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Example C4 Diagrams

C4 Diagrams is part of experimental builds. To access this capability, contact your sales representative.

Each example page below shows a rendered diagram and its copy-paste Mermaid code side by side. This page provides the conceptual overview and navigation.

Understanding C4 Diagram Types

The C4 model defines four zoom levels, each answering a different architectural question:

Level Name Audience Question Answered
L1 Context Everyone What is the system and who uses it?
L2 Container Technical teams How is the system internally structured?
L3 Component Developers What is inside a specific container?
L4 Code Senior developers What is the detailed implementation?

L1, L2, and L3 are bound together by hierarchical zoom: you pick a system in L1, zoom into it for L2, then pick a container and zoom into it for L3.

Supplementary Diagram Types

Beyond the zoom hierarchy, three additional diagram types answer different architectural questions:

Diagram Type Question Answered
System Landscape How do multiple systems in the organization relate?
Dynamic How do systems interact at runtime for a specific workflow?
Deployment Where is the system deployed and on what infrastructure?

These are not zoom levels — they look at the same architecture from different perspectives.

Examples

Example Best For
L1: System Context Diagram Everyone — who uses the system, what it interacts with
L2: Container Diagram Technical teams — internal structure and technology choices
L3: Component Diagram Developers — modules and interactions inside a container
System Landscape Diagram Enterprise architects — all systems in the organisation
Dynamic Diagram Troubleshooting — runtime sequence for a specific workflow
Deployment Diagram DevOps/Ops — infrastructure and service placement

Quick Reference

Your Question Diagram Audience
"Who uses the system and what does it interact with?" L1: Context Everyone
"How is the system structured internally?" L2: Container Technical teams
"What modules make up this container?" L3: Component Developers
"How do multiple enterprise systems relate?" System Landscape Enterprise architects
"How do systems interact during a specific workflow?" Dynamic Technical teams
"Where and how is the system deployed?" Deployment DevOps, operations

Key Takeaway: Diagrams Tell Different Stories

L1, L2, and L3 form a drill-down hierarchy:

L1 Context: "Here's the Order System"
↓ zoom into Order System
L2 Container: "It's built from Web App, APIs, Database, Message Bus"
↓ zoom into Order API
L3 Component: "The Order API contains Controller, OrderService, OrderRepository"

System Landscape, Dynamic, and Deployment diagrams are supplementary — different perspectives on the same architecture, not deeper zoom levels.

Next Step

Creating Your First C4 Diagram walks through setting up Repository properties and designing a diagram in the interactive Syncfusion designer.