ISO 42024 Revision Checker
ISO/IEC/IEEE DIS 42024 · Enterprise, systems and software, Architecture fundamentals Stage 40.99 Planning date 15 Sep 2027, an estimate 35 terms · 20 clause areas · 9 annex sections

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Annex A, Notes on terms and concepts · A.2

Architecture expressed as a set of models

The subclause is the second note in Annex A, on an architecture expressed as a set of models. It builds on model (3.5.5), metamodel (3.5.6) and architecture description (3.5.1).

  • annex section, status not stated in the public preview
  • Annex section
  • ISO/IEC/IEEE DIS 42024
  • Last updated: 2026-10-21

What this unit settles

The note addresses the common situation in which the architecture is available only as a collection of models. That is not the same as an architecture description, and the note is the place where the document connects the two. A firm that treats a model set as the description should expect an audit finding about readability and purpose.

What to do in your practice

For each model set, ask what description it supports and who reads it. If the answer is a tool team only, the set is an engineering asset, not an architecture description. Build the description layer explicitly. Ask the modelling team to produce a one page description for a stakeholder who will never open the tool. The exercise exposes the difference between a model that is correct and a description that is usable, and it usually takes less time than the team expects.

Who it binds

The architecture practice, as a note. The public preview does not state the annex status, so this page does not claim one.

Evidence an auditor or regulator asks for

  • A model set inventory with the description each supports.
    An auditor asks what the models are for.
  • The reader and purpose per description.
    Shows the description is designed for use.
  • The metamodel and notation record.
    Shows the models are interpretable.
  • A sample description produced from the models.
    Proves the layer exists.
Ask your teamCan a stakeholder read this architecture without opening the modelling tool?

Common gaps this page catches

  • The model repository is presented as the architecture description.
  • No description layer exists.
  • The metamodel is undocumented.

What to prepare before publication

Choose one model set and produce a description layer for it. Name the reader. The work is usually a day and it changes the audit answer completely.

Common questions

What does Architecture expressed as a set of models mean in ISO 42024?
The subclause is the second note in Annex A, on an architecture expressed as a set of models. It builds on model (3.5.5), metamodel (3.5.6) and architecture description (3.5.1).
What evidence should we keep for A.2?
A model set inventory with the description each supports. The reader and purpose per description. The metamodel and notation record.

Related units

Source. ISO/IEC/IEEE DIS 42024, Annex A.2, published contents. Open the official record. Retrieved 21 October 2026.

https://www.iso.org/obp/ui/en/#iso:std:iso-iec-ieee:42024:dis:ed-1:v1:en

ISO catalogue record 87510, the status, stage and page count.

Claim level: annex section, status not stated in the public preview. The annex title and subclause title are in the public preview. The body text is not public.

Last updated: 2026-10-21 · Markdown version · Check your practice