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Architecture
1. Introduction and Goals
2. Architecture Constraints
3. Context and Scope
4. Solution Strategy
5. Building Block View
6. Runtime View
7. Deployment View
8. Crosscutting Concepts
9. Architecture Decisions
10. Quality Requirements
11. Risks and Technical Debt
12. Glossary
The arrival bundle format
Decisions (ADRs)
Decisions (ADRs)
ADR-0001: Content-Addressed Document Storage with PostgreSQL as Source of Truth
ADR-0002: Single Instance with Scope Hierarchy and Copy-on-Derive
ADR-0003: Fixed Life Cycle States with Configurable Review Processes
ADR-0004: Global Catalogs for Roles and Document Types with Per-Scope Activation
ADR-0005: Modular Monolith
ADR-0006: Three-Layer Search with In-Database Index and Pluggable LLM
ADR-0007: Angular Frontend with Server-Side-Only Enforcement
ADR-0008: Flyway Migrations and jOOQ Codegen from the Migrated Schema
ADR-0009: RLS Enforcement via a Session-Scoped Authorized Scope Set
ADR-0010: Self-Managed QMS via an Internal Mandator
ADR-0011: Authentication via OIDC SSO with Server-Side (BFF) Sessions
ADR-0012: Permission-Based Authorization and System Bootstrap
ADR-0013: User Identity Lifecycle
ADR-0014: Electronic Signatures (Part 11 / Annex 11-Capable)
ADR-0015: Document Effectivity, Periodic Review & Validity
ADR-0016: Data Retention, Disposal & Privacy (FADP / GDPR)
ADR-0017: Multi-Part Version Content
ADR-0018: Non-Functional Targets (Capacity, Availability, Security)
ADR-0019: Notifications & Tasks
ADR-0020: Internationalization (Content Language, Time Zones, Formatting)
ADR-0021: General Typed Document Relationships
ADR-0022: Read-Acknowledgement & Questionnaires
ADR-0023: Migration / Import — Current Released State
ADR-0024: Draft / In-Review Cancellation
ADR-0025: Disposal & Erasure Mechanics (Storage, Index, Backups)
ADR-0026: RLS Runtime Safety — Connection-Pool Scope Isolation
ADR-0027: RLS Boundary — Content-Plane vs Control-Plane
ADR-0028: Stateless Encrypted Token-State Cookie (no server-side session store)
ADR-0029: Document Content Model — Draft-Freeze, Content-Table RLS, Append-Only Audit
ADR-0030: Review & Life-Cycle Realization Model
ADR-0031: Released-base readability enforcement & copy-on-derive mechanics
ADR-0032: Frontend realization — Quinoa, Angular Material, i18n & E2E
ADR-0033: CSRF control for the BFF session — SameSite + JSON content-type
ADR-0034: Notification realization — in-process domain events + system-context fan-out
ADR-0035: Fan-out contract as shipped — gate semantics, count disclosure, audit protocol
ADR-0036: Repository layer — services carry rules, repositories carry jOOQ
ADR-0037: Task scheduler — in-process tick, advisory-lock election, SQL sweep
ADR-0038: Periodic-review realization — derived due date, policy-gated confirmation
ADR-0039: Sweep & periodic-review contract as shipped — grants, guards, addressing
ADR-0040: Disposal-due surfacing — closure-anchored retention, scope-level legal hold
ADR-0041: Email channel & notification i18n — notification-as-outbox, structured messages
ADR-0042: Disposal execution — document tombstoning, single-actor hard-gated destruction
ADR-0043: Disposal blob deletion is post-commit, GC-backstopped
ADR-0044: Search FTS baseline — event-indexed, RLS-scoped search_index
ADR-0045: Image Attachments as Content Parts (Rich-Content Slice R2)
ADR-0046: Four-Eyes — Submitter Excluded from Approval
ADR-0047: Four-Eyes — Submitter-Only Exclusion
ADR-0048: Document Organization — Folder Tree per Scope
ADR-0049: Content Model Round 2 — Type Categories, Template Instantiation, Trace Relations, Completeness Rules
ADR-0050: Live Frontend — SSE State Push, CodeMirror 6, Draft Presence
ADR-0051: In-Text Document Links (doc: Scheme)
ADR-0052: Addressees & Read-Acknowledgement (REQ-TRN Realization)
ADR-0053: Addressees Per Document + Process Owner (amends ADR-0052 K-1)
ADR-0054: Process Owner Is a Role (amends ADR-0053 P-3)
ADR-0055: WYSIWYG Editing Mode over Markdown (editor step R4)
ADR-0056: Visual-Editor Chrome via Milkdown Crepe (gated adoption)
ADR-0057: Content Record Is the ProseMirror Document Tree; Markdown Becomes a Derived Projection
ADR-0058: PM_DOC Is the Only Content Format (pre-production cut; amends ADR-0057 §5)
ADR-0059: Editor Engine Switches to TipTap (spike-gated; supersedes the Milkdown/Crepe choice)
ADR-0060: Backup & Restore — Scripted Ordered Backup with Automated Restore Rehearsal
ADR-0061: CSV — Generated Validation Package per Release
ADR-0062: SBOM — CycloneDX over the Production Layers, Validated Against the Artifact
ADR-0063: User Identity Binds on Subject Only (Issuer Becomes Provenance)
ADR-0064: Per-Document Workflow Role Bindings (Author / Reviewer / Releaser), Enforced
ADR-0065: Diagrams — Excalidraw as the Manual Layer, Mermaid Stays for Text-First/UML
ADR-0066: WITHDRAW — the Author Side May Reclaim a Version from Review
