Architectural decision
lastmod 2026-05-29created 2026-05-293 edits
In software engineering and software architecture design, architectural decisions are design decisions that address architecturally significant requirements; they are perceived as hard to make and/or costly to change.
Architecture Decision Records
- Overview of architecture decision records | Cloud Architecture Center | Google Cloud Documentation
- Architecture Decision Records (ADR)
- Architecture Decision Records (Architecture Decisions Records; ADR)
- ADR process - AWS Prescriptive Guidance
- Applying Architecture Decision Records(ADR) in practice | by Sungyong | Medium
- Why you should write ADRs | GeekNews
- [Original] Why Write ADRs
Architecture decision records (ADRs) make it easy for infrastructure or application teams to explain why they chose a particular design. This document describes when and how to use ADRs when you build and run applications on Google Cloud.
An ADR contains the main options available, the core requirements that influence the decision, and the design decision itself. ADRs are often stored in Markdown files close to the codebase related to that decision. When you need to check the background of a particular architectural decision, such as why regional Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE) clusters are used, you can review the ADR and the related code.
ADRs can also help you run applications and services more reliably. ADRs help you check the current state and troubleshoot when there is a problem. ADRs also build a collection of engineering decisions that helps you choose and deploy future decisions.