title: How do transactions (technically) work?
body: <p>I know what a transaction is and what its benefits and problems are - e.g., when talking about the ACID model in SQL-oriented databases. So far, so good.</p>
  
  <p>But I'd like to understand how they technically work. I guess that there is a general pattern of how to make something transactional, whether it's a database or a file system. How do I make things atomic?</p>
  
  <p>Unfortunately, when looking on Google for this, you find lots of articles that explain how to <em>use</em> transactions, but I do know that. I want to know <em>how</em> they work.</p>
  
  <p>Any example, idea, link, paper or something (even a good term for searching myself) which points me in the right direction is welcome. Any hints?</p>