ADR-0067: Review Comments — Anchored, Immutable, Resolvable
ADR-0068: Confluence/Jira QMS Import — Staged, Read-Only, Repeatable
ADR-0069: Arbitrary File Attachments — Download-Only Confinement
ADR-0070: Training Questionnaires — Versioned, Auto-Scored, Release-Gated
ADR-0071: Training Plans — Document Obligations + External Trainings & Certifications
ADR-0072: Diagrams — Self-Hosted draw.io Replaces Excalidraw
ADR-0073: Per-Scope QMS Configuration Surface
ADR-0074: PDF Export of Released Documents — Server-Side via Apache FOP over the Canonical Projection
ADR-0075: Source History Import — Continuity Without Forged Audit
ADR-0076: Periodic-review status visibility (completing MVP gap #2)
ADR-0077: Requirement Items — Keyed Blocks Inside Controlled Documents
ADR-0078: Generalized Trace Items (Traceability Model — Stage A)
ADR-0079: Risk & Risk-Control Items (Traceability Model — Stage B)
ADR-0080: Traceability Workspace — Hub, Sub-Pages, and Role-Gated Views
ADR-0081: Draft-Only Trace-Structure Changes, Server-Enforced
ADR-0082: Table-Shaped Risk Authoring over Risk Blocks
ADR-0083: The TD Dossier — a Versioned, Cross-Scope, Regulatory-Structured Deliverable
ADR-0084: Validation & Regulatory Axes (Traceability Model — Stage C)
ADR-0085: Relation-Layer Consolidation — One Trace Vocabulary, One Surface
ADR-0086: Requirement Traceability Chains — End-to-End Path View + Flat Path Export
ADR-0087: The Scope Traceability Report — One Derived Overview Artifact, Never a Controlled Document
ADR-0088: Verification Evidence Classes — Planned vs. Verified, Derived at the Read Layer
ADR-0089: Recurring Obligations — Periodic Tasks With Record Evidence, Not Calendar Series
ADR-0090: Release & Versioning Policy — Deliberate Releases, One Auditor-Facing Number
ADR-0091: Release Modes — Single-Person Record Release With a Structural Four-Eyes Floor
ADR-0092: Orphan-Blob Garbage Collection With a Quarantine Bin
ADR-0093: One Scope Context — the Toolbar Switcher Is the Only Scope Selector
ADR-0094: Calendar-Anchored Obligation Schedules (Clamped, Never Too Late)
ADR-0095: Key-Rule Governance — Free Until First Use, Then Frozen
ADR-0096: Transition Permissions — Always Visible, Deny Unless Granted
ADR-0097: A Governed Provisioning Surface — MANAGE_SCOPES
ADR-0098: Org Chart × Role System — Marriage at the Evidence Level, Never in Authorization
ADR-0099: The User Manual is an In-App Topic Reference, Not a Document
ADR-0100: LQMS Is the Living Quality Management System
ADR-0101: The Executable Validation Journey (PQ Evidence That Cannot Drift)
ADR-0102: Typed Template Variables (text | date | number — and Deliberately No Enum)
ADR-0103: npm audit Joins the Verification Gate as a Second Standing Input
ADR-0104: The Issued Dossier Is a Persisted Artifact of Record — and Clones to a New Draft
ADR-0105: Navigation Information Architecture — Group by Moment-of-Use
ADR-0106: The Client Reflection Follows Assignments, Not Only Content Reach
ADR-0107: The Audit Append Gate Follows Assignment Reach, Not Content Reach
ADR-0108: Mandator Membership — Invite-Accept, with Pre-Assigned Responsibilities
ADR-0109: Organization Founding Is Its Own Process
ADR-0110: The Audit Trail Is Not a Read Model
ADR-0111: The Imported-Person Model, and Project Portability's First Doctrines
ADR-0112: The Element-Kind Catalog — Semantics in the Model, Not Only in the Code
ADR-0113: Project Arrival Import — Records Arrive as They Are, People Arrive as They Were
ADR-0114: The Operating Model Arrives — Roles as Functions, Names as Words, People as This Instance's Decision
ADR-0115: Collaborative Draft Editing — Two Carets, One Truth, Honest Credit
ADR-0116: The System Maintenance Surface — the App Backs Itself Up, the Host Keeps One Dumb Job
ADR-0117: Role Documentation — a Link, a Finding, Per-Source Recognizers; Substitution Rejected
ADR-0118: The Offline QMS Copy — the Repo Carries the Audit Pack, Not a Second Renderer
ADR-0119: Module-Internal Package Structure — Capabilities First, Layers Second, the Root Is the Surface
ADR-0120: The Shared Kernel — the Domain-Exception Vocabulary Leaves the Authorization Module
ADR-0121: The Project Administrator Role — Per-Scope Administration With Read Access, Seeded in the Base Catalog
ADR-0122: Organization-Level Administration — the Cascade Stays, Becomes Visible, and Founds Projects
ADR-0123: Draft Save-Points — Every Save Restorable, Kept for the Life of the Version
ADR-0124: The Birth Path Completes Without Borrowing Content Clothes
ADR-0125: The Export Twin — Export Emits an Arrival Bundle
ADR-0126: Project Dissolution — the Un-Birth of an Unused Scope
ADR-0127: The Base-QMS Layers — One Library, Derived Adaptations, Local Records
ADR-0128: The GLOBAL Cascade Carries Administration, Never Content
ADR-0129: Role Identity from a GLOBAL Assignment Acts in GLOBAL Alone
