What is fault tolerance in Erlang?

What is fault tolerance in Erlang?

Fault tolerance in Erlang refers to the ability of a system to continue operating properly in the event of a failure of some of its components.

How does Erlang achieve fault tolerance?

Erlang achieves fault tolerance through its lightweight processes, supervision trees, and the 'let it crash' philosophy, allowing systems to recover from errors.

Can you explain the 'let it crash' philosophy?

The 'let it crash' philosophy means that instead of trying to handle every possible error, Erlang processes are allowed to fail and be restarted by a supervisor.

What are supervision trees?

Supervision trees are a hierarchical structure in Erlang where supervisors monitor worker processes, restarting them if they fail, ensuring system reliability.

Are there any real-world applications of Erlang's fault tolerance?

Yes, Erlang's fault tolerance is used in telecommunications, messaging systems, and distributed databases, where uptime is critical.