GeneralBackend
HLD
Also written as High-Level Design
The 'zoomed-out' design of a system — which major components exist (services, databases, caches), how they connect, and how data flows between them — without getting into implementation detail.
Think of it like
Like an architect's overview drawing of a building showing where the kitchen, bedrooms, and garage go, before any wiring diagram gets drawn.
Junior or senior?
Junior sounds like
Dives into code before establishing the major components.
Senior sounds like
Can stay at the high-level view — components and data flow — without diving into code prematurely.
Ask them
“Walk me through the high-level design of a system you built — just the major components and how they talked to each other.”