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Terminology

2225 terms, tools, patterns and metrics an architect is expected to use precisely. Each one gets a short explanation of what it is, and — where it matters — what it is commonly confused with. Search filters as you type; the column headers sort.

All areas2225 Architecture Fundamentals77 Distributed Systems107 Data Architecture110 Cloud Architecture94 Networking88 API & Integration Architecture82 Reliability & Resilience75 Observability70 Performance & Capacity Engineering72 Security Architecture86 Cost Architecture & FinOps71 Business Architecture67 Architecture Communication67 Enterprise Architecture66 Legacy Modernization71 AI-Era Architecture74 Software Architecture & Engineering71 Architecture Patterns71 Architecture Decision-Making63 The Architect's Meta-Skills61 Delivery & Release Engineering66 Platform Engineering & Developer Experience70 Testing & Quality Architecture66 Data Platform Architecture69 Streaming & Real-Time Data69 Data Governance & Semantics74 Frontend & Experience Architecture66 Edge, Mobile & IoT68 Regulatory & Data Protection Architecture65 Assurance, Audit & Model Risk69
Kind Any concept801 practice736 pattern377 metric127 case-study77 tool62 protocol45

16 terms shown.

Term Kind Topic What it is
Aggregation Threshold Policy Minimum Cohort Rule, k-Threshold Output Policy pattern Data Sharing & Clean Rooms A rule that only returns results computed over at least a minimum number of subjects, plus limits on overlapping queries, so that shared analytics cannot be resolved back to an individual.
Computation-Only Collaboration pattern Data Sharing & Clean Rooms Two parties analysing their combined data without either receiving the other's records, by permitting only queries whose outputs are aggregate.
Data Clean Room pattern Data Sharing & Clean Rooms A controlled environment where two parties analyse their combined data without either gaining access to the other's raw records.
Data Contract Producer Contract, Schema Agreement, Published Interface pattern Data Contracts An explicit agreement between a data producer and its consumers covering schema, semantics, quality and change policy - which converts an implicit dependency on someone else's internal table into a managed int…
Data Contract pattern Data Contracts An explicit, versioned, enforceable agreement between a data producer and its consumers covering schema, semantics, quality and delivery.
Deletion Propagation Purge Fanout, Erasure Propagation pattern Retention & Purge The mechanism that carries a deletion from the primary store to every derived copy - which is where retention and erasure obligations are actually met or missed.
Dynamic Data Masking Query-Time Masking, Policy-Applied Redaction pattern Tokenisation & Masking Redacting a column's value as the query returns it, based on who is asking - so one physical table serves cleared and uncleared audiences, while every object derived from it escapes the rule.
Just-in-Time Data Access Time-Boxed Data Grant, Expiring Analytical Access pattern Data Access Models Replacing permanent read grants with short-lived grants issued on request with a recorded purpose, so that entitlement decays by default instead of accumulating for as long as someone stays employed.
Metric Definition Layer pattern Semantic Layer Business metrics defined once in a versioned, tested place and served to every consuming tool, so the number cannot differ by which tool asked.
Partition Immutability Promise Closed Partition Guarantee, Correction-Row Policy pattern Data Products A published commitment that once a time partition is closed its rows will never change, with corrections issued as new rows - so consumers can checkpoint and reconcile instead of reloading history.
Predicate-Based Filtering pattern Row & Column-Level Security A policy that appends a filter to every query on a table based on who is asking, so one physical table serves many audiences safely.
Purpose-Based Access pattern Data Access Models Granting access for a stated and recorded purpose rather than by role alone, which is what several data protection regimes actually require.
Row-Level Security RLS, Fine-Grained Access Control pattern Row & Column-Level Security Access control enforced by the data platform on which rows a given principal can see, rather than by each application or query.
Semantic Layer Metrics Layer, Headless BI pattern Semantic Layer A single governed definition of business metrics and entities, sitting between physical tables and every consuming tool.
Tokenisation pattern Tokenisation & Masking Replacing a sensitive value with a meaningless surrogate, where the mapping back is held in a separate, tightly controlled vault.
Unmerge Capability Merge Reversal, Split-Back pattern Master Data Management The designed ability to reverse an incorrect entity merge and restore both original records, which requires that source keys and pre-merge attribute values were never destroyed.