Structurizr

Structurizr is a web-based publishing platform for software architecture models created using the Structurizr for Java or Structurizr for .NET open source libraries; allowing you to visualise, document and explore your software architecture using the C4 model.

Structurizr is available as a cloud-based service and an on-premises installation.

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Software architecture diagrams as code

Unlike traditional modeling tools, Structurizr does not provide a "drag and drop" editor to create diagrams. Instead, you create a software architecture model using code and upload it via the web API. Here's a simple example using the "Structurizr for Java" library:

public static void main(String[] args) throws Exception {
    Workspace workspace = new Workspace("Getting Started", "This is a model of my software system.");
    Model model = workspace.getModel();

    Person user = model.addPerson("User", "A user of my software system.");
    SoftwareSystem softwareSystem = model.addSoftwareSystem("Software System", "My software system.");
    user.uses(softwareSystem, "Uses");

    ViewSet viewSet = workspace.getViews();
    SystemContextView contextView = viewSet.createSystemContextView(softwareSystem, "SystemContext", "An example of a System Context diagram.");
    contextView.addAllSoftwareSystems();
    contextView.addAllPeople();

    Styles styles = viewSet.getConfiguration().getStyles();
    styles.addElementStyle(Tags.SOFTWARE_SYSTEM).background("#1168bd").color("#ffffff");
    styles.addElementStyle(Tags.PERSON).background("#08427b").color("#ffffff").shape(Shape.Person);

    StructurizrClient structurizrClient = new StructurizrClient("key", "secret");
    structurizrClient.putWorkspace(25441, workspace);
}

And here's the resulting diagram when you open it in Structurizr, where the layout of the diagrams can be modified.

A diagram key is automatically generated for you, based upon the styles defined in the model.

The following diagram types are supported.

Software documentation as Markdown or AsciiDoc

Explore your software architecture model

Once you have a model of your software system, extracted from your code using static analysis techniques, you can additionally visualise the model in a number of different ways. Structurizr provides some explorations to help you explore the elements and their relationships in the model.

Far too many teams allow their codebases to grow without having an insight into the structure of the code. The result is often the proverbial "big ball of mud"; a codebase that is tangled, hard to understand, hard to work with and hard to change. Visualising the structure of your code is the first step towards improving it.

Software architecture diagrams as text

Structurizr also provides an "Express" feature that allows you to create a single diagram without creating and uploading a workspace via the API. This is useful if you need to quickly create a simple software architecture diagram. To use this feature, simply head to Structurizr Express where you'll find a regular diagram editing page along with some controls on the left to define the diagram.