The C4 model, Structurizr vNext, and AI

Simon Brown

The C4 model provides engineering teams a shared language to describe software architecture at different levels of abstraction, and Structurizr is the reference implementation for that shared language. Whether you're new to C4 or have been using Structurizr for years, this session has something for you. We'll start with a brief introduction to the C4 model to understand what the four levels are, why the hierarchy matters, and how to sketch your first diagrams. Next, a short introduction to Structurizr and how you can convert those hand-drawn diagrams into version-controllable Structurizr DSL, creating multiple diagrams from a single consistent model. Familiar with the basics? The second half of the session will look at what's changed recently including Structurizr "vNext" and its new features. Finally, we'll look at the impact of AI, covering the common problems I see with AI-generated software architecture diagrams, how to fix them, and how to get better results from your AI agent if you do want to use it as a tool to assist with diagram generation.

Simon is the creator of the C4 model for visualising software architecture and Structurizr - the original developer-friendly "models as code" tooling for creating version-controlled documentation. He is the author of "The C4 Model" (O'Reilly) and “Software Architecture for Developers” (Leanpub). Over the past 15+ years, Simon has worked with hundreds of organisations across ~40 countries, from startups to global household names in almost every industry sector, helping teams adopt the C4 model and communicate their software architecture more effectively.

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