Broadcom - interview guide

Broadcom interview questions - a complete guide

Broadcom works in both networking chips and enterprise software (VMware). C, networking and debugging are reported most in its interviews.

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About Broadcom

Broadcom makes networking, broadband and wireless chips, and enterprise software such as VMware is now part of Broadcom too. Centres in India such as Bengaluru, Pune, Chennai and Hyderabad are reported.

This guide covers 12 Broadcom interview questions with answers - what each question checks and how to answer it - plus the Broadcom interview process, round by round, a 7-day preparation plan for freshers, tips and the mistakes to avoid.

Broadcom hiring process

  1. Written / online test

    Reported: data structures, C syntax, networking, OS, architecture and debugging.

  2. Technical interviews

    Telephonic and technical rounds - C, networking, projects.

  3. Managerial / HR

    Behavioural and fit.

Broadcom does not publish its India fresher interview process in detail (as of our check). This is based on candidate reports - many of them for experienced roles, so the fresher process can differ. Confirm with the recruiter.

Sources (checked 16 October 2026): Broadcom Careers. Hiring processes change - read the official notice before you apply.

Broadcom interview questions and answers

Networking

  1. 1.What is the difference between a network switch and a router (at layers 2 and 3)?

    What they're checking
    Broadcom makes networking chips.
    How to answer
    A switch sends frames within one network by MAC address (layer 2). A router sends packets between networks by IP address (layer 3).

  2. 2.How do devices on two different VLANs of one switch talk to each other?

    What they're checking
    A practical understanding of VLANs.
    How to answer
    VLANs are separate broadcast domains - talking between them needs routing: router-on-a-stick (a trunk port) or an SVI on a layer 3 switch.

  3. 3.How does a packet checksum work?

    What they're checking
    Data integrity.
    How to answer
    The sender adds up the data's words and sends a number; the receiver adds them again and compares. A mismatch = corrupted data. IP/TCP use a 16-bit ones' complement sum.

  4. 4.How does live migration like VMware's (moving a running VM to another server) work at a high level?

    What they're checking
    The VMware side.
    How to answer
    Copy memory pages while the VM runs, resend the pages that changed, finally pause the VM for a moment to send the remaining state and resume it on the new server - storage is shared.

C and debugging

  1. 5.What is the output of an expression like i++ + ++i?

    What they're checking
    Tricky C questions in the written test.
    How to answer
    Changing the same variable twice without a sequence point is undefined behaviour - the compiler can produce anything. That is the right answer; there is no fixed number.

  2. 6.Where are function pointers useful in C?

    What they're checking
    Drivers and systems code.
    How to answer
    Callbacks (qsort's comparator), and in drivers, a table of operations (open, read, write) - choosing the right function at runtime.

  3. 7.A program sometimes crashes with a segmentation fault - how would you find out why?

    What they're checking
    Debugging - a separate section in the test.
    How to answer
    Turn on core dumps and look at the backtrace in gdb, build with AddressSanitizer, and check uninitialised pointers, array bounds and use after free.

  4. 8.What is DMA and why is it used?

    What they're checking
    Architecture.
    How to answer
    A device reads/writes memory directly without the CPU copying every byte. The CPU stays free - essential for network cards.

DSA

  1. 9.Swap every pair of nodes in a linked list (1-2-3-4 -> 2-1-4-3).

    What they're checking
    Handling pointers.
    How to answer
    Start from a dummy node; each time change the two nodes' pointers and connect the previous one to the new pair's first node. Swap nodes, not values.

  2. 10.How would you do longest prefix matching for an IP address (a routing table)?

    What they're checking
    Networking + a trie.
    How to answer
    Put the prefixes into a binary trie of bits. Walk the IP's bits and remember the last route found - that is the longest match.

Managerial

  1. 11.Tell me about a bug that took a long time to find - how did you catch it?

    What they're checking
    Persistence.
    How to answer
    How you reproduced it, what you tried, the root cause and what you learned - step by step.

  2. 12.Why Broadcom?

    What they're checking
    Motivation.
    How to answer
    Your interest in networking/semiconductors or VMware's software - a specific project or course.

7-day preparation plan for the Broadcom interview

  1. Day 1: C - pointers, function pointers, undefined behaviour.
  2. Day 2: Networking - switching, routing, VLANs.
  3. Day 3: OS and architecture - DMA, interrupts, memory.
  4. Day 4: DSA - linked lists, tries, bits.
  5. Day 5: Debugging practice - find a crash with gdb.
  6. Day 6: A written test mock.
  7. Day 7: A mock interview + managerial stories.

Preparation tips

  • Understand tricky C output questions and undefined behaviour.
  • Nail networking layers 2 and 3 - switches, routers, VLANs, routing.
  • The names and uses of debugging tools (gdb, sanitizers).
  • Linked lists and bit-level problems.

Mistakes to avoid

  • Guessing a number in an undefined behaviour question.
  • Not knowing the difference between layers 2 and 3 at a networking chip company.
  • Having no practical debugging example.

Frequently asked questions

What is in the Broadcom written test?

According to reports, data structures, C syntax, networking, OS, architecture and debugging.

Is VMware now part of Broadcom?

Yes, VMware is now part of Broadcom - its careers are on Broadcom's site too.

Where is Broadcom in India?

Centres such as Bengaluru, Pune, Chennai and Hyderabad are reported.

How many rounds are there in the Broadcom interview?

Commonly a test or telephonic round, technical rounds and managerial/HR.

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