Basic Viewpoints

The basic Viewpoints are a reference or starting point for architectural descriptions and for creating meaningful and useful models. They act as a catalyst for an architect, allowing that person to get some modeled content down, thus removing the 'canvas-fright' syndrome that tends to paralyze progress. They are useful in supporting peer reviews, fostering organizational standards and helping novice modelers or newcomers to a domain. The ArchiMate specification has included all the Viewpoints as examples and it is well to remember that they should be tailored to suit the stakeholders who will ultimately need to digest the material. The basic Viewpoints are primarily intended for the architecture community. Some Viewpoints are limited to a single layer while others can contain elements from multiple layers.

Table of Basic Viewpoints

This table lists the example Basic Viewpoints.

Name	Description	See also
Organization	Structure of the enterprise in terms of roles, departments, etc.	Organization Viewpoint
Application Structure	Shows the structure of a typical application in terms of its constituents.	Application Structure Viewpoint
Information Structure	Shows the structure of the information used in the enterprise.	Information Structure Viewpoint
Technology	Infrastructure and platforms underlying the enterprise’s information systems in terms of networks, devices, and system software.	Technology Viewpoint
Layered	Provides overview of architecture(s).	Layered Viewpoint
Physical	Physical environment and how this relates to IT infrastructure.	Physical Viewpoint
Product	Shows the contents of products.	Product Viewpoint
Application Usage	Relates applications to their use in, for example, business processes.	Application Usage Viewpoint
Technology Usage	Shows how technology is used by applications.	Technology Usage Viewpoint
Business Process Cooperation	Shows the relationships between various business processes.	Business Process Cooperation Viewpoint
Application Cooperation	Shows application components and their mutual relationships.	Application Cooperation Viewpoint
Service Realization	Shows how services are realized by the requisite behavior.	Service Realization Viewpoint
Implementation and Deployment	Shows how applications are mapped onto the underlying technology.	Implementation and Deployment Viewpoint