reliability-engineering Skill

Goal

This skill designs systems that continue to function in the presence of faults.

Steps

1. Redundancy Patterns

• Active/Passive (Hot Standby): Primary handles load, Secondary takes over on heartbeat loss.
• Active/Active (Load Balancing): Both handle load. System survives if N-1 nodes active.
• TMR (Triple Modular Redundancy): 3 voters. 2/3 majority wins. Used in avionics/space.

2. Design for Reliability

• Watchdog Timers: Hardware/Software timer that resets the system if it hangs.
• Safety Bag / Monitor: Independent channel that monitors outputs and cuts power if limits exceeded.
• N-Version Programming: 3 teams write the same software in 3 languages (Python, Rust, Ada) to avoid common bugs.