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 |  Engineering Hypothesis-Driven Troubleshooting |  Architecture arc42 |  Architecture C4 Model |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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. | When systems fail unexpectedly, spontaneous attempts often produce more noise than insight. Hypothesis-driven Troubleshooting translates symptoms into testable assumptions and makes troubleshooting learnable. | 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. | 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 | Medium | Medium | Low | Low |
Timedifferent | 30-180 min | 30-240 min | 1-2 Tage | 1-4 h |
Participantsdifferent | 1-6 | 1-6 | 1-4 | 1-5 |
Formatsame | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async | Workshop + async |
Outputdifferent | Fault Isolation Map, Test Log, Excluded Hypotheses, Narrowed Fault Area | Hypothesis Log, Test Plan, Evidence Notes, Diagnosis Summary | Architecture Document, Context View, Runtime View, Deployment View | Context Diagram, Container Diagram, Component Diagram |
Tagsno overlap | TroubleshootingDiagnosisEngineering | TroubleshootingProblem solvingDiagnosis | ArchitectureDocumentationCommunication | ArchitectureCommunicationVisualization |