r/Backend

To the backend developers here, I’m curious how most of you started.

I have been a Java core developer for about 2 years, and want to focus my career path to backend development. Unfortunately, I got laid off a couple months ago. My funds are depleting so I need to land a job soon. After hundreds of rejections, I am coming to realize that I won’t be able to land even junior backend developer roles soon. So for now, I am considering taking other roles for survival, while I develop skills and eventually apply as a backend dev.

Anyway, what I noticed was almost all Java hirings need Spring experience (at least in my country), or other backend frameworks. I know that an alternative leverage from actual job experience are personal projects.

Does this mean that almost every backend developer out there taught themselves the relevant tech stack like the frameworks and database management, and had to start with internships or by creating personal projects while in a different job role? How did it start for you?

I am really interested to hear stories, especially the long ones. I know every journey is different, but at this point when I feel lost, I want to know the hard-work people had to put up to become a backend developer.

Why is synchronous communication between microservices considered an anti-pattern in some cases?For example, a cart service calls a product service to check availability before adding an item to the cart. This creates a direct dependency between the two services at runtime. What kind of problems can this lead to in terms of reliability, scalability, and deployment independence?

I'm 21, solo developer from India. For the past year I've been

building a CLI tool that generates Node.js/Express backends from

plain English descriptions — with auth, Supabase, Stripe,

WebSockets, admin panel, the whole stack.

Last week I audited what it actually generates. An UberEats clone

output had:

- 57 routes with zero authentication

- 140 SQL queries with no tenant isolation

- 15 hard DELETEs on user data (no soft delete)

- 0 XSS protection

I built a "Security Gate" that catches and auto-fixes all of

these before the code ships. Now the output passes 11 security

rules automatically.

But I'm questioning everything:

- Claude/Cursor can generate backends for $19-99/month

- Security scanners like Snyk/Semgrep already exist

- I have zero users after a year

Before I spend another month on this, I want honest feedback

from working developers:

1. Would you use a tool that generates a full backend

   (auth, payments, admin, websockets, SDKs) from one sentence?

2. Is the security gate actually valuable or is it table stakes?

3. What would you actually pay for this (if anything)?

Here's a generated output you can browse:

[github link to your demo repo]

Roast me. I'd rather hear the truth now than after another

6 months.

I’m using my alt account. Hello backend, I’m a person who wants to go into backend development. I struggled through my degree and graduated back in December 2024. Work a non tech job while figuring out my life. Now I need some help understanding what I lack and the actual job expectations. Thanks.

I’m looking for a 2-bay NAS for my small business to host a MySQL server and a FastAPI instance via Docker. I’m currently torn between the Synology DS224+ / DS725+ and higher-spec competitors like the Asustor Lockerstor or Ugreen NASync.

While the Synology DSM software is the gold standard for stability, the hardware specs feel dated for the price. I’m wondering if the "Synology Tax" is actually worth it for a production database, or if I should prioritize the better raw performance (N100/DDR5) and NVMe storage pools found in the newer Asustor or Ugreen models.

My main concerns are whether the Ugreen OS is reliable enough for business use yet, and if the reported fan/vibration noise on the Lockerstor is a dealbreaker in a quiet office. If you've run dev environments or small databases on these, is the Synology software advantage big enough to justify the weaker hardware?

> be me, sophomore, shit tier uni, 3.5 GPA, specialize in backend

> Build a product that scaled 20k+ users in high school

> use it to get 2 startup jobs at freshman year

> actually learn stuff and ship that handles real-world product traffic

> build a microservice at one job that handles +1M reqs a month after 6 months of grind

> work there for a year

> company fucked due to wrong financial decisions

> did not apply to internships until now, thinking this job would continue

> stuck with an unknown company that got fucked overnight on my resume with no offers

Anywhere I check is already filled for summer, and I am confused if I will always be a startup guy. I do not have any connections & brand names.