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| Criterion |  Architecture arc42 |  Architecture Views and Beyond |  Agile Affinity Estimation |  Architecture C4 Model |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | arc42 structures architecture knowledge so teams can document system, decisions, and risks consistently. The template builds a living understanding of the architecture instead of scattered notes. | Views and Beyond organizes architecture into several views so no single diagram has to do everything at once. This makes it possible to choose the representation that fits the stakeholder's question. | When many tasks need to be classified quickly, it sorts them by perceived effort and similarity. It reduces the effort of fine-grained estimation for large volumes. | The C4 Model makes a system legible across several resolution levels, from context down to code. It suits situations where different audiences need to understand the same architecture from different altitudes. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Medium | Medium | Low |
Timedifferent | 1-2 Tage | 1-3 Tage | 30-90 min | 1-4 h |
Participantsdifferent | 1-4 | 1-4 | 3-12 | 1-5 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Architecture Document, Context View, Runtime View, Deployment View | Architecture Views, Cross-view Notes, Rationale | Affinity Size Map, Grouped Estimates, Unclear Items | Context Diagram, Container Diagram, Component Diagram |
Tagsno overlap | ArchitectureDocumentationCommunication | DocumentationStakeholdersArchitecture | EstimationBacklogRelative sizing | ArchitectureCommunicationVisualization |