View methods side by side.
Choose up to four methods. Add them using the search and share the comparison by copying its link.
| Criterion |  Engineering Fault Isolation |  Architecture Architecture Decision Record |  Operations 5 Whys |  Engineering Hypothesis-Driven Troubleshooting |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Purposedifferent | In technical failures, the visible symptom often gets mixed up with the actual cause. Fault Isolation narrows the fault space and progressively reduces which part of the system is truly affected. | 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. | For a single, hard-to-explain deviation, the method exposes the causal chain behind the visible symptom. It keeps the cause open until a controllable condition emerges instead of a mere description. | When systems fail unexpectedly, spontaneous attempts often produce more noise than insight. Hypothesis-driven Troubleshooting translates symptoms into testable assumptions and makes troubleshooting learnable. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | Low | Low | Medium |
Timedifferent | 30-180 min | 15-45 min | 15-30 min | 30-240 min |
Participantsdifferent | 1-6 | 1-3 | 2-6 | 1-6 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Async | Workshop | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Fault Isolation Map, Test Log, Excluded Hypotheses, Narrowed Fault Area | ADR File, Decision Log, Rationale | Root cause notes, Countermeasures | Hypothesis Log, Test Plan, Evidence Notes, Diagnosis Summary |
Tagsno overlap | TroubleshootingDiagnosisEngineering | ArchitectureRationaleDocumentationGovernance | Root causeIncidentLeanProblem solving | TroubleshootingProblem solvingDiagnosis |