# 3.4.2 Architecture design, ISO 42024 ## Published contents Contents1 Scope2 Normative references3 Terms and definitions4 Architecture concepts4.1 Overview4.2 Architecture and architecting4.3 Architecture design and solution design4.4 Architecture definition and communication4.5 Stakeholder concerns and architectural aspects4.6 Architecture viewpoints and architecture views4.7 Architecture frameworks and architecture description languages4.8 Architecture descriptions and architecture models4.9 Reference architectures and reference models4.10 Life cycle and life history4.11 Architecting precepts5 Architecting principles5.1 Introduction to the principles5.2 Principles about the purpose of an architecture5.3 Principles about the focus of an architecture5.4 Principles about architecting outcomesTerms 3.2 Architecting concepts 3.2.1 Architecture3.2.2 Architecture feature3.2.3 Architecting3.2.4 Architecting principle3.2.5 Architecture principle3.2.6 Architecture framework3.2.7 Reference architecture3.3 Entity related concepts 3.3.1 Entity of interest3.3.2 Solution entity3.3.3 Environment3.3.4 Context3.3.5 Enterprise3.3.6 System3.3.7 Aspect3.3.8 Dimension3.4 Architecture design concepts 3.4.1 Design (noun)3.4.2 Architecture design3.4.3 Architecture information package3.4.4 Engineering effort3.4.5 Solution design3.4.6 Solution information package3.4.7 Stakeholder3.4.8 Stakeholder perspective3.4.9 Concern3.5 Architecture description concepts 3.5.1 Architecture description3.5.2 Solution description3.5.3 Architecture view3.5.4 Architecture viewpoint3.5.5 Model3.5.6 Metamodel3.5.7 Reference model3.6 Entity life cycle concepts 3.6.1 Life cycle3.6.2 Life cycle phase3.6.3 Life cycle stage3.6.4 Life historyAnnexes A.1 Architecture design and solution related entitiesA.2 Architecture expressed as a set of modelsA.3 Life cycle and life history conceptsA.4 Enterprise and system conceptsA.5 Duality of architectural decomposition and architectural synthesisB.1 BackgroundB.2 Aligning architecture in designB.3 Duality of architectureB.4 Pursuit of opportunities Home / Glossary Architecture design concepts · 3.4.2 # Architecture design The information needed, and enough, to create, transform or understand an architecture. It comes out of architecting; it is not the activity, and it includes what is later elaborated in a solution design. - definition - Term - ISO/IEC/IEEE DIS 42024 - Last updated: 2026-10-21 ## What this term settles This is the term that makes the split with solution design workable. Architecture design is a deliverable with a reader and a purpose. It can include architecture descriptions and an architecture information package. Once the term is in use, "the architecture is not finished" becomes a statement about missing information rather than a complaint about the team. ## What to do in your practice Define what architecture design must contain for the firm, in a checklist tied to the purpose. Keep it upstream of solution design in the method, and allow the two to run concurrently only where the interfaces are explicit. Record which decisions are architecture decisions and which are solution decisions. ## Who it binds The role that owns the practice area the term governs. A definition binds nobody on its own; it binds the reader who adopts the term in a method, a description or a contract. ## Evidence an auditor or regulator asks for - The architecture design checklist and a completed example. Shows what the firm considers sufficient architecture design. - A decision split between architecture and solution decisions. An auditor asks who decided what, and at which level. - The handover record to the engineering effort. Shows the design was used as a basis, not filed. - A concurrency note where the two designs ran together. Explains how the team managed the risk of parallel work. Ask your teamWhich information in this design is architecture design, and which is already solution design? ## Common gaps this page catches - One design stage produces both, and no one can say which decision belongs where. - Architecture design is judged by document length rather than sufficiency for the next step. - The handover to engineering is a meeting, not a record. ## What to prepare before publication Take the last major design and split its contents into architecture and solution. Where the split is contested, write the rule the firm will use. Publish the rule with the checklist. ## Common questions What does Architecture design mean in ISO 42024? The information needed, and enough, to create, transform or understand an architecture. It comes out of architecting; it is not the activity, and it includes what is later elaborated in a solution design. What evidence should we keep for 3.4.2? The architecture design checklist and a completed example. A decision split between architecture and solution decisions. The handover record to the engineering effort. ## Related units - 3.4.1 - 3.4.5 - 3.4.3 - 3.2.3 Source. ISO/IEC/IEEE DIS 42024, Clause 3.4.2, Terms and definitions. 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: definition. The definition is in the public preview. This page states it in our own words and does not reproduce the text. Last updated: 2026-10-21 · Markdown version · Check your practice Source: https://iso-42024-revision-checker.theartofservice.com/glossary/architecture-design/