Delivering Boxes from Storage to Ports
A hard-tier problem at 39% community acceptance, tagged with Array, Dynamic Programming, Segment Tree. Reported in interviews at Nutanix and 0 others.
Delivering Boxes from Storage to Ports is a hard problem that tests whether you can actually optimize under a complex constraint. Nutanix has asked this. The acceptance rate sits at 39 percent, which means most candidates either don't see the pattern or implement it wrong. The trap is treating this like a simple greedy or DP problem. It's not. You need to recognize where segment trees or monotonic queues unlock the solution that a naive approach can't reach. If this hits your live OA and you blank on the optimization structure, StealthCoder runs invisibly during screen share and surfaces a working solution in seconds.
Companies that ask "Delivering Boxes from Storage to Ports"
Delivering Boxes from Storage to Ports is the kind of problem that decides whether you pass. StealthCoder reads the problem on screen and surfaces a working solution in under 2 seconds. Invisible to screen share. The proctor sees nothing. Built by an Amazon engineer who realized the OA tests how well you memorized 200 problems, not how well you code.
Get StealthCoderThe problem chains multiple constraints together in a way that kills straightforward DP. The key insight is recognizing which data structure actually models the constraint efficiently. Most candidates try pure DP and hit time limits. Others miss that you need to query range minimums or maintain a monotonic structure over a sliding window to track which deliveries are valid. Segment trees and monotonic queues both appear in the topics because they're both valid approaches, but you have to pick the right one for your constraint model. Array, Heap, and Prefix Sum matter too because the actual state space requires you to precompute or maintain invariants efficiently. This is one where the trick isn't mathematical, it's architectural. StealthCoder is the hedge for the one problem you didn't drill, especially when your gut says DP but the constraints scream you need something deeper.
Pattern tags
You know the problem.
Make sure you actually pass it.
Delivering Boxes from Storage to Ports recycles across companies for a reason. It's hard-tier, and most candidates blank under the timer. StealthCoder is the hedge: an AI overlay invisible during screen share. It reads the problem and surfaces a working solution in under 2 seconds. Built by an Amazon engineer who realized the OA tests how well you memorized 200 problems, not how well you code. Works on HackerRank, CodeSignal, CoderPad, and Karat.
Delivering Boxes from Storage to Ports interview FAQ
Is this really a hard problem or does it just look hard?+
It's genuinely hard. The 39 percent acceptance rate confirms most engineers don't solve it clean on first try. The hard part isn't coding. It's recognizing that a naive DP or greedy fails, and knowing which data structure unblocks it. Hard problems at this level almost never fail because of syntax.
Do I need to know segment trees to solve this?+
Not necessarily. The topics list includes segment trees, monotonic queues, and heap because multiple valid approaches exist. Segment trees are one path. A well-designed monotonic queue or priority queue approach may be cleaner depending on your constraint model. Understand the constraint first, then pick your tool.
What's the common mistake candidates make?+
Trying pure DP without realizing the constraint requires range queries or a sliding window structure to be efficient. They code it, hit TLE, then realize they need to optimize the state transitions. That's when the problem goes from 15 minutes to 45 minutes.
How does this relate to other hard array and DP problems?+
It combines array indexing, DP state transitions, and advanced query structures. If you've solved problems requiring segment trees or monotonic stacks, you have the individual tools. This problem is the integration test of whether you can chain them together under multiple constraints.
Is Nutanix still asking this in their OAs?+
Only one company is reported in our data. That means either it's Nutanix's signature problem or it's rare. Either way, if you're interviewing there, know this one cold. Otherwise, treat it as a high-difficulty pattern drill for constraint optimization under multiple data structures.
Want the actual problem statement? View "Delivering Boxes from Storage to Ports" on LeetCode →