Workflow - Draft Architecture First

Use this when final architecture feels too heavy to start. The goal is to lower the barrier: create a small, valid architecture draft early, then evolve it.

5-Minute Path

1. Create a draft architecture note in 20-architecture/domain-folder/ as soon as scope is clear.
2. Fill only the minimum required sections with short bullets.
3. Link the draft to the active investigation and any known ADR.
4. Keep refining in small updates while decisions mature.
5. Move status from draft to active when it is usable by others.

Minimum Viable Draft Checklist

Use this for a first commit that is good enough for collaboration:

• Frontmatter: type, domain, status: draft, date, title.
• ## Summary: 2-4 bullets on intent, scope boundary, and why now.
• ## Applicable Principles: at least one principle link and one sentence on impact.
• ## Architecture: one simple flow or component outline in bullets.
• ## Decisions: known decisions and unknown decisions separated clearly.
• ## Open Questions: concrete questions that block confidence.

Progression Rules

• Keep architecture notes in draft while major decisions are still open.
• Use ADRs for non-trivial choices; link them via decided_by.
• Promote to active once teams can safely implement against the note.
• Use approved only when governance explicitly signs off.
• Use workflow-architecture-promotion-checklist for objective promotion gates.

Done Criteria for Draft Stage

• The note is valid in CI and visible in architecture navigation.
• The scope and assumptions are understandable within five minutes.
• Next contributors can continue without re-discovering context.