as run it, which shows in how they hand work back to your team.
We are hiring senior platform engineers for embedded client work. If you have run production Kubernetes, virtualization, or Red Hat environments and want project work with real depth, write to us.
Engage us
Tell us about the environment. We will come back with the right people and a scope.