> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://liuzhenglaichn.gitbook.io/system-design/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://liuzhenglaichn.gitbook.io/system-design/basics.md).

# Basics

- [Key Characteristics of Distributed Systems](https://liuzhenglaichn.gitbook.io/system-design/basics/key-characteristics-of-distributed-systems.md)
- [Load Balancing](https://liuzhenglaichn.gitbook.io/system-design/basics/load-balancing.md)
- [Reverse Proxy](https://liuzhenglaichn.gitbook.io/system-design/basics/proxy.md)
- [Cache](https://liuzhenglaichn.gitbook.io/system-design/basics/cache.md)
- [Sharding or Data Partitioning](https://liuzhenglaichn.gitbook.io/system-design/basics/sharding-or-data-partitioning.md)
- [Index](https://liuzhenglaichn.gitbook.io/system-design/basics/index.md)
- [Redundancy and Replication](https://liuzhenglaichn.gitbook.io/system-design/basics/redundancy-and-replication.md)
- [SQL vs NoSQL](https://liuzhenglaichn.gitbook.io/system-design/basics/sql-vs-nosql.md)