Gaussian elimination is a method for solving systems of linear equations. It involves converting the augmented matrix into an upper triangular matrix using elementary row operations. There are three types of Gaussian elimination: simple elimination without pivoting, partial pivoting, and total pivoting. Partial pivoting interchanges rows to choose larger pivots, while total pivoting searches the whole matrix for the largest number to use as the pivot. Pivoting strategies help prevent zero pivots and reduce round-off errors.