Core Building Blocks
Master the individual components that every large system is built from. Each of these primitives appears in almost every system design interview and real-world architecture.
Load Balancing Strategies: L4 vs L7, Algorithms, and Health Checks
Learn how load balancers distribute traffic, the differences between Layer 4 and Layer 7, common algorithms (round robin, least connections, IP hash), and health check mechanisms.
Caching Patterns: Cache-Aside, Read-Through, Write-Through, and More
Master essential caching patterns including cache-aside, read-through, write-through, write-behind, and refresh-ahead. Learn when to use each pattern and common pitfalls.
Message Queues: Async Communication, Patterns, and Reliability
Learn how message queues enable asynchronous communication, decouple services, and provide reliability. Explore patterns like pub/sub, work queues, and routing keys.
API Gateways: Traffic Management, Security, and Observability
Learn how API gateways act as a single entry point for clients, handling traffic management, security, rate limiting, and observability for microservices.
Data Replication: Strategies, Consistency Models, and Conflict Resolution
Learn how to replicate data across multiple nodes for availability and fault tolerance, covering synchronous vs asynchronous replication, consistency models, and conflict resolution strategies.