Working with Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 Team System (Pro-Developer)

Application Architect

This architect type plays a somewhat larger role in Team System by defining the application's connected systems as an array of connected Web services, Web applications, Microsoft Windows® applications, and other external databases and components. Most of the Distributed Systems Designers in Team Edition for Software Architects are for the application architect's use, including the Application Designer, the System Designer, and often the Deployment Designer. Each of these tools will be discussed in this chapter.

Before beginning the application design effort, the application architect should have a general understanding of the application architecture. The designers will be used just as whiteboards are used: to develop the design iteratively and incrementally, capturing a design as it is formulated. The architect may not start off with the complete design in mind, but should at least have some insight into a few key points:

• The number and types of applications (Web services, database, or Windows)

• The versions of operating systems and .NET required to execute

• The communication flow restrictions between the services (HTTP, TDS, or generic)

• Any other settings for each service and Zone (including custom settings)

NOTE

The application architect role may be known by other names in your company: software architect, solution architect, Web services architect, and even .NET architect.