Understanding when to break an application into smaller services and when to keep it unified to reduce complexity. 4. Security and Authentication
A query language for APIs. It allows clients to request exactly the data they need. This eliminates redundant data transfer but shifts query complexity to the backend server.
This includes the standard Request-Response model (HTTP, DNS, SSH), Publish-Subscribe (Kafka, RabbitMQ) for decoupling services, and more niche patterns like Push/Long Polling and Server-Sent Events . fundamentals of backend engineering free download upd
While the Udemy Course is a paid product, you can access the following official and community-curated free materials: Fundamentals of Backend Engineering - Udemy
The backend starts with how clients and servers communicate. Understanding protocols ensures your application can transfer data efficiently and securely. Understanding when to break an application into smaller
Structured Query Language (SQL) databases like PostgreSQL and MySQL store data in predefined tables with relationships. They are built on ACID compliance (Atomicity, Consistency, Isolation, Durability), making them the industry standard for financial systems and applications requiring strict data integrity. Non-Relational Databases (NoSQL)
: Adding more servers (horizontal) versus upgrading the power of an existing server (vertical). It allows clients to request exactly the data they need
The complex process of ensuring cached data remains accurate when the source data changes (e.g., Write-Through, Cache-Aside, or Time-To-Live expiration). 4. Designing and Building Robust APIs
Always encrypt sensitive data at rest (in the database) and in transit (using HTTPS/TLS).
: Decoupled services communicating via APIs or message brokers (Kafka, RabbitMQ). Highly scalable but complex to manage.
Indexes speed up data retrieval operations on a database table. Without indexes, the database engine must scan every row to find matching records, which slows down performance as data grows. Optimize Asynchronous Processing