Built a distributed unique ID generator that keeps working even when the network gets funky (partition tolerant)
Each ID is a combo of:
Timestamp (nanoseconds) - gives us time ordering
Node ID - makes sure different nodes don't clash
Random bytes - prevents collisions if we generate IDs at the exact same nanosecond
Why this approach is cool:
No coordination needed between nodes (works in partitions)
IDs are roughly time-ordered (good for debugging)
Basically zero chance of collisions
Fast! Just local operations
Each node works independently - no need to talk to other nodes to generate IDs. Even if the network splits, each part keeps generating valid, unique IDs. When the partition heals, all IDs are still unique because of the node ID component.
IDs are strings (could be more compact)
Not perfectly time-ordered across nodes (would need coordination for that)
ID length varies with node ID length
But for our use case, these are fine - we prioritized availability and simplicity.
