What goes in a solution architecture document (SAD)

A solution architecture document (SAD) is how a design survives contact with reviewers, security, and the next engineer. Done well it's a decision record and a map; done poorly it's a diagram nobody trusts. Here's the checklist that earns sign-off.

The sections reviewers expect

• Context diagram — the system, its users, and external dependencies
• Architecture decisions (ADRs) — what you chose and why, with status
• Non-functional requirements — performance, availability, security, cost targets
• RAID log — risks, assumptions, issues, dependencies
• Threat model — the obvious attack surfaces and mitigations
• Cost considerations — the rough shape of what this costs to run

Keep the document and the diagram in lockstep

The fastest way to lose trust is a document that contradicts the diagram. Architext generates the SAD from the same graph as the diagram, so the context view, decisions, and NFRs stay consistent — change the design and regenerate the document.

Present it to the room

Reviews happen in slides. From the same model, generate a technical or non-technical deck and export it to PowerPoint — no copy-pasting between tools, no drift.