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System Designer

Consistency Model Explorer

Explore CAP theorem and consistency models for distributed systems

CAP
Theorem Explorer

Consistency Models

Linearizability

strong consistency

Strongest consistency model - operations appear to execute atomically and in real-time order

CAP Properties

Consistency
strong
Availability
low
Partition Tolerance
low

Performance

Latency
high
Complexity
high

Guarantees:

  • Operations appear instantaneous
  • Real-time ordering preserved
  • All nodes see same order
  • No stale reads

Tradeoffs:

  • High latency
  • Reduced availability
  • Complex implementation
  • Performance bottlenecks

Best Use Cases:

Financial systems, inventory management, critical counters

Bank account balancesStock tradingSeat reservations

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