Software Architecture coments

Software architecture is a key element in the development of software, in the same way as an architect is a key player in the construction of a building, a software architect plays a very important role when developing software.

If a software project doesn't have a good architecture it will fail dramatically in the future, this means people will encounter a huge number of problems trying to deal with problems that can emerge from the beginning, all the way to the end, or even many years after the project has been completed.

Software architecture is not the same as design, actually they are quite different. Software architecture identifies the key components that the system to develop should have and how these will interact one with another.

The architecture helps to ensure that the there is no repeated work, wasted effort or redundancy, it ensures that all the necessary pieces required for the project are in place and that all the separate sections will come together, just the same way we build Lego structures.

A good system architecture doesn't have to be a long and boring document, in fact it is just the opposite, a proper system architecture should be no larger than a paragraph or a very simple but clear and elegant diagram where the key pieces of the software system are well identified and know there place in the project.

There are many types of architecture style diagrams, the most common diagram is the layered diagram. This diagram shows each main component of the system in a layered structure, being the bottom layer the basis for the next and so on until the most superficial and even esthetic elements that conform the software project.

There are other types of architecture style diagrams, some other examples are the Pipe and Filter, Client/Server, Component Based, Frameworks among others, but the election of which diagram to use depends on the scope and type of the project.