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| Criterion |  Architecture Architecture Decision Record |  Decision Making Trade-off Analysis |  Decision Making Constraint Analysis |
|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | An ADR permanently records an architecture decision with context, trade-offs, and consequence. It creates continuity for later changes because the decision path stays traceable. | With limited resources, quality, speed, cost, and risk almost always compete with each other. Trade-off Analysis makes these tensions explicit and prevents decisions from producing hidden side effects. | When an initiative stalls, the limit often lies not in the idea but in hard or soft boundary conditions. Constraint Analysis separates these limits and shows which of them can actually be shaped. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Medium | Low |
Timedifferent | 15-45 min | 45-120 min | 30-90 min |
Participantsdifferent | 1-3 | 2-8 | 2-8 |
Formatdifferent | Async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | ADR File, Decision Log, Rationale | Trade-off Matrix, Criteria List, Decision Rationale, Accepted Downsides | Constraint List, Hard/Soft Classification, Option Impact Notes, Decision Boundaries |
Tagsno overlap | ArchitectureRationaleDocumentationGovernance | TradeoffsDecisionCriteriaOptions | ConstraintsDecisionPlanningOptions |
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