coming soon

invest in AI capability now. it compounds.

distributed systems in a day

AI writes code. you architect systems. learn the mental models that make you dangerous with an LLM -- from tcp to raft to crdts, first principles, no hand-waving.

24 lessons|6 modules|6 module quizzes|~4 hours

why this course

AI can write code. what it can’t do is understand how your whole system fits together -- how services connect, where failures cascade, why that retry policy matters. that’s systems thinking, and it’s the skill that compounds fastest right now.

the engineers who thrive with AI aren’t the ones writing more code. they’re the ones who know what to ask for. you prompt better when you understand consensus. you catch architecture mistakes before they ship. you review AI-generated code with the judgment that only comes from knowing the fundamentals.

code is more fungible than ever. what’s not fungible is the ability to see the big picture -- to design systems that actually work under load, survive failures, and evolve without rewriting everything. that’s what separates a developer from an engineer.

invest in the capability that makes every tool -- AI or otherwise -- dramatically more powerful. this is that material.

curriculum

01
module one

communication

45 min6 lessons
01why distributed? the single machine ceiling10m
02tcp: reliable delivery over unreliable networks5m
03tls: how https actually works5m
04service discovery: how services find each other5m
05api design for distributed systems12m
06anatomy of a distributed system8m
checkpoint
module quiz · communication
5 questions · ~5m · test your recall before moving on
02
module two

coordination

75 min5 lessons
07system models and failure modes8m
08clocks are broken: physical, logical, and vector18m
09leader election and raft15m
10replication: leader-follower to chain replication18m
11consensus and consistency models16m
checkpoint
module quiz · coordination
5 questions · ~5m · test your recall before moving on
03
module three

coordination avoidance

45 min4 lessons
12broadcast protocols: eager, gossip, crdt-ready10m
13crdts: data structures that never conflict15m
14dynamo-style datastores and quorum math10m
15transactions across machines10m
checkpoint
module quiz · coordination avoidance
5 questions · ~5m · test your recall before moving on
04
module four

scalability

55 min5 lessons
16caching: the fastest request is one you don't make10m
17partitioning and consistent hashing15m
18load balancing: dns, l4, and l710m
19data storage: choosing the right database10m
20messaging and event-driven systems10m
checkpoint
module quiz · scalability
5 questions · ~5m · test your recall before moving on
05
module five

resiliency

35 min3 lessons
21how things break: a taxonomy of failure10m
22timeouts, retries, and circuit breakers15m
23rate limiting, load shedding, and backpressure10m
checkpoint
module quiz · resiliency
5 questions · ~5m · test your recall before moving on
06
module six

operations

20 min2 lessons
24observability: metrics, logs, and traces12m
--what to learn next5m
checkpoint
module quiz · operations
5 questions · ~5m · test your recall before moving on

questions?

the usual stuff -- format, access, refunds. if you don’t see yours, mail me directly.

mail@karnstack.com
course

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~4 hours of distributed systems, no hand-waving. drop your email and i’ll let you know the moment it ships.

© 2026 karnstack · by karn

© 2026 karnstack · by karn