System requirements
Functional:
List functional requirements for the system (Ask the chat bot for hints if stuck.)...
- Store Text: The service should allow users to store plain text, formatted text (like paragraphs or quotes), and code snippets.
- Syntax Highlighting: Users should have the ability to format their pastes with syntax highlighting for various programming languages when submitting code blocks.
- Code Block Formatting: When a user pastes programming code, the service should automatically recognize and format it as a code block for better readability.
- Generate Random URL: Upon saving a paste, the system should generate a unique, random URL that users can share to access the paste.
- View Paste via URL: Anyone with the generated URL should be able to view the content of the paste, subject to the visibility settings (public or private).
- Set Expiration Date: Users can set an expiration date or duration for the paste. After this period, the paste should be marked for automatic deletion.
- Automatic Deletion: Once the expiration date is reached, the paste should be automatically deleted from the database, and the URL should become invalid.
Non-Functional:
List non-functional requirements for the system...
- Service Level Agreement (SLA): The system should provide users with a selection of paste expiration times, including options for 5, 10, 30, 60, and 90 days.
- System Scalability: The service should be designed to handle a burst capacity of at least 10,000 concurrent users. The system should have mechanisms in place to monitor usage and trigger alerts when nearing capacity limits.
- Alerting Mechanism: An alerting system should notify the development team when the user count approaches the 10,000 threshold, prompting them to consider increasing horizontal scaling capacity (e.g., to 20,000 or 30,000 users).
- User Feedback during Overload: When the system is at capacity or under heavy load, it should provide users with a clear message, such as "Please try again later, the service is currently overloaded."
Capacity estimation
Estimate the scale of the system you are going to design...
API design
Define what APIs are expected from the system...
Database design
Defining the system data model early on will clarify how data will flow among different components of the system. Also you could draw an ER diagram using the diagramming tool to enhance your design...
High-level design
You should identify enough components that are needed to solve the actual problem from end to end. Also remember to draw a block diagram using the diagramming tool to augment your design. If you are unfamiliar with the tool, you can simply describe your design to the chat bot and ask it to generate a starter diagram for you to modify...
Request flows
Explain how the request flows from end to end in your high level design. Also you could draw a sequence diagram using the diagramming tool to enhance your explanation...
Detailed component design
Dig deeper into 2-3 components and explain in detail how they work. For example, how well does each component scale? Any relevant algorithm or data structure you like to use for a component? Also you could draw a diagram using the diagramming tool to enhance your design...
Trade offs/Tech choices
Explain any trade offs you have made and why you made certain tech choices...
Failure scenarios/bottlenecks
Try to discuss as many failure scenarios/bottlenecks as possible.
Future improvements
What are some future improvements you would make? How would you mitigate the failure scenario(s) you described above?