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Alibaba Group Software Engineer Interview Questions

The questions to prepare for a Alibaba Group Software Engineer interview. Questions from real interview reports rank first. Updated weekly.

50questions
~7htotal time
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1
CodingStart here. 12 questions · ~101 min
Design an LRU CacheEasy
Practice

Implement an LRU cache in O(1) average time using a hash table and doubly linked list.

Hash TablesQueueLinked ListsAlibaba Group
Resource Allocation DPHard

Evaluates ability to model and solve optimization problems with dynamic programming.

Dynamic ProgrammingResource AllocationAlibaba Group
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2
Execution5 questions · ~42 min
Resolve a Production GPU OutageEasy

Describe how you handled a live production incident, restored service quickly, and coordinated stakeholders while driving root cause and prevention.

Success CriteriaRisk AssessmentAlibaba Group
Code Review for Quality and SecurityMedium

Evaluates review rigor and ability to enforce secure, maintainable, and consistent engineering practices.

code reviewscode qualityAlibaba Group
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3
System Design12 questions · ~101 min
Non-Blocking I/O vs BlockingMedium

Tests understanding of event-driven design and performance tradeoffs in high-throughput systems.

Alibaba Group
Raft or Paxos ConsistencyHard

Assesses deep understanding of distributed consensus and consistency guarantees.

Alibaba Group
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4
SQL & Data Manipulation7 questions + 3 drills · ~89 min
MySQL InnoDB B+ TreesMedium

Evaluates database indexing knowledge and query performance reasoning.

indexingmysqlAlibaba Group
7-Day Rolling Active UsersMedium
Practice
Practice drill

Compute daily active users and a 7-day rolling average using a CTE, distinct counts, and window functions.

Window FunctionsDate FunctionsRunning TotalsMetaSpotifyMeta IT
SQL Queries for RankingMedium
Practice
Practice drill

Rank active HSBC employees by division and return every employee tied for the highest or second-highest salary.

javasqlHsbc
Second Highest in MySQLMedium
Practice
Practice drill

Use DENSE_RANK and a CTE to find every Capgemini Engineering employee earning the second highest distinct salary.

mysqlsql queriesCapgemini EngineeringIon Group
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5
Security & Infrastructure11 questions · ~93 min
Linked List in Linux KernelMedium

Evaluates systems-level understanding of low-level data structures in Linux.

Alibaba Group
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6
Behavioral & Leadership3 questions · ~25 min
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The finish line: interview-readyComplete all 50 questions plus 3 hands-on drills to finish this plan.