ADR-0130: Break-Glass — the Project Administrator's Escalation Is a First-Class, Witnessed, Self-Expiring Act
ADR-0131: Role Substitution as Declared Adoption Edges — Emergency Cover Is Governed, Own-Name, Timed Staffing
ADR-0132: Dual-Hat Reviewer Satisfaction Is a Declared Policy Choice — the Strict Floor Stays the Default
ADR-NNNN:
</span> </a> </li> </ul> </nav> </li> <li class="md-nav__item md-nav__item--nested"> <input class="md-nav__toggle md-toggle " type="checkbox" id="__nav_5" > <div class="md-nav__link md-nav__container"> <a href="../../../requirements/" class="md-nav__link "> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Requirements </span> </a> <label class="md-nav__link " for="__nav_5" id="__nav_5_label" tabindex="0"> <span class="md-nav__icon md-icon"></span> </label> </div> <nav class="md-nav" data-md-level="1" aria-labelledby="__nav_5_label" aria-expanded="false"> <label class="md-nav__title" for="__nav_5"> <span class="md-nav__icon md-icon"></span> Requirements </label> <ul class="md-nav__list" data-md-scrollfix> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../requirements/stakeholder_requirements/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Stakeholder Requirements </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../requirements/gap-analysis/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Requirements Gap Analysis </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../requirements/req_admin/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Software Requirements: Administration, Permissions & Onboarding </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../requirements/req_api_ui/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Software Requirements: API & User Interface </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../requirements/req_audit_reporting/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Software Requirements: Audit Trail & Regulatory Reporting </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../requirements/req_auth/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Software Requirements: Authentication & Session </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../requirements/req_backup/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Software Requirements: Backup & Restore </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../requirements/req_catalogs/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Software Requirements: Catalogs, Roles & Users </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../requirements/req_data_protection/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Software Requirements: Data Protection, Retention & Disposal </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../requirements/req_documents/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Software Requirements: Documents, Versions & Storage </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../requirements/req_dossiers/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Software Requirements: Technical Documentation Dossiers </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../requirements/req_effectivity/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Software Requirements: Effectivity, Periodic Review & Validity </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../requirements/req_gspr/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Software Requirements: Regulatory Conformity (GSPR / Essential Principles) </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../requirements/req_i18n/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Software Requirements: Internationalization </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../requirements/req_lifecycle/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Software Requirements: Life Cycle & Reviews </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../requirements/req_memberships/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Software Requirements: Mandator Membership & Invitations </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../requirements/req_migration/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Software Requirements: Migration & Import </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../requirements/req_nfr/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Software Requirements: Non-Functional </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../requirements/req_notifications/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Software Requirements: Notifications & Tasks </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../requirements/req_obligations/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Software Requirements: Recurring Obligations </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../requirements/req_relationships/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Software Requirements: Document Relationships </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../requirements/req_risk/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Software Requirements: Risk Management (ISO 14971 Hazards & Controls) </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../requirements/req_sbom/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Software Requirements: Software Bill of Materials & Supply-Chain Assurance </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../requirements/req_search/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Software Requirements: Search </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../requirements/req_separation/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Software Requirements: Scopes, Mandators & Separation </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../requirements/req_signatures/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Software Requirements: Electronic Signatures </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../requirements/req_training/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Software Requirements: Read-Acknowledgement & Questionnaires </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../requirements/req_users/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Software Requirements: User Identity & Lifecycle </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../requirements/req_validation/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Software Requirements: Design Validation & the Validation Traceability Axis </span> </a> </li> </ul> </nav> </li> <li class="md-nav__item md-nav__item--nested"> <input class="md-nav__toggle md-toggle " type="checkbox" id="__nav_6" > <div class="md-nav__link md-nav__container"> <a href="../../../process/" class="md-nav__link "> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Process (IEC 62304) </span> </a> <label class="md-nav__link " for="__nav_6" id="__nav_6_label" tabindex="0"> <span class="md-nav__icon md-icon"></span> </label> </div> <nav class="md-nav" data-md-level="1" aria-labelledby="__nav_6_label" aria-expanded="false"> <label class="md-nav__title" for="__nav_6"> <span class="md-nav__icon md-icon"></span> Process (IEC 62304) </label> <ul class="md-nav__list" data-md-scrollfix> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../process/configuration_management_plan/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Configuration Management Plan </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../process/problem_resolution/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Problem Resolution Process </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../process/risk_management/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Risk Management </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../process/software_development_plan/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Software Development Plan </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../process/verification_plan/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Verification Plan </span> </a> </li> </ul> </nav> </li> <li class="md-nav__item md-nav__item--nested"> <input class="md-nav__toggle md-toggle " type="checkbox" id="__nav_7" > <label class="md-nav__link" for="__nav_7" id="__nav_7_label" tabindex="0"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Operations </span> <span class="md-nav__icon md-icon"></span> </label> <nav class="md-nav" data-md-level="1" aria-labelledby="__nav_7_label" aria-expanded="false"> <label class="md-nav__title" for="__nav_7"> <span class="md-nav__icon md-icon"></span> Operations </label> <ul class="md-nav__list" data-md-scrollfix> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../operations/genesis-installation/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Genesis: Birthing an LQMS Installation with a Base Library </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../operations/deployment/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> LQMS Deployment Guide </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../operations/server-deployment/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> LQMS Server Deployment (single Linux host, public HTTPS) </span> </a> </li> </ul> </nav> </li> <li class="md-nav__item md-nav__item--nested"> <input class="md-nav__toggle md-toggle " type="checkbox" id="__nav_8" > <div class="md-nav__link md-nav__container"> <a href="../../../traceability/" class="md-nav__link "> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Traceability </span> </a> <label class="md-nav__link " for="__nav_8" id="__nav_8_label" tabindex="0"> <span class="md-nav__icon md-icon"></span> </label> </div> <nav