Architect

Level: Architect | Labs: 15 | Docker: node:20-alpine

Master the deep internals of Node.js: V8 engine, event loop, native addons, streams, gRPC, security, observability, and production architecture patterns.


Prerequisites

  • Completed JavaScript Advanced Track (or equivalent experience)

  • Comfortable with async/await, Promises, and Node.js core modules

  • Basic understanding of HTTP and networking

  • Docker installed locally

Quick Start

docker run -it --rm node:20-alpine sh
# Inside container:
node --version  # v20.x

Lab Overview

Lab
Title
Key Topics
Verify

V8 Internals

Hidden classes, IC, TurboFan, deopt

--allow-natives-syntax opt status

Advanced Event Loop

libuv phases, nextTick/queueMicrotask ordering, async_hooks

Phase timing output

Memory Management

Heap spaces, WeakRef, FinalizationRegistry, leak patterns

v8.getHeapStatistics()

Worker Threads

SharedArrayBuffer, Atomics, thread pool, zero-copy

Atomic counter = 4000

Native Addons

N-API, node-gyp, C source, FFI

node index.js native call

Advanced Streams

Transform, backpressure, pipeline, Web Streams

Byte count pipeline

Cluster & IPC

Master/worker, IPC messaging, sticky sessions, graceful restart

2-worker IPC demo

Performance Profiling

--prof, perf_hooks, PerformanceObserver, autocannon

Real timing measurement

Security Hardening

AES-GCM, Ed25519, scrypt, prototype pollution, CSP

Encrypt/sign with real hex

Module Federation

ESM internals, vm.Module, SyntheticModule, CJS↔ESM

vm.Module evaluation

gRPC in Node.js

Proto loading, unary/streaming, interceptors, deadlines

Real gRPC server+client

Caching Strategies

LRU impl, Redis patterns, cache-aside, consistent hashing

LRU eviction demo

Microservices Patterns

Circuit breaker, bulkhead, saga, event sourcing, CQRS

opossum state demo

Observability

OpenTelemetry, spans, metrics, pino, diagnostics_channel

Real span output

Capstone Platform

All patterns integrated: gRPC + workers + cache + OTel + tests

6+ Vitest tests pass


Learning Path


Key Concepts at a Glance

V8 Optimization Rules

  1. Keep object shapes monomorphic (same property order)

  2. Use TypedArrays for numeric-heavy code

  3. Avoid type polymorphism in hot functions

  4. Pre-allocate objects with all properties

Event Loop Priority

Production Node.js Checklist


Docker Reference

All labs use:

For labs requiring npm packages:

For Native Addons (Lab 05):


Verified On

  • Node.js: v20.20.0

  • Docker image: node:20-alpine

  • Date: 2026-03-06

  • All 📸 Verified Output: blocks contain real Docker execution results.

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