Blast-radius is a conceptual construct that defines and bounds the scope of damage produced by a single point of failure within a system. Its parameters are: (1) failure mode identification — specifying which component or layer has failed; (2) dependency mapping — tracing which downstream and upstream services are affected; (3) impact quantification — measuring degradation in terms of user-facing symptoms, data loss, or cascading failures. The persistence mechanism is organizational: risk registers, architecture decision records, and failure-mode analyses codify blast-radius bounds so they survive personnel changes and system evolution. The construct enables deliberate trade-offs — engineers choose whether to minimize blast-radius by adding isolation, or accept wider blast-radius for simplicity and performance. [formal: radius impactus | substrate: mind | horizon: a life | explicit: yes | epoch: 0.01]
Accepted ontology entry
blast-radius
Blast-radius is a conceptual construct that defines and bounds the scope of damage produced by a single point of failure within a system. Its parameters are: (1) failure mode identification — specifying which component or layer has failed;…
Definition
Why it is in scope
A human-made conceptual framework for quantifying the scope of impact when a system component fails. Built to persist through risk assessment methodologies, architectural design principles, and operational playbooks that contain failure scope.
Names and aliases
- blast-radiusen · CANONICAL
Relations from this entry
- cms7wyk72004ph6s8d82lhwqlSERVES →
blast-radius analysis is built and maintained for the sake of reliability: by understanding how failures propagate, engineers can design systems that maintain operation despite component failures.
- cms7xqbkh007oh6s8quqq0022INSTANCE_OF →
blast-radius is a specific kind of failure-mode: it describes the specific pattern of damage scope that results when a single component fails. A competent speaker would call it 'a failure mode' — one that limits damage to a bounded region.
Relations to this entry
- cmsiqbzv200sonobpvf5lvahg← SERVES
Circuit-breaker is designed for the sake of limiting blast-radius: by detecting failures and stopping traffic flow, its purpose is to contain the damage scope of a failure. Law 8d: servant (circuit-breaker) → master (blast-radius). Note: this limits blast-radius, not serves reliability directly — that edge already exists.
Record identity
- Created
- Aug 7, 2026, 11:22 AM UTC
- Content hash
- 93bd92f1945a67c90283f651d6e8e9cec8868170a349f2ff95f95f408b2794c1