- Created by Robert Reiner, last modified on 21. Jun 2023
projectdoc Toolbox
Provides doctypes to document a system or software architecture based on the arc42 Template.
Overview
This free add-on for the projectdoc Toolbox provides blueprints to bring the arc42 Template to the Confluence team collaboration platform for easy use.
arc42 supports software- and system architects. It is based upon practical experience of many architecture projects of different sizes and domains. It includes feedback of its many users.
arc42.org
arc42 contains a template for development, documentation and communication of software architectures.
arc42 fits arbitrary technologies and tools.
arc42 therefore ensures better software- and system architectures.
For more information on the arc42 Template, please visit its homepage at arc42.org!
arc42 is owned by
Dr. Peter Hruschka & Dr. Gernot Starke
projectdoc Toolbox makes it easier for teams to create and maintain a modular documentation they can collaboratively work with. The arc42 Template bring this modular information into a well-know structure. This enhances the usability of the architecture documentation since many software developers and architects know how to document their software and systems architecture with arc42.
Simply put:
Create by wizard, don't copy-paste
English and German by Default
All doctype add-ons are available in English and German language (except for the V-Modell XT add-on for which only German is supported).
For more information on this topic please refer to Localization.
Space Wizard
Instead of copying spaces around, create one with the space wizard.
This will create a space with the arc42 Template.
The main page of has references to documents for each section of the arc42 template.
Get Started!
We strongly recommend to read How to document a Software Development Project to get started using the projectdoc Toolbox to work on your arc42 Template.
Add the arc42 Template
If you want to add the arc42 Template to an existing space, use the page blueprint 'arc42 SWAD'.
Page Wizard
Instead of copying pages around, just select a blueprint to create a new page based on a template like Blackbox, Architecture Decision, or Interface!
The new page contains in its sections information about how to work with the template.
Get a quick and more detailed impression on how the arc42 Template on Confluence 5 looks like!
Also check out the live example HTML Sanity Checker Architecture Documentation (based on the original example on GitHub)!
projectdoc provides additional templates that help you document your software project that are not or only loosely related to architecture documentation.
Prerequisites
The projectdoc Add-on for arc42 uses templates from the Core Doctypes for projectdoc (like Role or Stakeholder) and from the Software Development Doctypes (like Architecture Decision or View).
Both Add-ons are available on the Atlassian Marketplace for free. Note that the projectdoc Toolbox has a commercial license.
Please install the following add-ons in your Confluence server:
List of Doctypes for Software Development
The following doctypes help to document your software projects.
# | Name | Short Description |
---|---|---|
1 | arc42 Template | The blueprint of the arc42 Template creates a tree of pages in the Confluence space. |
More useful software development templates are part of the Software Development Doctypes.
arc42 supports different formats to create your system or software architecture. While a wiki helps team members from different fields (especially fields where using a SCM server is not daily business), developers by their own often strive for a format where they do not have to install extra software and are able to check-in the documentation along with their code.
Ralf Müller manages a couple of projects on GitHub to use the arc42 Template with asciidoc.
Resources
These resources provide additional information on creating system and software documentation in your wiki using the arc42 Template and the projectdoc Toolbox.
Name | Short Description | Doctype |
---|---|---|
There is no one-size-fits-all for documenting software projects. What we do is giving you an introduction on how to get started with the projectdoc Toolbox and the Software Development Add-on to define your documentation requirements with Confluence. | topic | |
An example of an software architecture documentation based on the arc42 Template on Confluence 5 with projectdoc and the projectdoc Add-on for arc42. | project | |
Tour through the documentation for users who want to learn to create documents based on projectdoc doctypes. | tour | |
Doctypes define properties and sections for documents. They are essentially Confluence Blueprints that help to create pages in your wiki based on templates. | docsection | |
List of macros provided by the projectdoc Toolbox. | docsection | |
#arc42 | Track the arc42 hashtag on Twitter! | - |
arc42 – Architekturen effektiv kommunizieren | Blog article by Gernot Starke about the latest version of the arc42 Template (in German). | Blog Article |