Software Engineer Interview Questions and Answers

1. What is Object-Oriented Programming (OOP)?

Answer: OOP is a programming paradigm based on the concept of objects that contain both data and methods. Key
principles include Encapsulation, Abstraction, Inheritance, and Polymorphism.

2. What are the four pillars of OOP?

Answer:

1. Encapsulation - Hiding data and exposing only necessary parts.

2. Abstraction - Hiding implementation details.

3. Inheritance - Deriving new classes from existing ones.

4. Polymorphism - Methods having different behaviors based on object type.

3. What is the difference between an abstract class and an interface in Java?

Answer: An abstract class can have both abstract and concrete methods, whereas an interface contains only abstract
methods (until Java 8, which introduced default methods).

4. What is a REST API?

Answer: REST API (Representational State Transfer) is an architectural style for designing networked applications
using HTTP methods such as GET, POST, PUT, and DELETE.

5. What is the difference between SQL and NoSQL databases?

Answer: SQL databases are relational and use structured schema (tables), while NoSQL databases are non-relational,
offering flexibility with document, key-value, graph, or column-family data models.

6. What is the difference between HTTP and HTTPS?

Answer: HTTPS is a secure version of HTTP, using SSL/TLS encryption to protect data during transmission.

7. What is Dependency Injection in Spring?

Answer: Dependency Injection (DI) is a design pattern where dependencies are injected into a class rather than the
class creating them. Spring Framework supports DI using annotations like @Autowired.

8. Explain the Java Virtual Machine (JVM).

Answer: JVM is an abstract machine that enables Java bytecode execution, providing platform independence and
features like garbage collection and Just-In-Time (JIT) compilation.

9. What is the difference between final, finally, and finalize in Java?

Answer:

• final - Used to declare constants, prevent method overriding, and class inheritance.

• finally - A block in exception handling that always executes.

• finalize - A method in Object class called by the garbage collector before an object is destroyed.

10. What is the difference between Stack and Heap memory?

Answer: Stack memory stores method execution details and local variables, while Heap memory is used for objects
and class instances.

11. What are microservices?

12. What is the difference between GET and POST methods in HTTP?

Answer: GET retrieves data from a server, while POST sends data to the server for processing.

13. What is a Singleton design pattern?

Answer: Singleton ensures that a class has only one instance and provides a global access point to that instance.

14. What is meant by ‘Immutability’ in Java?

Answer: An immutable object’s state cannot be changed after its creation. Example: String class in Java.

15. What is garbage collection in Java?

Answer: Garbage Collection (GC) automatically deallocates memory by removing unreachable objects.

16. Explain the difference between process and thread.

Answer: A process is an independent execution unit, while a thread is a lightweight subprocess that shares the
process resources.

17. What is a deadlock in Java?

Answer: A deadlock occurs when two or more threads wait indefinitely for each other to release resources.

18. What is an API Gateway in Microservices?

Answer: It acts as a single entry point for client requests, routing them to appropriate microservices, handling
authentication, logging, and request aggregation.

19. What is Spring Boot?

Answer: Spring Boot is a framework for building production-ready Spring applications with minimal configuration.

20. Explain Docker and its benefits.

Answer: Docker is a platform that enables containerization, making applications portable and consistent across
environments.

21. What is Kubernetes?

Answer: Kubernetes is an open-source container orchestration tool that automates deployment, scaling, and
management of containerized applications.

22. What is CI/CD?

Answer: CI/CD (Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment) automates software testing and deployment to
improve development efficiency.

23. What is Agile methodology?

Answer: Agile is an iterative approach to software development that focuses on customer feedback, flexibility, and
incremental deliveries.

24. What is the difference between unit testing and integration testing?

Answer: Unit testing checks individual components, while integration testing ensures combined components work
together correctly.

25. What is Hibernate in Java?

26. What is the Factory Design Pattern?

Answer: The Factory Pattern is a creational design pattern that provides an interface for creating objects without
specifying their concrete classes.

27. What is a Proxy Pattern?

Answer: Proxy Pattern acts as an intermediary for another object to control access, manage security, or add extra
functionality.

28. What is the Observer Pattern?

Answer: Observer Pattern is a behavioral design pattern where multiple objects listen for changes in another object
and update accordingly.

29. What is the difference between Monolithic and Microservices architecture?

Answer: A monolithic architecture has all components combined into a single unit, while microservices break the
application into independent services.

30. What are Lambda Expressions in Java?

Answer: Lambda expressions provide a concise way to implement functional interfaces using the -> syntax.

31. What is the purpose of the volatile keyword in Java?

Answer: The volatile keyword ensures visibility of changes to variables across threads, preventing caching issues.

32. What is the SOLID principle in software design?

Answer: SOLID principles guide software design to make it more maintainable and scalable:

1. Single Responsibility Principle (SRP)

2. Open-Closed Principle (OCP)

3. Liskov Substitution Principle (LSP)

4. Interface Segregation Principle (ISP)

5. Dependency Inversion Principle (DIP)

33. What is Load Balancing?

Answer: Load balancing distributes incoming network traffic across multiple servers to improve efficiency and
prevent overload.

34. What is a Circuit Breaker pattern in Microservices?

Answer: The Circuit Breaker pattern prevents repeated failures by halting requests to a failing service for a defined
period.

35. What is JWT (JSON Web Token)?

Answer: JWT is a secure token format used for authentication and information exchange between clients and
servers.