Architecture decision record
An architecture decision record is a document that captures an architectural decision, its context, rationale, and consequences.
Authorization in Action
An architectural decision record is a version-controlled document that captures the context, rationale, decision, consequences, and related artifacts for an architectural choice.
- How it is used
- Connects authorization intent with policy implementation, review, compliance evidence, and operational accountability.
- How deep it goes
- Defines ADR contents and governance uses, but stops short of prescribing a specific template or implementation syntax.
- Examples
- Uses policy files, ADR identifiers, regulatory metadata, version histories, test results, decision logs, and incident references.
- What you can do after
- Evaluate/understand authorization choices by tracing documented intent through policy logic, review, testing, deployment, and runtime behavior.
Read how Authorization in Action explains architecture decision record →
Collaborative Software Design: How to facilitate domain modeling decisions
A structured document that records an architectural decision, its context, and its consequences.
- How it is used
- Formalizes collaborative architectural choices for future reference, stakeholder communication, and continued design feedback.
- How deep it goes
- Defines five core fields and flexible formats, then connects ADRs to tradeoffs, stakeholder inclusion, diagrams, and living documentation.
- Examples
- Uses a BigScreen architecture redesign, an ADR canvas, Pros-Cons-and-Fixes lists, and distilled collaborative modeling diagrams.
- What you can do after
- Document decisions clearly, involve affected stakeholders asynchronously, and update records as context and understanding change.
The Design of Web APIs, Second Edition
An architectural decision record is a documented record of a significant software or API design decision, including its rationale, alternatives, and consequences.
- How it is used
- Records and justifies significant API design decisions, preserving a decision log for later explanation and reuse.
- How deep it goes
- Explains context, alternatives, pros and cons, reasoning, consequences, and sources, but remains a concise format overview.
- Examples
- Uses resource ID property naming, MADR Markdown files, wiki pages, and decision-log entries as concrete artifacts.
- What you can do after
- Build justified API decisions that can inform consistent, efficient, secure, and interoperable design guidelines.
Read how The Design of Web APIs, Second Edition explains architecture decision record →
Related concepts
- architectural decisionuses · An architectural decision is a choice about the significant structure, behavior, interactions, or technical constraints of a software system.
- design documentcontrasts with · A design document is written material describing an intended software design, including its structure, technical decisions, rationale, constraints, or implementation considerations.
- artificial intelligenceused by · Artificial intelligence is the field concerned with creating computational systems that perform tasks associated with human intelligence, such as learning, reasoning, perception, or decision-making.
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