IEEE Conceptual Framework For Architecture Description
IEEE 1471 uses the following conceptual framework.
- A system’s environment, or context', can influence that system. The environment can include other systems that interact with the system of interest, either directly via interfaces or indirectly in other ways. The environment determines the boundaries that define the scope of the system of interest relative to other systems.
- A system has one or more stakeholders. Each stakeholder typically has interests in, or concerns relative to, that system.
- Concerns are those interests which pertain to the system’s development, its operation or any other aspects that are critical or otherwise important to one or more stakeholders. Concerns include system considerations such as performance, reliability, security, distribution, and evolvability.
- A system exists to fulfill one or more missions in its environment. A mission is a use or operation for which a system is intended by one or more stakeholders to meet some set of objectives.
- Every system has an architecture, whether understood or not; whether recorded or conceptual. An architecture can be recorded by an architectural description.
- An architectural description is organized into one or more constituents called (architectural) views. Each view addresses one or more of the concerns of the system stakeholders. A view is a partial expression of a system’s architecture with respect to a particular viewpoint.
- A viewpoint establishes the conventions by which a view is created, depicted and analyzed. In this way, a view conforms to a viewpoint. The viewpoint determines the languages (including notations, model, or product types) to be used to describe the view, and any associated modeling methods or analysis techniques to be applied to these representations of the view. These languages and techniques are used to yield results relevant to the concerns addressed by the viewpoint.
- An architectural description selects one or more viewpoints for use. The selection of viewpoints is typically based on consideration of the stakeholders to whom the AD is addressed and their concerns. A viewpoint definition may originate with an AD, or it may have been defined elsewhere (a library viewpoint).
- A view may consist of one or more architectural models. Each such architectural model is developed using the methods established by its associated architectural viewpoint. An architectural model may participate in more than one view.
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