This is exactly right, and perhaps the most cogent explanation of the CAP theorem on the internet. For a longer explanation of the same idea which includes a c

This is exactly right, and perhaps the most cogent explanation of the CAP theorem on the internet. For a longer explanation of the same idea which includes a concrete example of how you can get "high availability" in a CP system, see: https://apple.github.io/foundationdb/cap-theorem.html https://apple.github.io/foundationdb/cap-theorem.html