Design a cloud document storage and sharing service (e.g., like Google Drive). Cover requirements (upload/download, folder hierarchy, metadata/search, sharing/ACLs, versioning, trash/restore), APIs, data model, storage architecture (object store, metadata store, indexing), consistency model, partitioning and replication, upload chunking and resumability, virus scanning and thumbnails, encryption (at rest/in transit), permission checks, rate limiting, monitoring, scalability, availability, and cost considerations. Provide rough capacity estimates and a high-level diagram.

This question evaluates a candidate's competence in designing large-scale cloud document storage and sharing systems, testing knowledge of distributed storage and metadata modeling, API design, consistency and replication strategies, security, and operational concerns.

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This is a hard difficulty System Design question, commonly asked during Onsite rounds at Amazon.

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This question is commonly asked for Software Engineer candidates at Amazon during technical interviews.

Design a cloud storage service | Amazon Interview Question

Context

Design the backend for a large-scale cloud document storage and sharing service (similar to Google Drive). Assume web and mobile clients, global user base, multi-AZ within a region to start, with a path to multi-region active-active.

Requirements

Cover the following end-to-end aspects:

Functional requirements

Upload and download files
Folder hierarchy (create/move/rename)
Metadata and search (name, content, tags)
Sharing and ACLs (users, groups, link-based)
Versioning (restore, diff-friendly)
Trash and restore (soft delete, purge after retention)

APIs

REST or gRPC endpoints for core operations
Chunked/resumable upload API
Permission management APIs
Search API

Data model

Items (files/folders), versions, ACLs, shares, activities
Indices to support listing, search, and permission checks

Storage architecture

Object store for blobs
Metadata store for items/ACLs/versions
Indexing/search system for content/name queries

Consistency model

Read-after-write guarantees, eventual for search
Transactional semantics for rename/move/share within a user’s tree

Partitioning and replication

Sharding strategy for metadata and search
Multi-AZ replication; path to multi-region

Upload chunking and resumability

Initiation, part upload, completion, resume after failures

Virus scanning and thumbnails

Asynchronous pipeline post-upload

Security

Encryption in transit and at rest (key management, envelope encryption)
Permission checks (inherited ACLs, link tokens)

Rate limiting and abuse controls
Monitoring and observability
Scalability, availability, and cost considerations
Rough capacity estimates and a high-level diagram

Provide concrete assumptions where needed, and justify key trade-offs.

Context

Requirements

Cover the following end-to-end aspects:

Functional requirements

Upload and download files
Folder hierarchy (create/move/rename)
Metadata and search (name, content, tags)
Sharing and ACLs (users, groups, link-based)
Versioning (restore, diff-friendly)
Trash and restore (soft delete, purge after retention)

APIs

REST or gRPC endpoints for core operations
Chunked/resumable upload API
Permission management APIs
Search API

Data model

Items (files/folders), versions, ACLs, shares, activities
Indices to support listing, search, and permission checks

Storage architecture

Object store for blobs
Metadata store for items/ACLs/versions
Indexing/search system for content/name queries

Consistency model

Read-after-write guarantees, eventual for search
Transactional semantics for rename/move/share within a user’s tree

Partitioning and replication

Sharding strategy for metadata and search
Multi-AZ replication; path to multi-region

Upload chunking and resumability

Initiation, part upload, completion, resume after failures

Virus scanning and thumbnails

Asynchronous pipeline post-upload

Security

Encryption in transit and at rest (key management, envelope encryption)
Permission checks (inherited ACLs, link tokens)

Rate limiting and abuse controls
Monitoring and observability
Scalability, availability, and cost considerations
Rough capacity estimates and a high-level diagram

Provide concrete assumptions where needed, and justify key trade-offs.

Design a cloud storage service

Quick Overview

Context

Requirements

Solution

Submit Your Answer to Earn 20XP

Design a cloud storage service

Quick Overview

Context

Requirements

Solution

Submit Your Answer to Earn 20XP

Design a cloud storage service

Quick Overview