Complete Roadmap to Learn System Design for Beginners

This article is an important resource if you’re new to system design and aiming for interviews at top tech companies. It breaks down system design concepts into easy-to-understand steps, starting from the basics and gradually advancing to more complex topics. By the end, you’ll be equipped with the knowledge and confidence to tackle any system design questions in interviews and excel in your new role.

Chapter 1: Getting Started with System Design

System design is the process of designing the architecture and components of a software system to meet specific business requirements. The process involves defining the system’s architecture, components, modules, and interfaces, and identifying the technologies and tools that will be used to implement the system.

1. What is System Design?
2. Why System Design is important?
3. Difference between System Design and System Analysis
4. Difference between System Design and System Architecture
5. Difference between System Design and System Development
6. What is System Design Life Cycle(SDLC)?
7. System Design Strategies

Chapter 2: Basics of System Design

System design is like creating a strong base for software. It involves understanding what the software needs to do and how it should perform. We decide how to handle more users or data and organize the software parts efficiently. We use smart ways of designing, like thinking about objects and their relationships. Understanding these basics helps us create reliable and efficient software.

1. Functional vs Non Functional Requirements
2. Horizontal and Vertical Scaling
3. Components of System Design
4. System Design Architectures
   1. Monolithic and Distributed Systems
   2. What are microservices?
   3. Monolithic vs Microservices
   4. Event-Driven Architecture
5. Object-Oriented Analysis and Design | OOAD
6. Difference between Structured and Object-Oriented Analysis
7. Latency and Throughput in System Design
8. Redundancy in System Design
9. What is Domain Name System(DNS)?

Chapter 3: What is High-Level Design?

High-level design in system design is crucial as it provides a roadmap for creating complex software systems. It outlines the overall structure, components, and interactions within the system. Without a clear high-level design, developers may struggle to understand how different parts of the system relate to each other, leading to confusion and inefficiency during implementation. Ultimately, high-level design ensures that the resulting software system is well-organized, robust, and able to meet its intended objectives effectively

1. What is High Level Design
2. Availability in System Design
3. Eventual Consistency
4. Reliability in System Design
5. CAP Theorem
6. Content Delivery Network
7. Load Balancer – System Design
8. Consistent Hashing
9. Caching | System Design
10. API Gateway
11. Message Queues
12. Distributed Messaging System
13. Communication Protocols In System Design
14. Web Servers and Proxies in System Design

Chapter 4: Databases in Designing Systems

Understanding databases is essential in system design because they are the foundation for managing and storing data efficiently. Having in-depth knowledge of database concepts allows designers to make informed decisions about how data will be stored, queried, and managed within the system. It ensures that the system can handle large volumes of data effectively, while also ensuring data integrity and security.

1. Which Database to Choose while designing a system – SQL or NoSQL
2. File and Database Storage Systems in System Design
3. Block, Object, and File Storage
4. Database Sharding
5. Data Partitioning
6. Indexing in System Design

Chapter 5: Scalability in System Design

Understanding scalability in system design is crucial as it ensures that the system can handle increasing loads and growing demands efficiently. It ensures that the system remains responsive and reliable as demand increases, providing a positive user experience and supporting the system’s long-term success. Therefore, understanding scalability is essential for designing systems that can grow and adapt to meet changing needs effectively

1. What is Scalability and How to achieve it – Learn System Design
2. Which Scalability approach is right for our Application? | System Design
3. Primary Bottlenecks that Hurt the Scalability of an Application | System Design

Chapter 6: Unified Modeling Language (UML) Diagrams 

Understanding UML (Unified Modeling Language) diagrams is crucial in system design as they provide a standardized way to visually represent various aspects of a software system. UML diagrams act as blueprints, helping designers communicate and document system requirements, architecture, and behavior effectively. Grasping UML concepts enables designers to create clear and concise diagrams that aid in the analysis, design, and implementation phases of the software development lifecycle.

Therefore, understanding UML diagrams is essential for creating well-designed and maintainable software systems.

1. Class Diagram
2. Object Diagram
3. Package Diagram
4. State Machine Diagram
5. Activity Diagram
6. Swimlane Diagram
7. Usecase Diagram
8. Sequence Diagram

Chapter 7: What is Low-Level Design?

Low-level design in system design is equally important as it delves into the detailed implementation of the system components outlined in the high-level design. While high-level design provides a broad overview, low-level design focuses on the specifics of how each component will be built and how they will interact at a granular level. It involves defining data structures, algorithms, interfaces, and modules required to realize the system’s functionality. It serves as a blueprint for translating high-level design concepts into executable code, ultimately contributing to the development of a robust and reliable software system.

1. What is Low Level Design or LLD
2. Software Design Patterns
3. Data Structures and Algorithms for System Design
4. Difference between Authentication and Authorization
5. What is Data Encryption?
6. Code Optimization Techniques
7. Unit Testing
8. Integration Testing
9. CI/CD: Continuous Integration and Continuous Delivery
10. Modularity and Interfaces In System Design

Chapter 8: Testing and Quality Assurance in System Design

Understanding testing and quality assurance in system design is essential for making sure the software works well. Testing involves checking that each part of the system does what it’s supposed to do, while quality assurance ensures the overall software meets the required standards. By doing this, designers can find and fix problems early, leading to better-quality software that works reliably for users

1. Types of Software Testing
2. Software Quality Assurance
3. Security Testing
4. Essential Security Measures in System Design

Chapter 9: System Design Interview Questions and Answers

This System Design Interview Guide will provide the most commonly asked system design interview questions and equip you with the knowledge and techniques needed to design, build, and scale your robust applications, for professionals and newbies

• Most Commonly Asked System Design Interview Problems/Questions
• Top Low-Level Design(LLD) Interview Questions 2024

Chapter 10: How to Crack System Design Interview Round

The system design interview is a crucial step in many technical job interviews, where candidates are tasked with designing scalable, efficient, and reliable systems to solve real-world problems. To excel in this round, candidates must demonstrate a deep understanding of architectural principles, problem-solving skills, and the ability to communicate effectively. This guide offers concise strategies and tips to help you prepare for and ace the system design interview.

• Crack System Design Interview Round
• 5 Common System Design Concepts for Interview Preparation

yuvraj10

Follow

Improve