class="md-nav" data-md-level="1" aria-labelledby="__nav_8_label" aria-expanded="false"> <label class="md-nav__title" for="__nav_8"> <span class="md-nav__icon md-icon"></span> Traceability </label> <ul class="md-nav__list" data-md-scrollfix> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../traceability/matrix/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Requirements Traceability Matrix </span> </a> </li> </ul> </nav> </li> <li class="md-nav__item md-nav__item--nested"> <input class="md-nav__toggle md-toggle " type="checkbox" id="__nav_9" > <div class="md-nav__link md-nav__container"> <a href="../../../validation/" class="md-nav__link "> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Validation (tool lane) </span> </a> <label class="md-nav__link " for="__nav_9" id="__nav_9_label" tabindex="0"> <span class="md-nav__icon md-icon"></span> </label> </div> <nav class="md-nav" data-md-level="1" aria-labelledby="__nav_9_label" aria-expanded="false"> <label class="md-nav__title" for="__nav_9"> <span class="md-nav__icon md-icon"></span> Validation (tool lane) </label> <ul class="md-nav__list" data-md-scrollfix> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../validation/templates/ai-authorship-posture/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> AI-Authorship Posture — How LQMS Is Built, and Why the Validation Evidence Does Not Rest on It (TEMPLATE) </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../validation/templates/intended-use/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Intended-Use Specification — LQMS as a QMS / Document-Control Tool (TEMPLATE) </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../validation/templates/tool-risk-assessment/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Tool-Risk Assessment — LQMS as a QMS Tool (TEMPLATE) </span> </a> </li> </ul> </nav> </li> <li class="md-nav__item md-nav__item--nested"> <input class="md-nav__toggle md-toggle " type="checkbox" id="__nav_10" > <label class="md-nav__link" for="__nav_10" id="__nav_10_label" tabindex="0"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Regulatory </span> <span class="md-nav__icon md-icon"></span> </label> <nav class="md-nav" data-md-level="1" aria-labelledby="__nav_10_label" aria-expanded="false"> <label class="md-nav__title" for="__nav_10"> <span class="md-nav__icon md-icon"></span> Regulatory </label> <ul class="md-nav__list" data-md-scrollfix> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../../regulatory/mdr-annex-i-skeleton/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> MDR Annex I — GSPR authoring skeleton (paraphrased) </span> </a> </li> </ul> </nav> </li> <li class="md-nav__item md-nav__item--active md-nav__item--nested"> <input class="md-nav__toggle md-toggle " type="checkbox" id="__nav_11" checked> <div class="md-nav__link md-nav__container"> <a href="../../" class="md-nav__link "> <span class="md-ellipsis"> User guide </span> </a> <label class="md-nav__link " for="__nav_11" id="__nav_11_label" tabindex="0"> <span class="md-nav__icon md-icon"></span> </label> </div> <nav class="md-nav" data-md-level="1" aria-labelledby="__nav_11_label" aria-expanded="true"> <label class="md-nav__title" for="__nav_11"> <span class="md-nav__icon md-icon"></span> User guide </label> <ul class="md-nav__list" data-md-scrollfix> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../tutorial/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Tutorial — from zero to a released document </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../administration/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Administering an LQMS Installation </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../diagrams/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Diagrams </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../documents-lifecycle/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Documents & the Lifecycle </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../exports/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> PDF Exports & the Audit Pack </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../obligations/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Recurring Obligations </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../project-context/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> The Project Context & App Version </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../../review-comments/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Review Comments </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../activity-trail/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Who did what, when — reading a project's activity </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../admin-scopes/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Renaming a project, and what can never change </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../authority-view/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Who holds each function here, and what may it do </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="../break-glass/" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> The permission I need is held by a role I do not hold — what now? </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item md-nav__item--active"> <input class="md-nav__toggle md-toggle" type="checkbox" id="__toc"> <label class="md-nav__link md-nav__link--active" for="__toc"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Coverage or chains? — which requirement view answers your question </span> <span class="md-nav__icon md-icon"></span> </label> <a href="./" class="md-nav__link md-nav__link--active"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> Coverage or chains? — which requirement view answers your question </span> </a> <nav class="md-nav md-nav--secondary" aria-label="Table of contents"> <label class="md-nav__title" for="__toc"> <span class="md-nav__icon md-icon"></span> Table of contents </label> <ul class="md-nav__list" data-md-component="toc" data-md-scrollfix> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="#1-the-one-line-difference" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> 1. 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The one-line difference </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="#2-requirement-coverage--the-verdict-per-requirement" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> 2. Requirement coverage — the verdict per requirement </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="#3-requirement-chains--the-path-end-to-end" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> 3. Requirement chains — the path, end to end </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="#4-why-both-answers-can-be-right-at-once" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> 4. Why both answers can be right at once </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="#5-when-one-of-the-two-is-not-there" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> 5. When one of the two is not there </span> </a> </li> <li class="md-nav__item"> <a href="#6-a-third-entry-that-is-neither" class="md-nav__link"> <span class="md-ellipsis"> 6. A third entry that is neither </span> </a> </li> </ul> </nav> </div> </div> </div> <div class="md-content" data-md-component="content"> <article class="md-content__inner md-typeset"> <a href="https://github.com/nburri/lqms/edit/main/docs/user-guide/topics/coverage-and-chains.md" title="Edit this page" class="md-content__button md-icon"> <svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" viewBox="0 0 24 24"><path d="M10 20H6V4h7v5h5v3.1l2-2V8l-6-6H6c-1.1 0-2 .9-2 2v16c0 1.1.9 2 2 2h4zm10.2-7c.1 0 .3.1.4.2l1.3 1.3c.2.2.2.6 0 .8l-1 1-2.1-2.1 1-1c.1-.1.2-.2.4-.2m0 3.9L14.1 23H12v-2.1l6.1-6.1z"/></svg> </a> <h1 id="coverage-or-chains--which-requirement-view-answers-your-question">Coverage or chains? — which requirement view answers your question<a class="headerlink" href="#coverage-or-chains--which-requirement-view-answers-your-question" title="Permanent link">¶</a></h1> <p><em>Audience: anyone doing design control who has opened the Traceability workspace and found two entries that both seem to be about requirements and evidence.</em></p> <p>The workspace carries two requirement views, and they are easy to mistake for one another because both read requirements, both read links, and both report a number over a total. They answer <strong>different questions</strong>, and the difference is not a matter of detail:</p> <ul> <li><strong>Requirement coverage</strong> returns a <strong>verdict per requirement</strong>. <em>Is each requirement covered?</em></li> <li><strong>Requirement chains</strong> returns a <strong>path per stakeholder requirement</strong>. <em>Does this need reach evidence, and where does it break?</em></li> </ul> <p>A project can be entirely green in one and full of gaps in the other, with both answers correct. §4 explains why that is not a contradiction.</p> <h2 id="1-the-one-line-difference">1. The one-line difference<a class="headerlink" href="#1-the-one-line-difference" title="Permanent link">¶</a></h2> <table> <thead> <tr> <th></th> <th><strong>Requirement coverage</strong></th> <th><strong>Requirement chains</strong></th> </tr> </thead> <tbody> <tr> <td>Question it answers</td> <td><em>"Is every requirement covered by something?"</em></td> <td><em>"Does every stakeholder need reach executed evidence?"