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| Criterion | ![]() Decision Making Constraint Analysis | ![]() Architecture Architecture Decision Record | ![]() Architecture Views and Beyond | ![]() Architecture arc42 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | 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. | 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. | 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. | 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. |
Complexitydifferent | Low | Low | Medium | Low |
Timedifferent | 30-90 min | 15-45 min | 1-3 Tage | 1-2 Tage |
Participantsdifferent | 2-8 | 1-3 | 1-4 | 1-4 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Constraint List, Hard/Soft Classification, Option Impact Notes, Decision Boundaries | ADR File, Decision Log, Rationale | Architecture Views, Cross-view Notes, Rationale | Architecture Document, Context View, Runtime View, Deployment View |
Tagsno overlap | ConstraintsDecisionPlanningOptions | ArchitectureRationaleDocumentationGovernance | DocumentationStakeholdersArchitecture | ArchitectureDocumentationCommunication |



