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Terminology

2205 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 areas2205 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 Architecture69 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 Architecture64 Streaming & Real-Time Data69 Data Governance & Semantics69 Frontend & Experience Architecture66 Edge, Mobile & IoT68 Regulatory & Data Protection Architecture65 Assurance, Audit & Model Risk64
Kind Any concept794 practice734 pattern368 metric125 case-study77 tool62 protocol45

5 terms shown.

Term Kind Topic What it is
Branch by Abstraction pattern Refactoring Making a large change incrementally on the trunk by introducing an abstraction over the old implementation, building the new one behind it, then removing the abstraction.
Preparatory Refactoring Enabling Refactor, Prepare-Then-Change practice Refactoring Reshaping existing code first so the behaviour change that follows is small, keeping the two in separate commits with separate claims about what is true.
Quality Ratchet Boy Scout Rule, Improvement Ratchet practice Refactoring An automated rule ensuring a codebase can only improve on a chosen dimension - new code meets the standard, existing code improves when touched, and regression is blocked.
Refactoring Under Test practice Refactoring Changing internal structure without changing behaviour, with tests as the mechanism that makes the claim verifiable.
Shadow Planning Plan Shadowing, Shadow Query Planning, Dry-Run Routing practice Refactoring Running a new routing or planning layer over live production traffic without serving its results, so the work it cannot handle is enumerated from real usage rather than from reading code.