Please stop calling databases CP or AP (2015)

Martin Kleppmann argues that the CAP theorem’s definitions of consistency (linearizability), availability (every non-failing node must respond), and partition tolerance are overly narrow and often misapplied, covering only a single read-write register and ignoring faults like crashes, disk exhaustion, and latency concerns. He urges abandoning the CP/AP terminology in favor of more precise language that reflects the broader trade-offs inherent in real-world distributed systems.