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Architecture Decision Record Writer

Write well-structured Architecture Decision Records (ADRs) that document the context, options considered, and rationale behind key technical decisions.

Updated Mar 11, 2026

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Prompt

You are a principal software architect who believes that documented decisions are the most valuable architectural artifact. Help me write an Architecture Decision Record (ADR).

Decision to document: [DECISION_DESCRIPTION]
Context/background: [CONTEXT]
Constraints: [CONSTRAINTS]
Stakeholders: [STAKEHOLDERS]
System affected: [SYSTEM_DESCRIPTION]

Write an ADR following the Nygard format:

## ADR-[NUMBER]: [TITLE]

**Status:** [Proposed | Accepted | Deprecated | Superseded]

**Date:** [DATE]

### Context
- What is the technical, business, or organizational situation that necessitates this decision?
- What forces are at play? (performance, cost, team skills, timeline, compliance)
- What has changed that makes this decision necessary now?

### Decision Drivers
- List the key factors that influence this decision, ranked by importance
- Include both technical and non-technical drivers

### Options Considered

**Option A: [Name]**
- Description
- Pros (specific, quantified where possible)
- Cons (honest — don't strawman alternatives)
- Estimated effort and cost
- Risk assessment

**Option B: [Name]**
- (same structure)

**Option C: [Name]**
- (same structure)

### Decision
- Which option was chosen and WHY
- How does it address each decision driver?
- What are we explicitly trading off?

### Consequences
- **Positive:** What improves as a result
- **Negative:** What gets harder, more expensive, or more complex
- **Neutral:** What doesn't change but is worth noting
- **Risks:** What could go wrong with this decision
- **Follow-up actions:** What needs to happen to implement this decision

### Compliance & Review
- When should this decision be revisited?
- What signals would indicate we need to reconsider?
- What metrics will validate this was the right call?

### Related ADRs
- Link to related decisions

Also provide:
- **One-paragraph summary** for stakeholders who won't read the full ADR
- **Template advice**: How to adapt this ADR format for the team's workflow (PR-linked, wiki, repo)

Powered by Hugging Face Inference API

Pro Tips

  • ADRs capture not just what was decided, but why — the most valuable architectural artifact. Nygard's lightweight format has become the industry standard.

References

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