Idempotent

"Idempotent" describes an action or operation that, when performed multiple times, produces the same result as if it were done just once. For example, pressing the "refresh" button on a webpage or setting a status in a database to "active" will result in the same state regardless of how many times you do it. In computing, this concept helps ensure consistency and reliability, allowing systems to handle repeated requests safely without unintended changes or side effects. Essentially, an idempotent operation yields the same outcome no matter how many times it's executed.