Senior Principal Software Engineer – GlobalProtect (Windows & macOS Internals)

Palo Alto Networks • Office - USA - CA - Headquarters, CA

3d • $183,600 - $297,000 • Onsite

About The Position

Palo Alto Networks is hiring a Senior Principal Software Engineer for GlobalProtect to serve as the hands-on technical authority for the endpoint networking stack across Windows driver and macOS NetworkExtension ecosystems. The role leads the design, reliability, and security of core client components, including NDIS virtual adapters and filter drivers, Windows Filtering Platform enforcement, macOS System Extensions and NetworkExtension providers, packet processing, routing, DNS handling, and underlying OS integrations. This software runs on millions of enterprise devices worldwide.

The engineer will develop and modernize low-level networking components, own driver and extension qualification and signing pipelines, and act as an escalation engineer for critical operating-system failures. The role also addresses power-state and network-transition reliability, implements secure inter-process communication and least-privilege separation, and provides technical leadership and mentorship across engineering, QA, and security teams.

Palo Alto Networks says most teams work from the office full time, with flexibility when needed. The listed annual base salary range is $183,600 to $297,000. Compensation may also include restricted stock units and a bonus. Immigration sponsorship is available.

Requirements

• Significant hands-on experience with C and modern C++ (C++17/20) on Windows and/or macOS, with deep knowledge of operating-system internals.
• Deep expertise in at least one of Windows kernel-mode driver development and debugging or macOS networking agents, with solid working knowledge of the other platform.
• For Windows: experience with NDIS miniport and filter drivers, KMDF/UMDF, virtual network adapters, Windows Filtering Platform, callout drivers, and routing tables.
• For macOS: experience with NetworkExtension and SystemExtensions, XPC and Mach messaging, and Apple code-signing and entitlement models.
• Practical experience with driver and extension release pipelines, including Windows HLK testing, WHQL/attestation signing, EV certificates and Partner Center, and Apple Developer ID notarization.
• Hands-on experience with WinDbg and LLDB and performance tools such as Windows Performance Analyzer/ETW and Instruments, including kernel crash dump triage.
• Production experience reading and writing Objective-C/Objective-C++; Swift is a plus.
• Demonstrated technical leadership through ownership of a cross-component architecture or major migration, and mentoring other engineers.
• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, or a related technical field.

Nice To Haves

• Knowledge of VPN and networking mechanics, including secure tunneling and packet framing (IPsec/IKEv2, SSL/TLS, DTLS, WireGuard), Path MTU Discovery, IPv4/IPv6 dual-stack routing, split-tunnel DNS behavior, and captive portal handling.
• Experience with sleep/wake, Windows Modern Standby, and power-state handling in network stacks and system extensions.
• Experience with TPM and Secure Enclave posture checks, Windows Protected Process Light (PPL), and Apple’s Endpoint Security framework.
• Experience debugging interoperability with third-party endpoint security, EDR, and firewall products that hook into the network stack.
• Exposure to or interest in evaluating memory-safe languages such as Rust for low-level platform networking components.
• Swift experience.

Responsibilities

• Design and implement GlobalProtect low-level networking components for virtual network adapters, packet interception, routing, split tunneling, and DNS handling on Windows and macOS.
• Modernize Windows networking components and evolve macOS System Extension and NetworkExtension providers to align with current operating-system models.
• Own Windows HLK test passes, WHQL or attestation signing through Microsoft Partner Center, and Apple Developer ID signing, notarization, and system extension provisioning; improve the automation and reliability of these pipelines.
• Triage and resolve critical failures, including blue screens, kernel panics, deadlocks, pool corruption, memory leaks, and hard-to-reproduce hangs, using system debuggers, crash dumps, and performance and logging tools.
• Improve robustness during sleep and wake, Modern Standby, network changes, and interface transitions.
• Implement secure IPC among drivers, system services, extensions, and user-session processes; enforce least-privilege separation and memory-safe practices in C and modern C++.
• Partner with engineering, QA, and security teams across the product lifecycle; mentor systems engineers, review designs, and establish standards for OS-level development and testing.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior