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Architecture Terminology

Summary

These definitions establish a consistent vocabulary for the current HR Suit architecture and its incremental modernization.

Audience

  • Enterprise customers and implementation partners
  • Product owners and new team members
  • Developers, QA engineers, DevOps engineers, and solution architects

Reference Content

TermDefinition
MonolithThe active ASP.NET Core application that contains multiple business areas in one deployable runtime and currently handles routes not fully cut over.
MicroserviceAn independently deployable application boundary that owns a focused responsibility, API or event interactions, and its persistence model.
GatewayThe edge application that accepts portal requests and forwards or aggregates them for the configured backend target.
Strangler-figAn incremental modernization approach in which new service boundaries replace selected monolith paths over time while both remain active.
CutoverA controlled routing change that makes an extracted service the primary handler for an eligible request path or capability.
RollbackA controlled return to the previously accepted route or implementation after cutover validation fails or operational risk increases.
Shadow routeA non-primary path used to exercise or compare an extracted implementation during transition without declaring it authoritative.
Compatibility endpointAn endpoint that preserves an existing client contract while adapting the request or response to a new backend boundary.
Shared kernelA library of deliberately shared technical building blocks, such as correlation, observability, messaging, and outbox abstractions. It is not a shared business domain.
ContractA versioned structure that defines information exchanged across a boundary, such as an integration event payload.
Domain eventA record of something meaningful that occurred within one domain boundary. It can remain internal to that boundary.
Integration eventA message published for other application boundaries, carrying shared metadata and a versioned contract.
OutboxPersistence that stores an integration message in the same transaction as the related domain change so a relay can publish it later.
Inbox/idempotency ledgerA consumer-owned record of processed message identities used to prevent duplicate delivery from applying the same local effect more than once.
Read modelA local, query-oriented projection built from owned data or received events, optimized for a specific processing or retrieval need.
TenantA customer boundary whose users and data are scoped within the SaaS platform.
Platform tenant metadataPlatform-owned information used to identify and administer a tenant independently of a domain service’s business records.
Service-owned schemaA PostgreSQL schema whose structure and access are controlled by one service boundary.
Database-per-tenantAn optional provisioning model in which a tenant receives a dedicated database. It is a capability, not the universal storage model for every HR Suit service.

See Also

Keywords

  • Strangler-fig vocabulary
  • Event terminology
  • Data ownership terminology

Revision Information

  • Last reviewed: 2026-07-14
  • Owner: architecture-team
  • Status: Draft