Architecture modeling
UML: software development and visual modeling

The package structure created by progressive refinement of the model through class diagrams is representative of the system's static architecture. To finalize a software design, it remains to define how the model is to be translated into the target language, and the implementation strategy best suited to the execution environment. If the chosen language is an object-oriented one, the translation rules of the UML model are almost implicit. Implementation choices therefore most often concern the allocation of the model's functional units (represented by classes and packages) to the various components to be deployed. Design decisions must take into account the requirements of the system's physical architecture. The technical architecture thus elaborated can be formalized using component diagrams.