Schema-as-Code (SaC) & CI/CD Pipeline

Modern Enterprise Architecture embraces DevOps and Infrastructure-as-Code principles. Schema-as-Code (SaC) is EasyEA’s declarative specification that treats architecture diagrams as versionable source code reviewed via Pull Requests and validated automatically in CI/CD pipelines.

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1. Schema-as-Code Specification (SaC Format)

Any schema can be exported and imported as a canonical JSON or YAML file:

{
  "schema_version": "1.0",
  "metadata": {
    "name": "E-Commerce Core Checkout Flow",
    "description": "Logical cart and checkout flow with payment gateway",
    "layer": "Application",
    "version": "2.4.0",
    "status": "Approved"
  },
  "elements": [
    {
      "id": "elem-checkout-service",
      "type": "ApplicationService",
      "name": "Checkout Orchestrator Service",
      "layer": "Application",
      "properties": {
        "technical_fitness": 4,
        "business_fit": 5,
        "tco_annual": 45000,
        "sla": "99.95%"
      },
      "visual": {
        "x": 280,
        "y": 140,
        "width": 160,
        "height": 70,
        "fill_color": "#dbeafe"
      }
    },
    {
      "id": "elem-payment-gateway",
      "type": "ApplicationComponent",
      "name": "Stripe Payment Gateway",
      "layer": "Application",
      "properties": {
        "hosting": "SaaS",
        "criticality": "Mission Critical"
      },
      "visual": {
        "x": 540,
        "y": 140,
        "width": 160,
        "height": 70,
        "fill_color": "#ede9fe"
      }
    }
  ],
  "relationships": [
    {
      "id": "rel-checkout-to-payment",
      "type": "Serving",
      "source_id": "elem-payment-gateway",
      "target_id": "elem-checkout-service",
      "properties": {
        "protocol": "HTTPS/REST",
        "circuit_breaker": true
      }
    }
  ]
}

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2. CI/CD Automation with GitHub Actions & GitLab CI

Store .sac.json files alongside application repositories. Architecture changes are formally validated before merging into main:

.github/workflows/validate-architecture.yml

name: Validate Architecture Schemas (SaC)

on:
  pull_request:
    paths:
      - 'architecture/**/*.sac.json'

jobs:
  validate-schema:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4
      - name: Validate ArchiMate Metamodel Rules
        run: |
          curl -X POST https://easyea.corp.lan/api/v1/schemas/validate-sac \
            -H "Authorization: Bearer ${{ secrets.EASYEA_API_KEY }}" \
            -F "file=@architecture/checkout-flow.sac.json"

• Metamodel Enforcement: Guarantees connectors comply with ArchiMate 3.x rules.
• Mandatory Quality Gates: Enforces completeness (e.g., verifying every component defines a business owner and annual TCO).
• PR Visual Feedback: EasyEA automatically posts a diff summary comment directly onto the Pull Request.

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3. Dedicated jArchi Modeling Scripts

• EasyEA_ExportToSaC.ajs: Select any diagram in Archi Desktop and export it directly to .sac.json ready for git commit.
• EasyEA_ImportFromSaC.ajs: Load a remote or local SaC definition into Archi Desktop with automatic element placement and relationship restoration.