Authentication vs. Authorization – Explained with a Movie Booking Example
Introduction to High-Level System Design
System Design Fundamentals
- Functional vs. Non-Functional Requirements
- Scalability, Availability, and Reliability
- Latency and Throughput Considerations
- Load Balancing Strategies
Architectural Patterns
- Monolithic vs. Microservices Architecture
- Layered Architecture
- Event-Driven Architecture
- Serverless Architecture
- Model-View-Controller (MVC) Pattern
- CQRS (Command Query Responsibility Segregation)
Scaling Strategies
- Vertical Scaling vs. Horizontal Scaling
- Sharding and Partitioning
- Data Replication and Consistency Models
- Load Balancing Strategies
- CDN and Edge Computing
Database Design in HLD
- SQL vs. NoSQL Databases
- CAP Theorem and its Impact on System Design
- Database Indexing and Query Optimization
- Database Sharding and Partitioning
- Replication Strategies
API Design and Communication
Caching Strategies
- Types of Caching
- Cache Invalidation Strategies
- Redis vs. Memcached
- Cache-Aside, Write-Through, and Write-Behind Strategies
Message Queues and Event-Driven Systems
- Kafka vs. RabbitMQ vs. SQS
- Pub-Sub vs. Point-to-Point Messaging
- Handling Asynchronous Workloads
- Eventual Consistency in Distributed Systems
Security in System Design
Observability and Monitoring
- Logging Strategies (ELK Stack, Prometheus, Grafana)
- API Security Best Practices
- Secure Data Storage and Access Control
- DDoS Protection and Rate Limiting
Real-World System Design Case Studies
- Distributed locking (Locking and its Types)
- Memory leaks and Out of memory issues
- HLD of YouTube
- HLD of WhatsApp
Understanding authentication and authorization is crucial in cybersecurity, access control, and web application security. To make these concepts easier to grasp, let’s use a movie booking analogy to explain how they work in the real world.
What is Authentication? (Who Are You?)
Authentication is the process of verifying your identity before granting access to a system.
Movie Example:
- When you arrive at the cinema, you must show your movie ticket at the entrance.
- The security guard checks your ticket to confirm its validity.
- If your ticket is valid, you are allowed to enter the cinema hall.
Tech Equivalent:
- Movie Ticket = JWT (JSON Web Token) / OAuth Token
- Security Guard = Authentication Service
- Checking the Ticket = Authentication Process
Key Insight:
Authentication confirms that you are a valid moviegoer with a ticket, but it does not determine where you can sit.
What is Authorization? (What Are You Allowed to Do?)
Authorization determines what actions and resources you can access after authentication.
Movie Example:
- Once inside, you cannot sit anywhere—you must find your assigned seat (e.g., A10).
- Your ticket specifies whether you have a regular seat, VIP seat, or balcony seat.
- If you try to sit in the VIP area with a regular ticket, the usher will stop you.
Tech Equivalent:
- Seat Assignment = Role-Based Access Control (RBAC)
- Usher = Authorization Middleware
- Checking Seat Validity = Authorization Process
Key Insight:
Authorization ensures that even though you’re inside the cinema, you can only access the seat you paid for.
Key Takeaways
Concept | Movie Example | Tech Equivalent |
Authentication | Ticket check at entry | Login with username & password |
Authorization | Assigned seat restriction | Access control based on user roles |
Conclusion:
Authentication gets you into the movie hall, but authorization determines where you can sit.
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