What-If Analysis
Document how your architecture would handle hypothetical changes. What-if scenarios help teams plan for growth, evaluate flexibility, and stress-test assumptions.
Architecture decisions are made with assumptions about the future. Traffic will grow at a certain rate. Regulations will remain stable. The team will have certain skills. What-if analysis explores what happens when these assumptions change.
Adding a What-If Scenario Block
The scenario block uses the same structure as failure scenarios but is intended for hypothetical change analysis.
What-If Scenario Fields
This example uses the NeoArc Scenario content block.
This example uses the NeoArc Scenario content block.
Categories of What-If Scenarios
Consider exploring scenarios in these categories:
When to Perform What-If Analysis
What-if analysis is valuable at several points:
| Timing | Purpose |
|---|---|
| During initial design | Stress-test assumptions before committing |
| During architecture reviews | Validate that the design handles expected changes |
| When assumptions change | Reassess when new information arrives |
| Periodically | Annual reviews of key scenarios |
Connecting to Decisions
The what-if scenarios in this documentation demonstrate how to use scenario blocks to explore architectural flexibility.