</em></td> </tr> <tr> <td>Unit of the answer</td> <td>one requirement</td> <td>one end-to-end path</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Rows are</td> <td><strong>every</strong> requirement item in the project</td> <td>the project's <strong>stakeholder</strong> requirements only</td> </tr> <tr> <td>How far it looks</td> <td><strong>one hop</strong>, in isolation</td> <td><strong>every hop</strong>, start to end</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Shape on screen</td> <td>a flat covered / not-covered list</td> <td>expandable rows that branch and have unequal depth</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Headline</td> <td><em>"{{count}} of {{total}} requirements covered"</em></td> <td><em>"{{satisfied}} of {{total}} stakeholder requirements satisfied"</em>, and <em>"{{count}} fully verified"</em> beside it</td> </tr> <tr> <td>Take-away artifact</td> <td>the requirements registry on screen</td> <td>the flat <strong>traceability matrix</strong> as a CSV download</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <p>Both are <strong>derived reads</strong>. Neither stores a verdict of its own, neither can be edited, and neither can be made to look better than the links in the documents make it — you change what they say by changing the documents (see <a href="../../trace-links/">trace links</a>).</p> <h2 id="2-requirement-coverage--the-verdict-per-requirement">2. Requirement coverage — the verdict per requirement<a class="headerlink" href="#2-requirement-coverage--the-verdict-per-requirement" title="Permanent link">¶</a></h2> <p>Open it when the question is <em>"have we left a requirement standing with nothing pointing at it?"</em></p> <p>A requirement counts as <strong>covered</strong> when it carries <strong>at least one inbound <code>Verifies</code> or <code>Satisfies</code></strong> link. That is the whole rule, and it is deliberately a <strong>low bar</strong>: it asks whether anything at all answers the requirement, not whether the answer is finished.</p> <p>How to read the page:</p> <ul> <li><strong>The headline and bar</strong> — covered over total, for the requirement kinds currently in view.</li> <li><strong>Filter by kind</strong> — ask the question of one kind at a time (functional, non-functional, stakeholder, safety, whatever this project declares; see <a href="../key-rules/">key rules</a>). The headline follows the filter, so <em>"3 of 4 covered"</em> under a filter is a statement about those four only.</li> <li><strong>The gap list first</strong> — the requirements <em>not yet covered</em>, enumerated. This is the working list; it is put above the covered list because it is the part you act on.</li> <li><strong>The covered list</strong> — each requirement with its evidence counted <strong>by class</strong>: <strong>verified ×N</strong> (an executed, released report), <strong>planned ×N</strong> (a verification <em>designated</em> — a plan, or a report not yet released) and <strong>satisfied ×N</strong> (answered by other requirements rather than by evidence). The <em>covered</em> verdict does not distinguish them; the chips do, so a requirement covered only by <em>planned</em> evidence is visible as such rather than hidden inside a green number.</li> <li><strong>The requirements registry</strong> — every defined key with its kind, priority, defining document and version, link counts, and a text excerpt. A key touched by a <strong>suspect</strong> link is flagged here, with the hint to re-attest it on its own document.</li> </ul> <p><strong>What this view cannot tell you.</strong> Because it looks one hop out, a covered requirement may still sit on a path that goes nowhere. A stakeholder requirement covered by a <code>Satisfies</code> link is <em>covered</em> — even if the software requirement that satisfies it was never verified by anything. That is not a defect in the verdict; it is the boundary of the question. The next section is where that boundary is crossed.</p> <h2 id="3-requirement-chains--the-path-end-to-end">3. Requirement chains — the path, end to end<a class="headerlink" href="#3-requirement-chains--the-path-end-to-end" title="Permanent link">¶</a></h2> <p>Open it when the question is <em>"can I walk from a stakeholder need to executed evidence, out loud, in front of an auditor?"</em></p> <p>Rows are the project's <strong>stakeholder</strong> requirements. Expanding one shows the software requirements that <strong>satisfy</strong> it, and each of those shows its <strong>verification</strong> evidence — the motion an auditor performs. Chains branch and have unequal depth (one need may feed several software requirements, some of which end without a verification hop), which is why this is expandable rows and not a rectangular grid.</p> <p>Each chain carries <strong>roll-up flags</strong>, and they are honest and non-suppressible:</p> <ul> <li><strong>Not satisfied</strong> — no software requirement satisfies this need at all.</li> <li><strong>Satisfied, unverified</strong> — a satisfying software requirement carries no verification evidence. <em>Satisfied</em> and <em>verified</em> are different claims and are never averaged into one.