Key Concepts

Before diving in, familiarize yourself with these core concepts that underpin everything in DesignFoundry.

Objects

Objects are the atomic units of your architecture model. Each object has a type (Application, Capability, Technology, etc.) and a set of properties (name, description, owner, lifecycle status).

Application: "SAP ERP"  →  type: Application  →  owner: IT Dept
Capability: "Order Management"  →  type: Capability  →  layer: Business

Object Types

Object types define the categories available in your platform. DesignFoundry ships with a set of built-in types organized by ArchiMate layer:

Business — Capability, Business Actor, Business Service, Business Process
Application — Application Component, Application Interface, Application Service, Data Object
Technology — Technology Service, Technology Function, Node, Communication Path, Artifact

You can extend the type system with custom object types via content packs.

Relationships

Relationships connect objects and describe how they interact:

Relationship	Meaning
`serves`	A serves B (upstream dependency)
`realizes`	A realizes B (implementation)
`uses`	A uses B (calls/invokes)
`associates`	A is related to B (general link)
`triggers`	A triggers B (event causation)

Diagrams

Diagrams visualize subsets of your inventory as graphical models. You can create multiple diagrams for the same set of objects — a single canonical object can appear in many diagrams.

Projects

Projects provide isolated workspaces so multiple teams can work independently. Each project has its own inventory, diagrams, and access controls.

Content Packs

Content packs are declarative bundles that extend the platform with:

Custom object types and relationship types
Pre-populated reference architectures
Custom fields (extensions)
Diagram templates

See the Content Packs guide for details.