Definition
The four guarantees a transactional database makes: Atomicity, Consistency, Isolation, Durability.
How it works
Atomicity = all-or-nothing; Consistency = never violate invariants/constraints; Isolation = concurrent transactions don't see each other's half-done work; Durability = once committed, it survives a crash. SQL databases (Postgres, MySQL) are the classic ACID stores. The cost is that strict isolation + durability limit how far you can scale writes horizontally.
Common questions
What is ACID?
The four guarantees a transactional database makes: Atomicity, Consistency, Isolation, Durability.
How does ACID work?
Atomicity = all-or-nothing; Consistency = never violate invariants/constraints; Isolation = concurrent transactions don't see each other's half-done work; Durability = once committed, it survives a crash. SQL databases (Postgres, MySQL) are the classic ACID stores. The cost is…
What is ACID used for in system design?
Atomicity = all-or-nothing; Consistency = never violate invariants/constraints; Isolation = concurrent transactions don't see each other's half-done work; Durability = once committed, it survives a crash. SQL databases (Postgres, MySQL) are the classic ACID stores. The cost is…