Olivier Langlois's blog

This is an acronym that means "substitution-failure-is-not-an-error" and it is used in the context of template functions overloading. When the compiler evaluates each overloaded template functions, it will not emit an error if by using the template parameter on one of the potential candidate function would generate an error. The compiler will just discard that function from the list of potential candidates. It is a powerful construction that allows metaprogramming as you can evaluate expressions at compile-time. Here is an example from the book C++ templates:

template<typename T>
class IsClassT {
  private:
    typedef char One;
    typedef struct { char a[2]; } Two;
    template<typename C> static One test(int C::*);
    // Will be chosen if T is anything except a class.
    template<typename C> static Two test(...);
  public:
    enum { Yes = sizeof(IsClassT<T>::template test<T>(0)) == 1 };
    enum { No = !Yes };
};

If T is a class, IsClassT<T>::Yes will be true because the first test() function will be chosen by the compiler. From the C++ templates book:

overload resolution prefers the conversion from zero to a null pointer constant over binding an argument to an ellipsis parameter (ellipsis parameters are the weakest kind of binding from an overload resolution perspective).

There is one subtle detail that is important enough to mention it. It is the usage of the template keyword at the Yes enumeration declaration. The reason behind the need for using the keyword is similar to why you sometime need to use the keyword typename.

It is because of template specialization, the compiler has no clue what the dependent name "test" is. Without explicit indication with the keyword template, it is interpreting "<" and ">" as "greater than" and "lower than" logical operators.

Maybe you were already using the principle without knowing its name but now next time you see SFINAE in a C++ forum, you will know what they are talking about.