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Subject: Re: [soa-rm] Reference Model vs. Reference Architecture (Road Map)
Following the house analogy, a reference model can tell you that the concept of a bath is relevant to houses (and even why its relevant) but does not tell you how to plumb it in? Frank On May 10, 2005, at 5:35 PM, Duane Nickull wrote: > Joseph: > > I am going to take a try at this. Please forgive this next sentence: > > "A reference model is a model while a reference architecture is an > architecture. " > Okay - so what does that really mean (other that I couldn't find > appropriate words)? Not an easy question to answer. > > There are multiple differences you can state such as "One is > implement-able, the other is not". A reference architecture does > tend to be more generic than most use cases would require and would > still need to be specialized further for a particular set of > requirements. > > Reference architecture is sort of a proof of concept. Individual > requirements and implementations may vary, but with the > data and guidelines from such reference implementations the system > designer can make more informed decisions. A reference > architecture also may force you to consider things the RM does not > delve into. The RM for building a house may have a notion of a > bathroom and also a kitchen. The reference model states you have > to have one instance of each to fulfill the functional requirements > of providing a habitat for a human being, but does not show a level > of detail of how you could build a house having both. > > The reference architecture for a house would delve into how > plumbing gets from the source/target to both the bathroom and the > kitchen, as well as a documented layout that shows how they are > connected and what other common touchpoints and infrastructure they > share. It is a more specific design that can also be further > specialized. It forces someone architecting another house to > consider the same question and perhaps even shows them a solution > paradigm (example - hide the pipes in the wall). This also hints > at ways of implementing things that are optimized (hiding pipes in > the wall is better than running them outside the house in climates > where they may freeze). > > The Reference Architecture for this alleged house can also be > modified for someone who owns property that is on a 10 degree slope > or is not connected to a city water and sewage system (let's not > get into those details). It may also further optimize the house's > orientation to optimize it for natural sunlight and views via windows. > > The order of abstraction is as follows: > > 1. Meta models and meta conventions(ADL's and notions such as > patterns of pipes and filters, stacks, etc.) > 2. Reference Models > 3. Reference Architectures > 4. Specific Architectures. > > There is of course, not 100% consensus on this subject and even > something as simple as a definition of architecture itself has > proven to be very difficult. > > I would also pick Matt's brain on this subject. He is far more > knowledgeable since he lives in this world every day. > > Duane > Duane > > > Chiusano Joseph wrote: > > >> I think it is very important that at some point we include in our >> spec the necessary guidance for users of our spec to move from our >> reference model to a reference architecture, and perhaps beyond. >> I have seen so many cases in which the terms "reference model" >> and "reference architecture" have been used interchangeably (and >> sometimes in the same resource!) that I am no longer crystal clear >> on the similarities/differences between the 2. I know that there >> has been preliminary discussion that reference model != reference >> architecture. >> Can someone please provide a clear distinction between the 2, and >> how we envision our RM "flowing" into an RA? >> Thanks, >> Joe >> Joseph Chiusano >> Booz Allen Hamilton >> Visit us online@ http://www.boozallen.com <http://www.boozallen.com/> >> >> > > > -- > *********** > Senior Standards Strategist - Adobe Systems, Inc. - http:// > www.adobe.com > Chair - OASIS Service Oriented Architecture Reference Model > Technical Committee - http://www.oasis-open.org/committees/ > tc_home.php?wg_abbrev=soa-rm > Vice Chair - UN/CEFACT Bureau Plenary - http://www.unece.org/cefact/ > Adobe Enterprise Developer Resources - http://www.adobe.com/ > enterprise/developer/main.html > *********** > >
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