ACID
Technology & Computing abbreviation · Data & Database
| Stands for | Atomicity, consistency, isolation, durability |
|---|---|
| Categories | Technology & Computing |
ACID stands for Atomicity, consistency, isolation, durability, a data & database abbreviation.
The four guarantees of reliable database transactions: a transaction happens completely or not at all, leaves data valid, runs as if alone despite concurrent activity, and survives crashes once committed. Bank transfers are the classic example.
Example: Payments need ACID guarantees, so we keep them in PostgreSQL rather than the cache.
Usage notes
Jim Gray described the transaction properties in the late 1970s, and Andreas Reuter and Theo Härder coined the acronym in 1983. Isolation is often relaxed for performance through levels such as Read Committed, defined in the SQL standard. NoSQL systems historically traded some of these properties for scale, prompting the contrasting acronym BASE.
Related abbreviations
More data & database abbreviations
- 3NF – Third normal form
- BASE – Basically available, soft state, eventual consistency
- BI – Business intelligence
- BLOB – Binary large object
- BSON – Binary JSON
- CAP – Consistency, availability, partition tolerance (CAP theorem)
- CDC – Change data capture
- CTE – Common table expression
- DAG – Directed acyclic graph
- DAX – Data Analysis Expressions
- DB – Database
- DBA – Database administrator