partitiontoleranssi

Partition tolerance refers to a property of distributed systems that guarantees they will continue to operate, at least partially, even when the network experiences partitions. A network partition occurs when communication breaks down between different nodes or groups of nodes in a distributed system, effectively dividing it into isolated segments. In such a scenario, nodes in one segment cannot communicate with nodes in another.

A system that is partition tolerant aims to maintain availability and data consistency to the greatest extent possible despite these communication failures. This is a fundamental consideration in the design of distributed databases and other large-scale systems where network reliability cannot be guaranteed.

The concept of partition tolerance is often discussed in the context of the CAP theorem, which states that a distributed data store cannot simultaneously provide consistency, availability, and partition tolerance. When a network partition occurs, a system must choose between maintaining strong consistency (ensuring all nodes have the same data at all times, potentially sacrificing availability) or maintaining availability (ensuring the system remains operational, potentially leading to temporary inconsistencies).

Systems designed with partition tolerance in mind prioritize continuing to function rather than halting operations entirely. This might involve allowing nodes in different partitions to operate independently, potentially leading to divergent data states that need to be reconciled once the partition is resolved. The specific strategy for handling partitions depends on the application's requirements and the trade-offs it is willing to make between consistency and availability.