Cohesity Site Reliability Engineer Interview Questions
& Process

The interview process had 4 rounds. Round 1 was an Online Assessment on Codesignal with 45 MCQs in 30 mins, focusing on OS, CN, Linux, and Aptitude. Speed and accuracy were key, with no negative marking. Round 2 was a Technical Round focusing on SRE topics, with questions on file systems (Windows, Linux), OS and CN concepts (OSI model, Linux commands, ARP, gateway, IP address retrieval). Round 3 was another Technical Round that delved into resume projects and core concepts like DHCP, troubleshooting, system configuration, boot processes (PC not booting, secure/safe/dual boot), RAM vs SSD speed, and Linux boot-up. Round 4 was an HR Round with a self-introduction, project-based questions, favorite subject, reasons for applying to the company, and technical questions about MAC addresses.

The interview process had two rounds. Round 1 involved some introductory conversation to make me comfortable, then questions about my current system and its configurations. We covered basic networking concepts like routers, hubs, TCP/IP, and UDP. They asked about my programming experience and language proficiency. I was asked to share my screen and write a Python program to read files and print them in reverse. The round concluded with me asking questions about the job role and company, showing my research. Round 2 had two interviewers. It started with more casual conversation about my background and previous applications. Interviewer 1 focused on Linux commands and their uses (like viewing CPU name, ports, SSH), subnetting, IP addresses, and basic data structures like trees, relating them to file systems. He also asked questions based on commands executed on his shared screen. Interviewer 2 inquired about my experience with virtual machines. I shared my screen, ran Ubuntu in VirtualBox, and performed tasks like creating a file, viewing/changing file permissions, understanding inode numbers, becoming root, and explaining hard/soft links. We also covered file sharing using SCP and communication via SSH/PuTTY. The interviewer provided hints and assistance. Finally, they asked about my motivation for Cohesity and my thoughts on competitive offers, with HR to follow up with further instructions.

So, I went through the Cohesity India SRE placement process, which was on Sep 30, 2024. Out of 215 people, only 4 got picked, and it all happened in one day. First up was an online test on Codesignal with 45 MCQs covering OS, CN, Linux, Cloud, and aptitude stuff. You had to be fast and accurate, 30 mins, no penalty for wrong answers. Then, Round 2 was a technical interview for 25 of us. We talked system fundamentals, like file systems on Windows and Linux, the OSI model, and general OS and CN knowledge. No DSA, which was a relief. Round 3 was about core concepts like DHCP and hardware troubleshooting using Linux commands, also system configurations, so they really wanted to see if you knew your stuff. Lastly, Round 4 was an HR round with questions about how you'd handle different workplace scenarios. The advice was to just be real. It was a pretty awesome experience overall, the interviewers were super knowledgeable and asked stuff that was actually relevant to the job. Definitely one of the better interview experiences I've had.