How do you manage dependencies between microservices?

Short answer: Use API contracts and versioning. Employ service discovery and load balancing. Prefer asynchronous messaging/event-driven architecture to reduce tight coupling. Apply circuit breakers and retries for fault tolerance.

Real-world example (ShopNest)

Patterns in ShopNest should solve a real pain (swappable payments, test seams)—not be added for decoration.

Say this in the interview

1. Define — one clear sentence (the short answer above).
2. Example — relate it to a project like ShopNest or your real work.
3. Trade-off — when you would not use it.