Perspectives on the CAP Theorem
Perspectives on the CAP Theorem Page 1 Perspectives on the CAP Theorem Seth Gilbert
National University of Singapore Nancy A. Lynch Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Abstract Almost twelve years ago, in 2000, Eric Brewer introduced the idea that there is a
fundamental trade-off between consistency, availability, and partition tolerance. This trade-off,
which has become known as the CAP Theorem, has been widely discussed ever since. In this
paper, we review the CAP Theorem and situate it within the broader context of distributed …
National University of Singapore Nancy A. Lynch Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Abstract Almost twelve years ago, in 2000, Eric Brewer introduced the idea that there is a
fundamental trade-off between consistency, availability, and partition tolerance. This trade-off,
which has become known as the CAP Theorem, has been widely discussed ever since. In this
paper, we review the CAP Theorem and situate it within the broader context of distributed …
The CAP theorem is one example of a more general tradeoff between safety and liveness in unreliable systems. Viewing CAP in this context provides insight into the inherent tradeoffs and the manner in which they can be circumvented in practice.
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