RESTful API Design and HTTP Fundamentals Questions

Understanding REST architectural principles including resource-based URLs, proper HTTP methods (GET for safe retrieval, POST for creation, PUT for updates, DELETE for deletion), appropriate status codes (200 OK, 201 Created, 400 Bad Request, 404 Not Found, 500 Internal Server Error), and stateless communication patterns. Ability to design simple API endpoints following REST conventions.

MediumTechnical

74 practiced

Compare offset-based pagination and cursor-based pagination for a high-traffic REST API used for listing items. Discuss performance, correctness when data is changing during pagination, cacheability, and operational considerations from an SRE viewpoint.

EasyTechnical

112 practiced

Given a service managing blog posts and comments, propose RESTful, resource-based URL patterns for CRUD operations on posts and nested comments, including how to fetch all comments for a post and how to address operations on comments directly. Explain design choices that make these URLs RESTful and intuitive for clients.

HardTechnical

82 practiced

A client reports that an error log stored in your observability backend contains PII from a failed REST call. As an SRE, propose a remediation plan to stop further leakage immediately, a retroactive plan to handle already-stored logs, and long-term instrumentation and policy changes to prevent recurrence, while balancing auditability requirements.

EasyTechnical

69 practiced

Define the key REST constraints (statelessness, uniform interface, client-server separation, layered system, cacheable, code on demand optional) and explain why statelessness specifically matters for horizontal scaling, failover, and SRE tasks such as load balancing or rolling updates. Provide concrete examples of stateful pitfalls and stateless alternatives.

MediumTechnical

73 practiced

As the SRE for a public REST API, propose caching strategies across CDN, API gateway, and service layer for endpoints returning public and user-specific data. Explain cache-key design, Cache-Control headers, invalidation strategies, and how to measure cache effectiveness (metrics to collect).

Unlock Full Question Bank

Get access to hundreds of RESTful API Design and HTTP Fundamentals interview questions and detailed answers.

Join thousands of developers preparing for their dream job.