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Shorten URL: Users can submit long URLs, and the system should generate a shorter alias (e.g., abc123) that redirects to the original URL.
Redirection: When someone visits the shortened URL, they are redirected to the original URL.
Analytics (Optional): Track how many times a URL has been visited.
Custom Aliases (Optional): Users can specify their custom alias instead of the system-generated one.
Expiration (Optional): URLs can expire after a certain time or number of uses.
High Availability: The service should be available 24/7.
Low Latency: Redirection should be quick (minimal delay).
Scalability: The service should handle millions of URL redirects per day.
Reliability: Shortened URLs must reliably redirect to the correct destination.
Security: Prevent malicious users from creating harmful shortened links (phishing, etc.).
Data Storage Efficiency: URLs should be stored efficiently, as millions or billions of shortened URLs might exist.
The service should handle millions of URL redirects per day.
URL Shortening API: Accepts a long URL and returns a shortened URL. This can be an HTTP POST request.
Redirection API: When the shortened URL is accessed, it performs a lookup and redirects to the long URL.
URL Store: Maps shortened URLs (aliases) to long URLs.
Hit Counter (Optional): Tracks the number of times a URL has been accessed.
User Data (Optional): If the service requires user logins, store user information and their created URLs.
User Input: The user submits a long URL via a web/mobile app or directly through an API.
URL Shortening API:
Receives the long URL.
Optionally checks if the URL is valid and not malicious.
Generates a unique short alias using a random string generator (e.g., abc123).
Database Store:
Stores the long URL and its associated alias (abc123 → http://www.longurl.com/example).
Optionally stores metadata such as creation date, expiry date, and hit count.
Redirection API:
When the user visits short.ly/abc123, the redirection service looks up the long URL in the database.
Redirects the user to the original URL.
Analytics Tracking (Optional):
If analytics are enabled, increment the hit counter.
Optionally log additional data like timestamp, IP, user agent, etc
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...
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...
a. Frontend (Optional for a UI)
React.js for web interface
Native iOS/Android for mobile apps
b. Backend
Languages: Python (Flask/Django), Node.js (Express), or Go for the core API.
Database:
SQL: PostgreSQL/MySQL for relational storage.
NoSQL: MongoDB/Redis for faster lookups and scalability.
Caching: Redis or Memcached for high-speed URL lookups.
Load Balancer: Nginx/HAProxy for traffic distribution.
c. Deployment
Cloud Providers: AWS, Google Cloud, or Azure for hosting.
CI/CD Pipeline: Jenkins or GitHub Actions for automated deployment
Database Replication: Ensure that the database has multiple replicas to avoid data loss.
Failover Systems: Implement failover mechanisms to redirect traffic to a secondary server in case of failures.
Data Backup: Regularly back up the URL database to prevent data loss.
What are some future improvements you would make? How would you mitigate the failure scenario(s) you described above?