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Design a least-recently-used cache

Ambience HealthcareSoftware Engineer · Technical Screen
MediumSoftware EngineerTechnical ScreenCoding & Algorithms

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Design a least-recently-used cache evaluates algorithm design, data structures, correctness, complexity, edge cases, and implementation details in a realistic interview setting. A strong answer states assumptions, handles edge cases, explains trade-offs, and shows how to validate the result clearly.

Design and implement a least-recently-used (LRU) cache with a fixed capacity. Support get(key) -> value and put(key, value) in average O(

  1. time. When the cache is full, evict the least recently used entry. Explain your choice of data structures, detail how you update recency on reads and writes, and describe how you handle updates to existing keys, missing keys, and capacity edge cases (e.g., capacity = 0). Analyze time and space complexity.