# Software Architecture Guide

> Software architecture explained in plain language: concept articles, guides for beginners, and an arc42 review checklist. Every page is written from public sources listed on the page.

Read this file, then fetch only the linked llms.txt files and .md pages you need.

## Start here

- [Guides](https://arc.fuet.ch/guides/llms.txt): How to start the architecture of a project, step by step

## Review

- [arc42 review checklist](https://arc.fuet.ch/review/llms.txt): How to review an arc42 document with the checks of this site

## Concepts

- [Fundamentals](https://arc.fuet.ch/concepts/fundamentals/llms.txt): What software architecture is, the architect's role, architecture levels, structures and views (basics), Conway's law, why architecture matters, architectural erosion (Big Ball of Mud).
- [Vision, Stakeholders and Context](https://arc.fuet.ch/concepts/vision-stakeholders/llms.txt): Project vision, system idea, business goals, stakeholders and their concerns, system scope, system context.
- [Functional Requirements](https://arc.fuet.ch/concepts/functional-requirements/llms.txt): Use cases, goal levels, user stories, acceptance criteria, story mapping, story splitting.
- [Quality Attributes](https://arc.fuet.ch/concepts/quality-attributes/llms.txt): ISO 25010 quality model, quality attribute scenarios, quality trees / utility trees, single quality attributes (availability, performance, security, modifiability, ...), trade-offs between them.
- [Forces, Constraints and Decisions](https://arc.fuet.ch/concepts/forces-decisions/llms.txt): Architectural forces, concerns, constraints, architecturally significant requirements, architectural decisions, decision records (ADR), decision management and guidance.
- [Architecture Principles](https://arc.fuet.ch/concepts/principles/llms.txt): Architecture principles and how to write them, modularity, coupling, cohesion, separation of concerns, information hiding.
- [Architecture Tactics](https://arc.fuet.ch/concepts/tactics/llms.txt): Tactics per quality attribute (availability, modifiability, performance, security, safety, ...), how to choose and combine tactics.
- [Architecture Styles and Patterns](https://arc.fuet.ch/concepts/styles-patterns/llms.txt): Architecture styles (layered, pipeline, microkernel, service-based, event-driven, space-based, microservices, ...) and architecture patterns, their trade-offs.
- [Integration](https://arc.fuet.ch/concepts/integration/llms.txt): Integration styles (file transfer, shared database, RPC, messaging), enterprise integration patterns, message channels, routing, the web as connector, APIs.
- [Domain-Driven Design](https://arc.fuet.ch/concepts/domain-driven-design/llms.txt): Ubiquitous language, domain model, bounded context, context map, entities, value objects, aggregates, repositories, domain events, strategic design.
- [Data Architecture](https://arc.fuet.ch/concepts/data-architecture/llms.txt): Conceptual, logical and physical data models, data modelling practice, data storage and data flow concerns.
- [Modeling with UML](https://arc.fuet.ch/concepts/modeling-uml/llms.txt): UML diagram types, notation and semantics (class, component, deployment, sequence, activity, state, use case, ...).
- [Process Modeling with BPMN](https://arc.fuet.ch/concepts/modeling-bpmn/llms.txt): BPMN elements (events, activities, gateways, pools, lanes, messages), process modeling practice, levels of process models.
- [Architecture Documentation](https://arc.fuet.ch/concepts/documentation/llms.txt): arc42, C4 model, ISO/IEC/IEEE 42010 (architecture description, viewpoints, views, models), documentation as code, documenting for stakeholders.
- [Architecture Evaluation](https://arc.fuet.ch/concepts/evaluation/llms.txt): ATAM, scenario-based and lightweight evaluation methods, risks, non-risks, sensitivity points, trade-off points, technical debt.
- [Enterprise Architecture and Frameworks](https://arc.fuet.ch/concepts/enterprise-architecture/llms.txt): Enterprise architecture, architecture frameworks (Zachman, TOGAF, ...), the framework landscape, how software architecture fits into enterprise architecture.

## Glossary

- [Glossary](https://arc.fuet.ch/glossary.md): All concepts A to Z with a one-sentence summary