The network gets nasty! Now we need to handle network partitions and message losses. This is where distributed systems get real.
Handle network partitions gracefully
Retry failed gossip attempts
Eventually consistent even when networks heal
Robust message propagation despite failures
Added fault tolerance with:
Retry Logic: Failed gossip messages get retried
Periodic Sync: Regularly share our full message set with neighbors
Partition Recovery: When network heals, nodes catch up automatically
Exponential Backoff: Don't spam failed nodes
Persistent Retry Queue: Failed messages don't get lost
Full State Sync: Periodically share complete message sets
Adaptive Timing: Back off when nodes are unreachable
Partition Detection: Recognize when nodes are truly unreachable
Network partitions are tricky:
Nodes on one side keep working
When partition heals, they need to sync up
Can't tell difference between slow node and partitioned node
Need to balance responsiveness vs resource usage
Retry logic is essential but can be expensive
Periodic syncing catches edge cases that retries miss
Exponential backoff prevents network flooding
Eventually consistent is often good enough
Real fault tolerance requires careful timeout tuning
This foundation now supports the efficiency challenges - how to scale this up!
