Edge key-value store
Design an edge key-value store (like a global config/feature-flag store) that serves reads from 200 POPs with single-digit-ms latency worldwide, while writes from a central control plane must converge everywhere within a bounded time. Reads vastly outnumber writes, occasional read staleness is acceptable, but a flag flip must be globally visible within ~5s and must never 'flap' back to the old value. Design replication, the read/write paths, and the consistency model.
What a strong answer looks like
Clarify scale and constraints first. Propose a clean component breakdown, then go deep on the hard parts (data model, bottlenecks, consistency, failure modes) and name the trade-offs you are making.
Clarify5:30 left
Estimate5:30 planned
Design16:30 planned
Deep dive13:30 planned
Failure9:00 planned
Which questions mattered is sealed until you submit. Telling you now would just be handing over the edge cases.
Run or narrate your approach, then ask the coach.