Data consistency ensures uniformity of information across a network and applications. There are three types: moment, transaction, and application consistency. Without all three, data can be lost or corrupted. Maintaining consistency is crucial for data integrity and system stability.
Data consistency is the process of maintaining uniformity of information as it moves across a network and between various applications on a computer. There are typically three types of data consistency: moment consistency, transaction consistency, and application consistency. Ensuring that a computer network has all three elements of data consistency covered is the best way to ensure that data is not lost or corrupted as it travels through the system. In the absence of data consistency, there is no guarantee that any information about the system is uniform across the breadth of the computer network.
Point-to-point consistency is concerned with ensuring that all elements of a system are uniform at a specific point in time. This prevents data loss during system crashes, improper shutdowns, and other problems on the network. It works by referencing pieces of data on the system via timestamps and other indicators of consistency, allowing the system to be restored to a specific point in time with each piece of data in its original location. Without time coherence, there would be no guarantee that all information about a crashed computer could be restored to its pre-crash state.
Transaction consistency is the consistency of a data in a transaction running inside the computer. For example, a banking program might originally ask for the initial balance of an end user’s account. From then on, the entire program is based on the original balance figure remaining consistent in program memory. If the original balance is $50,000 US Dollars ($50,000 USD) and a problem in the system brings it down to $75,000 USD, the computer has no transaction consistency. Without transaction consistency, nothing entered into a program remains reliable.
Application consistency is nothing but transaction consistency between programs. For example, if your banking program communicates with a tax program on your computer, the consistency of the application means that information moving between programs will remain in its original state. Without application consistency, the same problems arise here as with bad transaction consistency: there will be no way to tell if a value entered into the system remains correct over time.
The main benefit of ensuring data consistency is maintaining the integrity of information stored on the computer or across the network. Without all three types of consistency working together, there’s no telling whether the data stored on your computer today will be the same after a crash, installation, or other major system event. That’s why maintaining consistency is one of the primary goals of all data-driven computer programs.
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