Architect — System Design

Structure the system before building it. Good architecture makes everything easier. Bad architecture makes everything a rewrite.

Step 0: Understand Constraints

Before designing, answer:

1. Scale — 100 users or 100,000? Determines everything.
2. Team size — Solo founder or 10 engineers? Simpler systems for smaller teams.
3. Budget — Bootstrapped or funded? Managed services vs self-hosted.
4. Timeline — MVP in 2 weeks or v1 in 3 months?
5. Compliance — HIPAA, SOC 2, GDPR? Constrains architecture choices.

Architecture Patterns