IntermediateScenario
10 min

Circuit Breaker Tripped

ResilienceReliabilityMicroservices
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Interview Question

A critical dependency is failing and your service’s circuit breaker has opened. How do you handle this situation?

Key Points to Cover
  • Confirm dependency health and error rates
  • Review circuit breaker metrics and thresholds
  • Provide fallback or degraded functionality
  • Tune thresholds or timeouts if misconfigured
  • Work with dependency team on resolution
Evaluation Rubric
Confirms dependency failure correctly30% weight
Implements fallback/degraded mode30% weight
Considers breaker threshold tuning20% weight
Collaborates with dependency owners20% weight
Hints
  • 💡Circuit breakers prevent cascading failures.
Potential Follow-up Questions
  • When should you bypass a breaker?
  • How do you set breaker thresholds?
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