Dataford
Interview QuestionsInterview GuidesExperiencesMock InterviewsPricing
Get started
Dataford
Popular roles
Software EngineerData AnalystData ScientistData EngineerBusiness AnalystAI EngineerMachine Learning EngineerProduct Manager
Browse
Browse All RolesEvery role hub, from analyst to MLBrowse All CompaniesCompany-specific interview loopsAll Interview GuidesThe full guide library
Top questions by role
Software EngineerData AnalystData ScientistData EngineerBusiness AnalystAI EngineerMachine Learning EngineerProduct Manager
Top questions by skill
SQLPythonStatisticsMachine LearningA/B TestingSystem DesignGenerative AIProduct SenseMetricsBehavioral
Browse all questions →Try a mock interview
Experiences
Practice
Mock InterviewsTimed interview simulations with feedbackSuccess PathYour 6-week structured planModulesCurated lessons by topicWebinarsTalks from ex-Big Tech data leadsPlaygroundA free-form scratch editor
Learn
BlogInterview strategy and career adviceTech Job Market ReportHiring trends across data and AI rolesFor UniversitiesDataford for career centersAbout DatafordWho we are and how we build
Pricing
Build my plan

Golang Channels and Deadlocks

HardCoding00:00
Practice interviewer
In session
5 left
00:00

Your question is Golang Channels and Deadlocks. Take a moment with it on the right.

Talk me through your thinking if you like. When you're confident, submit your answer and I'll grade it like a real screen (7/10 or better passes).

You need to log in / sign up to chat or submit.

Problem

GitLab's CI runner coordinator dispatches jobs to a pool of worker goroutines over one channel and collects their results over another. Under load, the whole coordinator occasionally freezes and never returns, and it always seems to happen when there are more jobs than workers.

package runner

func DispatchJobs(jobs []Job, workerCount int) []Result {
    jobChan := make(chan Job)
    resultChan := make(chan Result)

    for w := 0; w < workerCount; w++ {
        go worker(jobChan, resultChan)
    }

    for _, job := range jobs {
        jobChan <- job
    }
    close(jobChan)

    var results []Result
    for i := 0; i < len(jobs); i++ {
        results = append(results, <-resultChan)
    }

    return results
}

func worker(jobChan <-chan Job, resultChan chan<- Result) {
    for job := range jobChan {
        result := runJob(job)
        resultChan <- result
    }
}

Explain how the channels in this dispatcher interact, and walk through the specific sequence of sends and receives that leads to a deadlock once there are more jobs than workers. Then describe how you would redesign it to avoid that.