System Design Basics
Practice foundational system design interview questions covering scalability, databases, caching, and basic architecture. Answer common questions and receive feedback on clarity and trade-offs. Ideal for software engineers preparing for system design rounds. First 2 questions are free with full feedback.
- Level Intermediate
- Questions 12
Try any track free — first 2 questions include full AI feedback. Subscribe to finish the track and unlock everything. Type or speak your answer — the first 2 questions include scoring and detailed AI feedback.
Sample system design basics interview questions
Preview 6 questions from this track in quiz order. In the full quiz you answer one at a time — type or speak — then get a score and feedback.
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How would you design a URL shortener?
What a strong answer includes
API, storage, hash generation, and basic scaling considerations.
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What is the difference between SQL and NoSQL databases? When would you use each?
What a strong answer includes
Clear trade-offs and practical use cases.
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Explain caching and when you would use it.
What a strong answer includes
What is cached, invalidation strategy, and benefit.
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How would you design a basic chat system?
What a strong answer includes
Messaging flow, storage, and real-time delivery approach.
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What is a load balancer and why is it used?
What a strong answer includes
Distributes traffic, improves availability and scale.
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How do you handle a sudden traffic spike?
What a strong answer includes
Auto-scaling, caching, rate limiting, or queueing.