AppsTechnical Interviews

// live coding room

Presence and reliable sync

The room shows whether the other person is connected and whether your code is saved; if the connection drops, typing keeps working and syncs as soon as it is back.

Interviewer’s editor

Types a hint comment on line 9

One shared document

Every change is sent as a small edit and applied in order, so both copies match

Candidate’s editor

Keeps typing on line 4; the cursor does not jump

✓ Saved☁ Reconnecting…● Candidate is connected○ Interviewer is not connected

// the problem

Why presence and reliable sync matters in a coding interview

Wi-Fi drops in the middle of an interview are common. If a hiccup loses the candidate’s last five minutes of typing, the interview is over. Interviewers also need to know whether the candidate has actually joined.

// how it works

How does presence and reliable sync work?

  1. See who is here

    Each side shows whether the other person is connected. The interviewer’s header turns Live when the candidate is syncing.

  2. Know your work is saved

    The toolbar shows Saved once the server has your latest change.

  3. Keep typing through a drop

    If the connection drops, the room shows Reconnecting… and keeps retrying with growing pauses. The editor keeps working.

  4. Catch up automatically

    When the connection is back, unsent typing goes out with the next sync and the other person’s edits land in the right place.

// options and settings

Every option, in one place

Option
What it does
Live status
A candidate counts as live if they synced in the last 30 seconds.
Sync pace
Faster while someone is typing, slower when idle, and slower again in a hidden tab, to save bandwidth.
Reconnecting
Automatic retries with back-off; no reload needed.
Last activity
The sessions list shows when the candidate was last active, or “Not opened yet”.

// permissions

Who can do what?

Who
Can
Interviewers (anyone your company admin gives access to the console)
See candidate presence in the room and last activity in the sessions list.
Candidate (anyone holding the session link while it is open)
See whether the interviewer is connected.

Company admins decide who on your team can open the interviewer console. Candidates never sign in; they only ever use their session link.

// connects to

How presence and reliable sync fits with the rest

// faq

Presence and reliable sync: questions

What happens if the candidate’s internet drops?

Their editor keeps working and shows Reconnecting…. As soon as the connection returns, their unsent typing is sent and both copies converge.

How do I know the candidate has joined?

The room shows “Candidate connected” and the session status turns Live.

Does a hidden browser tab keep syncing?

Yes, at a slower pace, and it speeds back up when the tab is visible again.

$ start --interview

Try presence and reliable sync in your next interview.

Create a session, send the link and see it working with a real candidate.

100% customizable, code and all

Make Autessa Technical Interviews fully your own.

Use it out of the box, then change anything. Ask Autobot, Autessa’s AI builder, for a new field, screen, report, workflow or agent and it builds it into your copy of the app. Or open the code and edit it yourself. Nothing is locked: the app, its data and its code are yours.

Start free and make it yours