Microsoft, as one of the world’s top-tier technology companies, selects software engineers in a rigorous and systematic manner. Whether you are a fresh graduate or an experienced developer, understanding Microsoft’s interview style, practicing the right problems, and mastering system design thinking are the keys to passing.

We at CSOAHELP have compiled and summarized some of Microsoft’s high-frequency interview questions to help you pass the interviews~ You can also use csoahelp’s interview assistance services and get into big tech companies without grinding problems.

Interview Structure

Microsoft’s technical interviews are typically divided into the following stages:

1. Phone/Video Interview: Mainly tests data structures and algorithm fundamentals
2. Onsite/Loop Interviews:
   • Coding Interview (2 rounds)
   • System Design or OOD (1 round)
   • Behavioral Interview (1 round)

Microsoft High‑Frequency Real Interview Questions

Question 1: Convert a Decimal‑represented Linked List to Any Target Base

Problem Description:

Given a decimal number represented by a linked list, each node storing one digit (highest digit first), convert it to a linked list representation in any given base.

Node ConvertBase(Node input, int base)

Example Input (linked list):

1 -> 0  // represents decimal number 10

Example Output (different bases):

• base = 2 → 1 -> 0 -> 1 -> 0 (binary)
• base = 8 → 1 -> 2 (octal)
• base = 16 → a (hexadecimal)

Solution Approach:

1. Traverse the linked list and convert it to an integer.
2. Repeatedly divide that integer by the target base, recording remainders.
3. Construct a new linked list representation, remembering to reverse the order of remainders.

Microsoft Interview Focus Areas:

• Linked list traversal and construction
• Details of base conversion implementation
• Clear analysis of time and space complexity

Question 2: Find the Largest IComparable Object in an Array

Problem Description:

Given an array of objects implementing the IComparable interface, find the maximum element.

T FindMax<T>(T[] arr) where T : IComparable<T>

Solution Approach:

• Initialize the maximum as the first element.
• Iterate through the array, comparing each element to the current maximum: text复制编辑if (arr[i].CompareTo(max) > 0) max = arr[i];

Microsoft Interview Focus Areas:

• Generic programming ability
• Understanding and use of interfaces
• Robust handling of null or empty arrays

Question 3: Flood Fill for Coloring a Grid

Problem Description:

Given a 2D array where each integer represents a pixel color. Starting from a given point (row, column), recolor all connected pixels of the same color with a new color.

Example Input:

const canvas = [
  [1, 2, 0, 1],
  [3, 2, 4, 3],
  [3, 1, 2, 0],
  [1, 0, 0, 4],
];
const row = 1;
const column = 1;
const newColor = 5;

Goal:

• From (1,1), recolor all connected 2 pixels to 5.

Solution Approach:

• Use DFS or BFS from the start point, finding all same-color pixels.
• Recolor each valid pixel and recurse/enqueue adjacent pixels.

Microsoft Interview Focus Areas:

• Graph traversal: DFS/BFS
• Boundary checks and recursion design
• Defensive handling of array index out‑of‑bounds

Question 4: Design an Intelligent Parking System

Problem Description:

Suppose you need to design a parking lot system for 100 cars, all parking spots are the same size. When a car enters, the system should allocate the nearest empty spot.

# Requirements (pseudocode):
# – All spots same size
# – Assign the “closest” empty spot on entry
# – Release that spot on exit

Solution Approach:

• Use a min‑heap (PriorityQueue) to store empty spot IDs (0–99)
• Car enters: heapq.heappop() to get the smallest ID
• Car exits: heapq.heappush() to return the ID

Microsoft Interview Focus Areas:

• Data structure choice (heap vs queue vs Set)
• Object‑oriented design (scalable to multiple floors or special requirements)
• State management and reclamation mechanism

Question 5: Zigzag Level‑order Traversal of a Binary Tree

Problem Description:

Given a binary tree, return its zigzag level order traversal:

• Level 1: left to right
• Level 2: right to left, alternating

Example Input:

     3
    / \
   9  20
      / \
     15 7

Example Output:

[
 [3],
 [20, 9],
 [15, 7]
]

Solution Approach:

• Use BFS level‑order traversal
• At each level, determine direction: even levels left→right, odd levels reversed
• You can use a queue plus a Boolean leftToRight flag to control order

Microsoft Interview Focus Areas:

• Handling tree data structures
• Controlling traversal order
• Using queues and level control

Question 6: Longest Repeated Substring

Problem Description:

Given a string, return its longest repeated substring (not necessarily contiguous, but must appear at least twice).

Example Input:

"banana"

Example Output:

"ana"

Solution Approach:

• Brute‑force: try all substrings and count occurrences (inefficient)
• Optimal solution:
  • Use suffix array + LCP (Longest Common Prefix)
  • Or binary search + hashing (e.g., Rabin‑Karp)

Microsoft Interview Focus Areas:

• Advanced string processing
• Combined binary search + hashing
• Understanding suffix arrays

Behavioral Interview: Microsoft Values Your Collaboration Ability

Microsoft places great emphasis on team culture and communication skills. Behavioral interviews often use the STAR method (Situation, Task, Action, Result). Common questions include:

• Describe a time you faced a tough bug and how you solved it.
• Tell me about a disagreement with a teammate and how you handled it.
• Talk about a time you had to learn something quickly for a project.

It’s recommended to prepare 3 experience stories (from projects or internships), structured around challenges, solutions, and results.

If you are preparing for algorithm or system design interviews at Microsoft, Amazon, Meta, TikTok, and other big tech, but are unsure how to break down problems and handle edge cases, feel free to add us on WeChat to receive North America interview success secrets. We also offer interview proxy, interview assistance, and OA (Online Assessment) ghostwriting services to help you land your job soon

If you’re preparing for algorithm and system design interviews at Microsoft Meta, TikTok, etc., but aren’t sure how to break down problems and handle edge cases, get North American interview secrets. We also offer interview proxy, interview assistance, OA writing, and more to help you land your dream job sooner~

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