Blob / Object Storage
Difficulty: Easy | Topic #6
What to Learn
S3-style object storage for unstructured data (images, videos, files), chunked uploads, pre-signed URLs, metadata vs binary separation, multipart upload for large files.
Resources
- Hello Interview: Handling Large Blobs ↗
- ByteByteGo: S3-like Object Storage System Design ↗
- System Design: Object Storage (BLOBs) Explained ↗
Covered by Problems
| Problem | Difficulty | Link |
|---|---|---|
| File Storage/Dropbox | Easy | → |
| Photo Sharing (Instagram) | Medium | → |
| Video Streaming (YouTube) | Medium | → |
| Real-time Doc Collaboration (Google Docs) | Hard | → |
Key Concepts to Master
- Flat namespace with prefix-based pseudo-folders
- Multipart upload for large files (chunking strategy)
- Pre-signed URLs for direct client-to-storage upload
- Metadata database alongside blob storage
- Erasure coding vs replication for durability