ai-agent

system-design-primer

Name: system-design-primer
Author: donnemartin

Learn how to design large-scale systems. Prep for the system design interview. Includes Anki flashcards.

373,248 stars+2,174★ this week58,747 forksPythonUpdated 9/15/2026100% free · open source

What it does

The system-design-primer tool helps startup founders learn how to design large-scale systems and prepare for system design interviews using a comprehensive guide and Anki flashcards.

When to use it

•When preparing for a system design interview to improve chances of acing it
•When designing a large-scale system and needing guidance on best practices
•When looking to learn about system design principles and trade-offs

Ready-to-paste prompt

Open the `README.md` file and click on the 'System Design Primer' link to access the online version of the book

Heads up: Make sure you have Anki installed on your system, as the primer includes Anki flashcards, and you can install it from the official Anki website if you haven't already

Saves to your device

Use with Claude

New

Skip the builder — one click puts this in Claude, Cursor, Antigravity and more.

✅ Light setup

Installs with a command or two; your AI agent can do it for you.

Try it instantly — no install

Claude Code

mkdir -p ~/.claude/skills/system-design-primer && curl -fsSL https://workflowstacks.com/api/skills/system-design-primer/claude-skill -o ~/.claude/skills/system-design-primer/SKILL.md

Open in another AI app

Opens the app with this repo with the prompt ready to go — no copy-paste needed.

Connect the whole catalog (MCP)

claude mcp add --transport http workflowstacks https://workflowstacks.com/api/mcp

Adds a WorkflowStacks connector to Claude Code: search and load any skill here by chatting.

How system-design-primer works

Codeflow

Free to inspect

System-design-primer is a small Python project (~750 lines across 27 code files). Setup is light: install the runtime, run one command. Last commit 5 months ago, Other license, no tests found.

Size

Small codebase

~750 lines · 27 code files · 6 min skim

Setup

Light setup

Install the runtime, run one command.

Runs on

Python

No API keys detected

Python 98%Shell 2%

Where to start reading

1
README.md
Start here — what it does and how to install it

What's in each folder

solutions/Folder86 files

images/Images & static assets36 files

resources/Folder5 files

.github/CI / automation (GitHub Actions)1 files

READMENo tests foundDocumentedNo CIOther licenseUpdated 5 mo ago

Use with Claude

New

Skip the builder — one click puts this in Claude, Cursor, Antigravity and more.

✅ Light setup

Installs with a command or two; your AI agent can do it for you.

Try it instantly — no install

Claude Code

mkdir -p ~/.claude/skills/system-design-primer && curl -fsSL https://workflowstacks.com/api/skills/system-design-primer/claude-skill -o ~/.claude/skills/system-design-primer/SKILL.md

Open in another AI app

Opens the app with this repo with the prompt ready to go — no copy-paste needed.

Connect the whole catalog (MCP)

claude mcp add --transport http workflowstacks https://workflowstacks.com/api/mcp

Adds a WorkflowStacks connector to Claude Code: search and load any skill here by chatting.

Quick Actions

Details

Creator

donnemartin

Language

Python

Do this with a working workflow

Pages we wrote and tested that put a skill like this to work — importable n8n templates, outcome guides and Claude Desktop configs.

Outcome guide

Personalize your cold emails at scale

You keep prospects in a Google Sheet with a note about each. The workflow writes a specific one-line opener per prospect and scores it 1–5, so you can send the strong ones and fix the weak ones.