Error Budgets and Their Dependencies: A Comprehensive Guide
Error budgets are a critical tool for managing system downtime, balancing planned maintenance and unexpected outages to meet service-level objectives (SLOs). They are calculated using projected downtime and maintenance, not just the difference between 100% and your SLO. By categorizing downtime into maintenance and unexpected outages, teams can identify areas for improvement, such as automating processes or fixing bugs. A real-world example shows how addressing an outdated load balancer reduced HTTP errors and restored an error budget surplus, enabling critical upgrades. Error budgets help teams focus resources on stabilizing systems, improving reliability, and meeting customer expectations.