C4 Notation

Technical resources for using the C4 model for visualizing software architecture.

What is This?

The contents of this repository should help you with putting the C4 model into action, by providing relevant documentation, links, and technical artifacts (tools and media files).

Planned:

• SVG notation shapes (for yEd or InkScape).
• Documentation samples, possibly in notebook form.

How to Use This?

Right now, notation holds subfolders for different SVG symbol themes including default. The latter is created according to the samples on c4model.com.

A legend.svg file holds all symbols and can be used directly as a legend insert. For different color schemes and specialized container types, create variants of that file for specific projects or your own common stencil.

TODOs:

• Write a script that extracts symbols into their own SVG files.
• Explore how a yEd symbol group can be created (instead of importing single images).

Related Projects

Media / Resources

• skleanthous/C4-PlantumlSkin – Skinning to create C4 diagrams using PlantUML.
• tmorin/plantuml-libs/c4model – Library implementing elements respecting the C4 Model.
• RicardoNiepel/c4-PlantUML – c4-PlantUML combines the benefits of PlantUML and the C4 model for providing a simple way to describe and communicate software architectures.
• pihalve/c4model-visio-stencil – Visio stencil with C4 model shapes.

Software

• mrich316/docker-sphinx-doc-builder – Docker image for a Sphinx documentation builder, with an included C4 PlantUML skin.
• ysholomii/structurizr_py – Python client library for Structurizr.
• Introducing Structurizr Express

Text Diagrams:

• https://github.com/plantuml/plantuml
• https://github.com/knsv/mermaid
• https://github.com/skanaar/nomnoml
• https://github.com/jaime-olivares/yuml-diagram
• https://github.com/aivarsk/scruffy
• https://github.com/ivanceras/svgbob

Examples

• clarity-h2020/csis-architecture – Architecture of the EU H2020 Project “Integrated Climate Adaptation Service Tools for Improving Resilience Measure Efficiency”, see CLARITY D4.2 CLARITY CSIS Architecture for end results.