Design a Stream Processor
Design a Stream Processor — A Staff playbook focused on exactly-once semantics, windowing strategies, lambda vs kappa architecture, and stream processing accuracy vs latency — not just Kafka Streams setup.
This playbook is part of the full calibration library.
Staff interviews are decided on nuance — tradeoff framing, ownership boundaries, and failure anticipation. This playbook covers the depth that separates Senior from Staff+.
What's inside this playbook
Core sections
- •1. The Staff Lens
- •2. Problem Framing & Intent
- •3. Fault Lines
- •4. Failure Modes & Degradation
- •5. Evaluation Rubric
- •6. Interview Flow & Pivots
- •7. Drills
- •8. Deep Dive Scenarios
- •9. Level Expectations Summary
- •10. Staff Insiders: Controversial Opinions
Appendices
- •Appendix A: Streaming Architecture Decision Tree
- •Appendix B: Watermark Configuration Reference
- •Appendix C: Windowing Strategies
- •Appendix D: Exactly-Once Semantics Implementation
- •Appendix E: Backpressure Patterns
- •Appendix F: Stream Processing vs Batch Comparison
Practice & Reference
- •How to Use This Playbook
- •Executive Summary
- •System Architecture Overview
- •Interview Walkthrough: How to Present This in 45 Minutes