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| Criterion | ![]() Engineering Fault Isolation | ![]() Business Strategy Value Chain Analysis | ![]() Architecture arc42 | ![]() Architecture Architecture Decision Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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. | Value Chain Analysis shows where value is created, costs accrue, and differentiation becomes possible along the process. It compares strengths, risks, market logic, and courses of action. The result is captured as a value-chain map and lever list. | 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. | 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. |
Complexitydifferent | Medium | High | Low | Low |
Timedifferent | 30-180 min | Half day | 1-2 Tage | 15-45 min |
Participantsdifferent | 1-6 | 3-8 | 1-4 | 1-3 |
Formatdifferent | Workshop + async | Workshop | Workshop + async | Async |
Outputdifferent | Fault Isolation Map, Test Log, Excluded Hypotheses, Narrowed Fault Area | Value Chain Map, Lever List | Architecture Document, Context View, Runtime View, Deployment View | ADR File, Decision Log, Rationale |
Tagsno overlap | TroubleshootingDiagnosisEngineering | StrategyBusiness modelDiagnosisAnalysis | ArchitectureDocumentationCommunication | ArchitectureRationaleDocumentationGovernance |



