Quick Start

# Generate architecture diagram from project
python scripts/architecture_diagram_generator.py ./my-project --format mermaid

# Analyze dependencies for issues
python scripts/dependency_analyzer.py ./my-project --output json

# Get architecture assessment
python scripts/project_architect.py ./my-project --verbose

Tools Overview

1. Architecture Diagram Generator

Generates architecture diagrams from project structure in multiple formats.

Solves: "I need to visualize my system architecture for documentation or team discussion"

Input: Project directory path Output: Diagram code (Mermaid, PlantUML, or ASCII)

Supported diagram types:

component - Shows modules and their relationships
layer - Shows architectural layers (presentation, business, data)
deployment - Shows deployment topology

Usage:

# Mermaid format (default)
python scripts/architecture_diagram_generator.py ./project --format mermaid --type component

# PlantUML format
python scripts/architecture_diagram_generator.py ./project --format plantuml --type layer

# ASCII format (terminal-friendly)
python scripts/architecture_diagram_generator.py ./project --format ascii

# Save to file
python scripts/architecture_diagram_generator.py ./project -o architecture.md

Example output (Mermaid):

graph TD
    A[API Gateway] --> B[Auth Service]
    A --> C[User Service]
    B --> D[(PostgreSQL)]
    C --> D

2. Dependency Analyzer

Analyzes project dependencies for coupling, circular dependencies, and outdated packages.

Solves: "I need to understand my dependency tree and identify potential issues"

Input: Project directory path Output: Analysis report (JSON or human-readable)

Analyzes:

Dependency tree (direct and transitive)
Circular dependencies between modules
Coupling score (0-100)
Outdated packages

Supported package managers:

npm/yarn (package.json)
Python (requirements.txt, pyproject.toml)
Go (go.mod)
Rust (Cargo.toml)

Usage:

# Human-readable report
python scripts/dependency_analyzer.py ./project

# JSON output for CI/CD integration
python scripts/dependency_analyzer.py ./project --output json

# Check only for circular dependencies
python scripts/dependency_analyzer.py ./project --check circular

# Verbose mode with recommendations
python scripts/dependency_analyzer.py ./project --verbose

Example output:

Dependency Analysis Report
==========================
Total dependencies: 47 (32 direct, 15 transitive)
Coupling score: 72/100 (moderate)

Issues found:
- CIRCULAR: auth → user → permissions → auth
- OUTDATED: lodash 4.17.15 → 4.17.21 (security)

Recommendations:
1. Extract shared interface to break circular dependency
2. Update lodash to fix CVE-2020-8203

3. Project Architect

Analyzes project structure and detects architectural patterns, code smells, and improvement opportunities.

Solves: "I want to understand the current architecture and identify areas for improvement"

Input: Project directory path Output: Architecture assessment report

Detects:

Architectural patterns (MVC, layered, hexagonal, microservices indicators)
Code organization issues (god classes, mixed concerns)
Layer violations
Missing architectural components

Usage:

# Full assessment
python scripts/project_architect.py ./project

# Verbose with detailed recommendations
python scripts/project_architect.py ./project --verbose

# JSON output
python scripts/project_architect.py ./project --output json

# Check specific aspect
python scripts/project_architect.py ./project --check layers

Example output:

Architecture Assessment
=======================
Detected pattern: Layered Architecture (confidence: 85%)

Structure analysis:
  ✓ controllers/  - Presentation layer detected
  ✓ services/     - Business logic layer detected
  ✓ repositories/ - Data access layer detected
  ⚠ models/       - Mixed domain and DTOs

Issues:
- LARGE FILE: UserService.ts (1,847 lines) - consider splitting
- MIXED CONCERNS: PaymentController contains business logic

Recommendations:
1. Split UserService into focused services
2. Move business logic from controllers to services
3. Separate domain models from DTOs

Decision Workflows

Database Selection Workflow

Use when choosing a database for a new project or migrating existing data.

