Software Architecture

CAP Theorem

/kæp ˈθɪərəm/

Definition

A theorem stating distributed systems can guarantee at most two of three properties: Consistency, Availability, Partition tolerance.

Example in context

"We chose AP for the shopping cart — it stays available during a partition, accepting eventual consistency."

Related terms

Practice this term

Master CAP Theorem in context by working through exercises in the Software Architecture module. You'll see the term used in real engineering scenarios with multiple-choice, fill-in-the-blank, and matching drills.