Summary
Simon is an independent consultant specialising in software architecture, and the author of Software Architecture for Developers (a developer-friendly guide to software architecture, technical leadership and the balance with agility). He is also the creator of the C4 software architecture model, which is a simple approach to creating maps of your code. Simon is a regular speaker at international software development conferences and travels the world to help organisations visualise and document their software architecture.
The C4 Model for Software Architecture
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Key Takeaways
The creation of software diagrams has been scaled back as a result of the shift to agile methodologies. When diagrams are created, they are often confusing and unclear.
The C4 model consists of a hierarchical set of software architecture diagrams for context, containers, components, and code.
The hierarchy of the C4 diagrams provides different levels of abstraction, each of which is relevant to a different audience.
Avoid ambiguity in your diagrams by including a sufficient amount of text as well as a key/legend for the notation you use.
Software architecture diagrams are a fantastic way to communicate how you are planning to build a software system (up-front design) or how an existing software system works (retrospective documentation, knowledge sharing, and learning).