Blog
Series

System Design

Deep dives into system design concepts, from databases and caching to distributed systems and scalability patterns.

The pulkitxm/systems repository on GitHub has supplementary sketches, runnable implementations, and small code-heavy examples keyed to themes in this series. Pair it with these posts when you want reference code alongside the write-ups.
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Databases

Database Transaction Internals

Deep dive into how database transactions work under the hood. Understand ACID properties, isolation levels, locking mechanisms, and implementation across PostgreSQL, MySQL, and MongoDB

·33 min·[
System DesignDatabaseTransactions+4
]

Understanding Database Scaling and Sharding Patterns

Master database scaling from vertical to horizontal scaling, read replicas, sharding strategies, and partitioning techniques. Learn when to use synchronous vs asynchronous replication and how to choose the right shard key.

·43 min·[
System DesignDatabaseSharding+2
]

Non-Relational Databases

Explore the world of NoSQL databases: Document DBs, Key-Value Stores, and Graph Databases. Learn when to use each type, their trade-offs, and why they scale horizontally out of the box.

·21 min·[
DatabaseNoSQLMongoDB+2
]

Performance & Caching

Caching

Understand caching fundamentals: what it is, why it matters, and how to use it. Learn about cache architecture, key-value access patterns, and real-world examples with Redis and Memcached.

·47 min·[
System DesignCachingRedis+2
]

Bloom Filters

Learn how Bloom filters work: a probabilistic data structure that tells you with 100% certainty when something doesn't exist. Understand hash functions, bit arrays, false positives, and real-world use cases like recommendation engines and web crawlers.

·28 min·[
System DesignData StructuresBloom Filters+2
]

Data Processing

Async Processing with Message Queues, Streams, and Pub/Sub

Learn when and why to use asynchronous processing. Understand message queues, streams, and real-time Pub/Sub for building scalable, decoupled systems.

·47 min·[
System DesignMessage QueuesKafka+2
]

Introduction to Big Data Tools

Learn why big data processing exists, how distributed computing works, and why tools like Apache Spark handle the heavy lifting so you can focus on business logic.

·15 min·[
System DesignBig DataDistributed Systems+2
]

Distributed Systems

Circuit Breakers

Learn how circuit breakers prevent cascading failures in distributed systems. Understand why services fail together, how to implement circuit breakers, and practical patterns for building resilient microservices.

·35 min·[
System DesignResilienceMicroservices+2
]

High Availability

Learn how to build resilient systems through data redundancy, automatic failover, and leader election. Understand backup strategies, database replication, disaster recovery patterns, and how leader election enables zero-downtime auto-recovery.

·41 min·[
System DesignHigh AvailabilityDistributed Systems+1
]

Consistent Hashing

Learn how consistent hashing solves the data ownership problem in distributed systems. Understand hash-based routing, the ring abstraction, and how to scale up and down with minimal data movement.

·27 min·[
System DesignDistributed SystemsConsistent Hashing+1
]

Infrastructure & Networking

Load Balancers

Learn how load balancers enable horizontal scalability by distributing traffic across multiple servers. Understand load balancing algorithms, request flow, and key advantages for building resilient systems.

·28 min·[
System DesignLoad BalancingScalability+2
]

Communication Protocols

Understand how clients and servers communicate over the network. TCP fundamentals, HTTP, WebSockets, Server-Sent Events, and API paradigms like REST, GraphQL, gRPC, and tRPC.

·32 min·[
System DesignNetworkingHTTP+4
]

Rate Limiting

Learn how rate limiters protect your systems from being overwhelmed. Understand where to place them, why Redis is the go-to database, five popular algorithms, and how to scale with sharding. Includes the practical insight of building rate limiters as libraries instead of services.

·33 min·[
System DesignRate LimitingRedis+2
]

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