Portfolio ↗

Terminology

2240 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 areas2240 Architecture Fundamentals77 Distributed Systems107 Data Architecture110 Cloud Architecture94 Networking88 API & Integration Architecture82 Reliability & Resilience80 Observability75 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 Architecture71 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 concept806 practice738 pattern379 metric133 case-study77 tool62 protocol45

74 terms shown.

Term Kind Topic What it is
Seasonality-Aware Threshold Same-Weekday Baseline, Seasonal Band practice Data Quality Dimensions Setting a data quality alarm against the comparable period rather than the previous one, so that a business's own weekly and monthly rhythm does not generate alerts nobody can act on.
Self-Service versus Governed concept Self-Service vs Governed Balancing analyst autonomy against consistency — resolved by tiers and enforced definitions rather than by restricting access.
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.
Sensitivity Labelling Data Classification Tagging practice Sensitivity Labelling Attaching a machine-readable classification to data at the column or asset level, so that downstream controls can be applied automatically.
Sensitivity Propagation concept Sensitivity Labelling The rule that a derived dataset inherits the highest sensitivity of its inputs unless a named transformation demonstrably lowers it.
Silent Data Failure No Error, Plausibly Wrong, Quiet Breakage concept Data Observability A data problem that produces no error - the pipeline succeeded, the schema was valid, the numbers were plausible - which is why error-based monitoring cannot detect it and why it persists for weeks.
Steward Accountability practice Data Stewardship Making stewardship a defined role with time, authority and consequences, rather than a title added to somebody's existing job.
Stewardship Escalation Path Data Decision Route, Definition Arbitration Path practice Data Stewardship The named route and time limit by which a disagreement a steward cannot settle reaches someone entitled to decide it, without which stewardship produces opinions rather than rulings.
Survivorship Rules Golden Record Rules, Attribute Precedence practice Master Data Management Per-attribute rules deciding which source's value wins when several systems hold a different value for the same entity - the part of master data management that determines whether the golden record is trusted.
Term Definition Ownership practice Business Glossary Assigning one accountable owner per business term, so that a disagreement about meaning has a route to resolution rather than a standing argument.
Token Domain Entropy Tokenised Value Space, Surrogate Input Entropy concept Tokenisation & Masking The size and guessability of the value space a deterministic token is computed from, which decides whether that token is a usable pseudonym or a lookup key an attacker can rebuild without ever touching the vault.
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.
Zero-Audience Report Unopened Report, Report Audience Count metric BI Governance A published dashboard with no viewer in a defined window, which is the only decommissioning candidate that can be retired without an argument - and the cheapest available measure of BI sprawl.