</li> <li><strong>Planned only</strong> — the chain is satisfied and verification is designated, but every piece of evidence on it is still a <strong>plan</strong>, not an executed report. A quiet amber state: the honest middle between <em>unverified</em> and clean.</li> <li><strong>Suspect on path</strong> — some link on the chain is suspect because a document it depends on changed. The path is not trustworthy until it is re-attested on its source document.</li> </ul> <p>The headline reports <strong>satisfied of total</strong> and <strong>fully verified</strong> side by side, plus the planned-only and suspect counts where there are any. Read both numbers: a project can satisfy every need and verify none of them, and the first number alone would call that finished.</p> <p><strong>Download matrix (CSV)</strong> exports the flat form — one row per complete path, need key through software key to evidence document and version, with the per-hop suspect state and the roll-up flag. That file is what auditors mean when they ask for "the traceability matrix"; the screen is for working, the CSV is for handing over.</p> <h2 id="4-why-both-answers-can-be-right-at-once">4. Why both answers can be right at once<a class="headerlink" href="#4-why-both-answers-can-be-right-at-once" title="Permanent link">¶</a></h2> <p>Take one project holding two requirement items: a stakeholder need, and one software requirement that <code>Satisfies</code> it. The software requirement carries one inbound <code>Verifies</code> link, and it comes from a <strong>verification plan</strong> — a document that designates the verification but has not been executed.</p> <ul> <li><strong>Coverage</strong> reports <strong>2 of 2 covered</strong>, with no gap list at all. Both requirements carry an inbound link, which is exactly the question it asks. Its evidence chips do say <strong>planned ×1</strong> on the software requirement, so the state is on the page — but the verdict is green.</li> <li><strong>Chains</strong> reports <strong>1 of 1 satisfied, 0 fully verified</strong>, and flags the chain <strong>planned only</strong>.</li> </ul> <p>Nothing in either answer is wrong. Coverage is asking about <strong>attachment</strong> and chains is asking about <strong>completion</strong>, and a project between those two states is where most of design control actually lives.</p> <p>The practical habit: <strong>work the coverage gap list to make things attached, then work the chain flags to make them finished.</strong> They are two stages of the same job, in that order.</p> <h2 id="5-when-one-of-the-two-is-not-there">5. When one of the two is not there<a class="headerlink" href="#5-when-one-of-the-two-is-not-there" title="Permanent link">¶</a></h2> <p>The <strong>Requirement chains</strong> tile appears only where the project actually speaks the <strong>stakeholder</strong> level — where it declares that kind or already holds such items. A supplier project that is handed requirements and verifies against them has no stakeholder lane, and a permanent <em>0 of 0</em> there would be a reproach for something it was never asked to do.</p> <p><strong>Requirement coverage is never hidden this way.</strong> A project that writes requirements and never verifies them has a real gap in every lane, so that view stays and stays loud.</p> <h2 id="6-a-third-entry-that-is-neither">6. A third entry that is neither<a class="headerlink" href="#6-a-third-entry-that-is-neither" title="Permanent link">¶</a></h2> <p><strong>Reference coverage</strong> sits in the same workspace and is about <strong>documents</strong>, not requirement items: it checks the project's own citation rules (<em>"every record cites its governing SOP"</em>) and appears only where such a rule was configured. If you are looking for requirement-level answers, it is not the view you want — see <a href="../../traceability-workspace/">the traceability workspace</a> §6.</p> <p>For what requirement items, keys and kinds actually are, and how a project declares which of them it uses, start at <a href="../../trace-items/">trace items</a>.</p> <hr /> <p><em>Governing decisions: ADR-0077 (requirement items as keyed blocks inside controlled documents, and §6's item-level coverage read — the per-requirement verdict), ADR-0086 (the end-to-end chain view, its non-suppressible roll-up flags, and the flat path export), ADR-0080 (the traceability workspace — why these are two sub-pages of one hub, and the permission that gates them), ADR-0088 (planned vs verified evidence, derived at the read layer — the class chips and the planned-only flag), ADR-0085 (one trace vocabulary: why <code>verifies</code> and <code>satisfies</code> are trace-link claims and document citations are a separate axis). 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