Download - TOGAF 9 Enterprise Continuum
Summarised - 2010
The Architecture Continuum illustrates how architectures are developed and
evolved across a continuum ranging from Foundation Architectures, through
Common Systems Architectures, and Industry Architectures, and to an
enterprise’s own Organization-Specific Architectures.
A Foundation Architecture is an architecture of building blocks and
corresponding standards that supports all the Common Systems Architectures
and, therefore, the complete enterprise operating environment.
Common Systems Architectures guide the selection and integration of specific services
from the Foundation Architecture to create an architecture useful for building common
(i.e., highly reusable) solutions across a wide number of relevant domains.
Examples of Common Systems Architectures include: a security architecture, a
management architecture, a network architecture, an operations architecture, etc. Each
is incomplete in terms of overall system functionality, but is complete in terms of a
particular problem domain (security, manageability, networking, operations, etc.), so that
solutions implementing the architecture constitute re-usable building blocks for the
creation of functionally complete operating states of the enterprise.
Industry Architectures guide the integration of common systems components with
industry specific components, and guide the creation of industry solutions for targeted
customer problems within a particular industry.
A typical example of an industry-specific component is a data model representing the
business functions and processes specific to a particular vertical industry
Organization-Specific Architectures are the most relevant to the IT customer community,
since they describe and guide the final deployment of solution components for a
particular enterprise or extended network of connected enterprises.
There may be a variety of Organization-Specific Architectures that are needed to
effectively cover the organization’s requirements by defining the architectures in
increasing levels of detail. Alter natively, this might result in several more detailed
Organization-Specific Architectures for specific entities within the global enterprise.
Foundation Solutions are
highly generic concepts, tools,
products, ser vices, and
solution components that are
the fundamental providers of
capabilities.
A Common Systems Solution is an
implementation of a Common Systems
Architecture comprised of a set of
products and services, which may be
certified or branded. It represents the
highest common denominator for one
or more solutions in the industry
segments that the Common Systems
Solution supports.
An Industry Solution is an
implementation of an Industry
Architecture, which provides re-usable
packages of common components
and services specific to an industry.
An Organization-Specific Solution is an
implementation of the Organization-
Specific Architecture that provides the
required business functions. Because
solutions are designed for specific
business operations, they contain the
highest amount of unique content in order
to accommodate the varying people and
processes of specific organizations
The TOGAF ADM describes the process of developing an enterprise-specific architecture and an enterprise-specific solution(s) which conform to that architecture by adopting and adapting (where appropriate) generic architectures and solutions (left to right in the continuum classification). In a similar fashion, specific architectures and solutions that prove to be credible and effective will be generalized for re-use (right to left in the continuum classification).
TOGAF itself provides two reference models for consideration for use in developing an organization’s architecture:1. The TOGAF Foundation Architecture, which comprises a TRM of generic services and functions
that provides a firm foundation on which more specific architectures and architectural components can be built.
2. The Integrated Information Infrastructure Reference Model (III-RM), which is based on the TOGAF Foundation Architecture, and is specifically designed to help the realization of architectures that enable and support the vision of Boundary less Information Flow.
TOGAF Version 9, The Open Group Architecture Framework (TOGAF), 2009
If you have one last breath use it to say...