A self-directed engineering portfolio designed to eliminate dependency on tutorials. This repo contains 50 real-world, full-stack projects covering computer science fundamentals, backend systems, DevOps workflows, and distributed infrastructure — built entirely by me using Golang, TypeScript, and modern tools like Docker, Kubernetes, and Prometheus. PS: I've put off this project for more then 2 years I'm going to finish it darn it!
To demonstrate deep understanding of:
- Computer Science principles
- Systems-level problem solving
- Modern DevOps engineering practices
- My ability to architect, implement, and reason about production-grade software
This is not a copy-paste collection. Every project was designed, implemented, and documented from scratch.
Hiring Managers, Tech Leads, and Recruiters:
Each project in this repository is:
- Built to showcase problem-solving and implementation depth
- Documented to explain design decisions and trade-offs
- Aligned with the expectations of real-world engineering roles in backend and DevOps
You can browse by topic, language, or depth.
ore them in a map where the key is the domain name- Languages: Go, TypeScript (Node.js, Deno)
- Infra Tools: Docker, Kubernetes, Terraform
- Datastores: PostgreSQL, Redis, File System, Kafka-style logs
- Observability: Prometheus, Grafana, Metrics Exporters
- Architecture Patterns: REST, gRPC, Event Sourcing, Service Mesh
| Area | Topics Covered |
|---|---|
| Core CS Concepts | Algorithms, Data Structures, Parsing, Memory |
| Backend Systems | APIs, Auth, Databases, Protocols, Job Queues |
| DevOps / SRE | Infrastructure, CI/CD, Load Balancing, Scaling |
| Distributed Systems | Consensus, Queues, Schedulers, Proxies |
| Observability & Metrics | Prometheus, Custom Exporters, Log Analysis |
01-todo-app: foundational state management & CRUD API02-web-scraper: Rediculously overly complex04-key-value-store: in-memory and disk-persisted store21-http-proxy-server: low-level networking & middleware logic30-api-gateway: request filtering, JWT auth, rate limiting44-raft-consensus-lock: leader election & distributed state49-file-sync-tool: checksum-based delta syncing
Each has a README, code, and commentary.
If you're reviewing my technical growth over time:
- Start with foundational systems:
01,02,04,05 - Move into backend + infra:
09,21,30,36 - End with distributed & high-responsibility systems:
44,47,50
Each project demonstrates:
- My ability to build from first principles
- Systems-level understanding (not framework-driven)
- Fluent use of Go and TypeScript in real scenarios
- Strong testing, debugging, and iteration habits
You're welcome to clone any repo and run the tests or deploy locally.
Jacob Haflett jacobhaflett@icloud.com LinkedIn → Portfolio Site →
MIT © Jacob Haflett Built with pride, persistence, and no tutorial crutches.