{
  "slug": "hinted-handoff",
  "term": "Hinted handoff",
  "aliases": [],
  "definition": "Hinted handoff retains information about an update missed by an intended replica and attempts to deliver it later.",
  "note": "Cassandra 5.0.0 coordinators store hints for unavailable or timed-out replicas; delivery is best effort. [hints] Its max_hint_window limits hint generation during unavailability, not a universal hint lifetime or replay deadline. [config]",
  "status": "shipping",
  "advantages": [],
  "limitations": [
    {
      "text": "An empty hint queue does not prove that replicas have received every missed mutation.",
      "citationIds": [
        "hints",
        "config"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "related": [
    "anti-entropy-repair",
    "read-repair"
  ],
  "supersedes": [],
  "supersededBy": [],
  "firstSeen": null,
  "lastSeen": null,
  "updated": "2026-10-13",
  "citations": [
    {
      "id": "hints",
      "title": "Apache Cassandra 5.0.0: Hints",
      "url": "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/apache/cassandra/cassandra-5.0.0/doc/modules/cassandra/pages/managing/operating/hints.adoc",
      "accessed": "2026-10-13"
    },
    {
      "id": "config",
      "title": "Apache Cassandra 5.0.0: max_hint_window configuration",
      "url": "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/apache/cassandra/cassandra-5.0.0/conf/cassandra.yaml",
      "accessed": "2026-10-13"
    },
    {
      "id": "hesela-repair",
      "title": "Replica repair: what has actually converged?",
      "url": "https://hesela.com/analyses/replica-repair-coverage/",
      "accessed": "2026-10-13"
    }
  ]
}