Step 1: Identify data characteristics

Characteristic	Points to SQL	Points to NoSQL
Structured with relationships	✓
ACID transactions required	✓
Flexible/evolving schema		✓
Document-oriented data		✓
Time-series data		✓ (specialized)

Step 2: Evaluate scale requirements

<1M records, single region → PostgreSQL or MySQL
1M-100M records, read-heavy → PostgreSQL with read replicas
100M records, global distribution → CockroachDB, Spanner, or DynamoDB
High write throughput (>10K/sec) → Cassandra or ScyllaDB

Step 3: Check consistency requirements

Strong consistency required → SQL or CockroachDB
Eventual consistency acceptable → DynamoDB, Cassandra, MongoDB

Step 4: Document decision Create an ADR (Architecture Decision Record) with:

Context and requirements
Options considered
Decision and rationale
Trade-offs accepted

Quick reference:

PostgreSQL → Default choice for most applications
MongoDB    → Document store, flexible schema
Redis      → Caching, sessions, real-time features
DynamoDB   → Serverless, auto-scaling, AWS-native
TimescaleDB → Time-series data with SQL interface

Architecture Pattern Selection Workflow

Use when designing a new system or refactoring existing architecture.

Step 1: Assess team and project size

Team Size	Recommended Starting Point
1-3 developers	Modular monolith
4-10 developers	Modular monolith or service-oriented
10+ developers	Consider microservices

Step 2: Evaluate deployment requirements

Single deployment unit acceptable → Monolith
Independent scaling needed → Microservices
Mixed (some services scale differently) → Hybrid

Step 3: Consider data boundaries

Shared database acceptable → Monolith or modular monolith
Strict data isolation required → Microservices with separate DBs
Event-driven communication fits → Event-sourcing/CQRS

Step 4: Match pattern to requirements

Requirement	Recommended Pattern
Rapid MVP development	Modular Monolith
Independent team deployment	Microservices
Complex domain logic	Domain-Driven Design
High read/write ratio difference	CQRS
Audit trail required	Event Sourcing
Third-party integrations	Hexagonal/Ports & Adapters

See references/architecture_patterns.md for detailed pattern descriptions.

Monolith vs Microservices Decision

Choose Monolith when:

Team is small (<10 developers)
Domain boundaries are unclear
Rapid iteration is priority
Operational complexity must be minimized
Shared database is acceptable

Choose Microservices when:

Teams can own services end-to-end
Independent deployment is critical
Different scaling requirements per component
Technology diversity is needed
Domain boundaries are well understood

Hybrid approach: Start with a modular monolith. Extract services only when:

A module has significantly different scaling needs
A team needs independent deployment
Technology constraints require separation

Reference Documentation

Load these files for detailed information:

File	Contains	Load when user asks about
`references/architecture_patterns.md`	9 architecture patterns with trade-offs, code examples, and when to use	"which pattern?", "microservices vs monolith", "event-driven", "CQRS"
`references/system_design_workflows.md`	6 step-by-step workflows for system design tasks	"how to design?", "capacity planning", "API design", "migration"
`references/tech_decision_guide.md`	Decision matrices for technology choices	"which database?", "which framework?", "which cloud?", "which cache?"

Tech Stack Coverage

Languages: TypeScript, JavaScript, Python, Go, Swift, Kotlin, Rust Frontend: React, Next.js, Vue, Angular, React Native, Flutter Backend: Node.js, Express, FastAPI, Go, GraphQL, REST Databases: PostgreSQL, MySQL, MongoDB, Redis, DynamoDB, Cassandra Infrastructure: Docker, Kubernetes, Terraform, AWS, GCP, Azure CI/CD: GitHub Actions, GitLab CI, CircleCI, Jenkins

Common Commands

# Architecture visualization
python scripts/architecture_diagram_generator.py . --format mermaid
python scripts/architecture_diagram_generator.py . --format plantuml
python scripts/architecture_diagram_generator.py . --format ascii

# Dependency analysis
python scripts/dependency_analyzer.py . --verbose
python scripts/dependency_analyzer.py . --check circular
python scripts/dependency_analyzer.py . --output json

# Architecture assessment
python scripts/project_architect.py . --verbose
python scripts/project_architect.py . --check layers
python scripts/project_architect.py . --output json

Getting Help

Run any script with --help for usage information
Check reference documentation for detailed patterns and workflows
Use --verbose flag for detailed explanations and recommendations

senior-architect

Senior Architect

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