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ArchTect Docs
Open source and architect first

Draw it. Write it. Ask AI.
One architecture, always in sync.

ArchTect is a visual, AI-assisted IDE for Structurizr DSL. Design on the canvas, write the DSL by hand, or prompt an AI to model it — every change stays in sync across all three.
Try ArchTect →Explore the docs

Animated architecture diagram showing the BigBank system landscape with live data flow between systems

workspace.dslLive preview
workspace "My First Architecture" {
  model {
    user = person "User"
    system = softwareSystem "My System"
    db = softwareSystem "Database"


    user -> system "Uses"
    system -> db "Reads from and writes to"
  }


  views {
    systemContext system "SystemContext" {
      include *
      autoLayout
    }
  }
}

System Context view after adding a Database element and a “Reads from and writes to” relationship

Every diagram is a faithful, deterministic projection of the DSL — stable, repeatable, and governance-ready.

01 · Bidirectional by design

Edit the canvas.
Or edit the DSL.

Drag a node on the canvas and the DSL updates underneath it. Type in the DSL and the canvas re-renders instantly. Edit from whichever surface is most productive — nothing is generated once and abandoned.

Explore the canvas and DSL editor →

Inspector showing the System Context view’s properties, including “Defined in DSL” origin

AI Chat panel

02 · Agent-ready

AI that sees your
whole model.

An in-app AI chat and a VS Code Copilot chat participant understand your workspace — the model, the active view, the DSL — through an embedded MCP server. Ask for a new container, a deployment topology, or an arc42 write-up, and review the change before it lands.

Set up the MCP server →
03 · One application model

Every view type has its own rules.

System Context, Container, Component, Dynamic, Deployment, and Filtered views aren’t interchangeable boxes-and-arrows — each has its own semantics, and stable view keys keep reviews and diffs meaningful over time.

01

System Context & Container

See the system boundary, external actors, and the services inside it.

Explore views →
02

Dynamic views

Model runtime interaction flows as ordered steps between elements.

Learn about dynamic views →
03

Deployment views

Map containers onto infrastructure nodes and environments.

Explore deployment views →
04

Filtered views

Scope any view down by tag or rule without duplicating the model.

Explore filtered views →
04 · Local first, wherever you work

One workspace. Same fidelity.

Use the same .dsl workspace as a VS Code extension or straight in the browser — no server, no account.

Open a .dsl file and the ArchTect icon appears in the editor toolbar. The canvas opens alongside your DSL, backed by the same MCP server your AI agents use.

Getting started: VS Code extension →

05 · Themes included

Look like AWS, Azure,
or plain C4.

Apply a cloud provider’s icon set or stick to classic C4 shapes — per view, without touching the underlying model.

Explore themes →

Container view styled with AWS theme icons

06 · Export everywhere

Ship the diagram, not just the model.

Every format your team already uses, generated directly from the DSL — plus full arc42 documentation.

Images

PNG and SVG for docs and presentations.

Mermaid

GitHub-native and Notion-native diagrams.

PlantUML

Confluence, GitLab, and wiki integration.

draw.io

Editable diagrams.net files.

Ilograph

Interactive, explorable architecture.

arc42 docs

Full documentation generated from your model.
07 · Why ArchTect

Precision and clarity,
without the trade-off.

“

Compared to freeform diagramming

Hand-drawn diagrams look great but drift from reality — there’s no shared model behind them, so nothing keeps them honest. ArchTect is always drawing a live view of one underlying model, not a picture someone has to remember to update.

“

Compared to code-only DSL tools

Structurizr and C4-DSL already solve drift by generating views from a single model — but authoring is text-only. ArchTect adds a visual, bidirectional editor on top, so you can draw or write, and the model stays just as deterministic.

Learn more about why ArchTect →

Start building without friction.

Install the VS Code extension, open the browser app, or bring an existing Structurizr DSL workspace — same fidelity everywhere.

Getting Started →Explore the docsView on GitHub