20+ System Engineer Specialist Interview Questions and Answers

Given an array of prime numbers representing switches and an integer K, find the Kth glowing bulb when all switches are turned on.

• Iterate through each prime number in the array and calculate the number of bulbs that will glow for each prime number.

• Keep track of the total number of glowing bulbs as you iterate through the array.

• Once the total number of glowing bulbs exceeds or equals K, calculate the Kth glowing bulb based on the last prime number that was considered.

Given an array of 0s and 1s, find the maximum count of 1s by flipping a sub-array at most once.

• Iterate through the array and keep track of the maximum count of 1s seen so far.

• If the current element is 0, consider flipping the sub-array from the previous 1 to the current 0.

• Update the maximum count of 1s if flipping the sub-array results in a higher count.

• Return the maximum count of 1s obtained after considering all possible sub-arrays.

Find minimum time to rot all fresh oranges adjacent to rotten oranges in a grid.

• Use Breadth First Search (BFS) to simulate the rotting process

• Keep track of the time taken to rot all fresh oranges

• Return -1 if not all fresh oranges can be rotten

Given an array of strings, determine the number of unique strings that cannot be transformed into another string by swapping characters at odd or even indices.

• Iterate through each string in the array and check if it can be transformed into another string by swapping characters at odd or even indices.

• Keep track of unique strings that cannot be transformed and return the count.

• Example: For array = ["abcd", "cbad", "bdac", "adcb"], the output is 2 as only "bdac" cannot be transf...read more

Determine the most cost-efficient car (Petrol or Diesel) for a 6-month period based on given details.

• Calculate total cost for 6 months for both Petrol and Diesel cars

• Compare the total costs to determine which option is more cost-efficient

• Output '0' for Petrol, '1' for Diesel, or '-1' if both are equally efficient

The task is to determine the total number of ways to make change for a specified value using given denominations of coins.

• Create a dynamic programming table to store the number of ways to make change for each value up to the target value.

• Iterate through each denomination and update the table accordingly based on the current denomination.

• The final value in the table will represent the total number of ways to make change for the specified value.

• Consider edge cases such as when ...read more

The problem involves generating all possible sentences by adding spaces to a given string using words from a dictionary.

• Use backtracking to generate all possible combinations of words from the dictionary to form sentences.

• Recursively try adding each word from the dictionary to the current sentence until the entire string is formed.

• Check if the current word is a prefix of the remaining string to optimize the backtracking process.

• Handle edge cases like empty input string or dic...read more

Transform a 2D array into a 'Good' matrix by setting rows and columns to 0 if a 0 is found.

• Iterate through the matrix to find 0s

• For each 0 found, set all elements in its row and column to 0

• Update the input matrix accordingly

Calculate total instances of equivalent prime groups in a day divided into equal parts.

• Divide the day into equal parts and find prime numbers in each part.

• Identify prime groups with prime numbers at the same position in different parts.

• Count the total instances of equivalent prime groups.

• Ensure DAY_HOURS is divisible by PARTS and handle constraints.

• Return the number of equivalent prime groups for each test case.

The task is to create and return a 2D vector containing diagonal elements of a given 2D matrix.

• Iterate through the matrix diagonally to extract elements

• Store the elements in a 2D vector in the required order

• Handle cases where the matrix is not square by adjusting the diagonal traversal

Implement a function to determine if a numeric string contains a substring whose value equals the product of two consecutive integers.

• Iterate through all possible substrings of the input string.

• Calculate the integer value of each substring and check if it equals the product of two consecutive integers.

• Return 'True' if such a substring is found, otherwise return 'False'.

The task is to rearrange an array such that no two adjacent elements are the same.

• Iterate through the array and check if any adjacent elements are the same

• If adjacent elements are the same, swap one of them with a different element

• Repeat the process until all adjacent elements are different

The task is to find the shortest path from a starting house to a destination house in an unweighted graph representing a city.

• Implement a function to find the shortest path from house 'S' to house 'T' in an unweighted graph.

• Use a graph traversal algorithm like Breadth First Search (BFS) to find the shortest path.

• Return a list of house numbers indicating the shortest path from 'S' to 'T'.

• Check if the output path is valid and return 'Correct' if valid, otherwise 'Incorrect'.

MergeSort algorithm is used to sort a singly linked list of integers in ascending order.

• Implement the MergeSort algorithm to recursively divide the linked list into two halves, sort them, and then merge them back together.

• Use a slow and fast pointer technique to find the middle of the linked list for splitting.

• Ensure to handle the base cases of empty list or single node list.

• Example: For input '10 3 5 -1', the output should be '3 5 10'.

The M-Coloring problem involves coloring the vertices of a graph using at most M colors such that no two adjacent vertices share the same color.

• Check if the graph can be colored using at most M colors without adjacent vertices sharing the same color.

• Use backtracking or graph coloring algorithms to solve the problem efficiently.

• Ensure that the number of colors used is less than or equal to M.

• Consider constraints such as the number of test cases, vertices, and colors.

• Provide a ...read more

Partition a string into palindromes

• Use backtracking to generate all possible palindrome partitions

• Check if each substring is a palindrome before adding to the partition

• Return all valid partitions as an array of strings

Program to check if a number is a palindrome or not.

• Convert the number to a string

• Reverse the string

• Compare the reversed string with the original string

• If they are the same, the number is a palindrome

Sum of even numbers in an array

• Loop through the array and check if each element is even

• If even, add it to a running sum

• Return the sum

NOSQL databases are non-relational databases that store and retrieve data in a flexible and scalable manner.

• NOSQL stands for 'Not Only SQL'

• They are designed to handle large volumes of unstructured or semi-structured data

• They offer high scalability and availability

• Examples include MongoDB, Cassandra, and Couchbase

ACID properties are a set of properties that ensure database transactions are processed reliably.

• ACID stands for Atomicity, Consistency, Isolation, and Durability.

• Atomicity ensures that a transaction is treated as a single, indivisible unit of work.

• Consistency ensures that a transaction brings the database from one valid state to another.

• Isolation ensures that concurrent transactions do not interfere with each other.

• Durability ensures that once a transaction is committed, it ...read more

Thrashing is a phenomenon in OS where excessive paging occurs, leading to a decrease in system performance.

• Occurs when the system is overcommitted with too many processes or tasks

• Causes excessive swapping of pages between RAM and disk

• Can be resolved by adding more RAM or reducing the number of processes

• Can be identified by monitoring page fault rates