CPSA CPSA Architecture Decision Making Questions and Answers 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What is the primary purpose of an Architecture Decision Record (ADR)?
- To document the context, decision, and consequences of a significant architectural choice (Correct answer)
- To list all software components in the system
- To record daily development progress
- To track bug reports and fixes
Correct answer: To document the context, decision, and consequences of a significant architectural choice
An ADR captures the context, the decision made, and its consequences so stakeholders understand why an architectural choice was made.
Question 2: Which of the following best describes an 'architecturally significant requirement' (ASR)?
- A requirement that has a major impact on the system's architecture (Correct answer)
- Any functional requirement defined by the product owner
- A performance benchmark set by the operations team
- A UI design requirement from the UX team
Correct answer: A requirement that has a major impact on the system's architecture
ASRs are requirements with a measurable, significant impact on the architecture; they directly shape structural decisions.
Question 3: When should an architect revisit a previously made architectural decision?
- When new context, constraints, or information makes the original rationale invalid (Correct answer)
- Only during annual architecture reviews
- Only when a new team member joins the project
- Never—decisions should remain stable once made
Correct answer: When new context, constraints, or information makes the original rationale invalid
Architectural decisions should be revisited when their underlying assumptions or constraints change significantly.
Question 4: What is 'architecture erosion' in the context of decision making?
- The gradual divergence between intended architecture and the implemented system (Correct answer)
- The process of removing unused components over time
- A planned refactoring of legacy systems
- Performance degradation in aging software
Correct answer: The gradual divergence between intended architecture and the implemented system
Architecture erosion occurs when implementation decisions diverge from the documented architectural intent, often due to ignored constraints.
Question 5: Which technique is most appropriate for comparing multiple architectural options during decision making?
- Trade-off analysis using weighted criteria (Correct answer)
- Choosing the option with the fewest components
- Selecting the option proposed by the most senior developer
- Adopting the industry's most popular framework
Correct answer: Trade-off analysis using weighted criteria
Trade-off analysis with weighted quality criteria allows architects to systematically compare options against stakeholder priorities.
Question 6: In iSAQB CPSA, what is meant by 'technical debt' in architectural decision making?
- The implied cost of future rework caused by choosing a quick, suboptimal solution now (Correct answer)
- Unpaid software licensing fees
- The number of open bug tickets in a backlog
- Hardware procurement costs deferred to the next fiscal year
Correct answer: The implied cost of future rework caused by choosing a quick, suboptimal solution now
Technical debt represents the extra effort required later because an easier but less correct design approach was chosen today.
CPSA CPSA Architecture Decision Making Questions and Answers 1
What is the primary purpose of an Architecture Decision Record (ADR)?