Anti-Corruption Layer

Kind: pattern

Layer: Domain Modeling

Record: architecture:anti-corruption-layer

Severity: recommended

Scope: integration, bounded context boundary

Canonical: Ontology

A design pattern that translates an external system's model into the local domain's terms at the boundary.

Listed in Architecture principles, after Context Mapping and before Explicit Boundaries.

Requires

• Explicit Boundary
• Translation Model

Reinforces

• Domain Purity
• Low Coupling

Enables

• Legacy/System Integration

Conflicts with

• Vendor Lock-In Leakage

In tension with

• Mapping Overhead

Tensions

• Anti-Corruption Layer / Mapping Overhead

Contracts

• Anti-Corruption Layer Over Cross-Context Leak

Violated by

• Direct External Coupling

Refactored by

• Extract Adapter
• Introduce Boundary DTO

Severity

• recommended

Category

• Domain Architecture

Refactors

• Bounded Context
• Semantic Contracts
• Adapter Pattern
• Canonical Model
• Canonical Data Model
• Semantic Consistency

Enabled by

• Context Mapping

Reinforced by

• Adapter Pattern

Linked from

• The principle architecture
• Anti-patterns
• Domain Architecture
• Contracts / Interfaces / Compatibility
• Core Modular Design
• Structural Patterns
• Schema / Canonical Data / Semantics
• Codebase / System Architecture Styles
• Contracts / Interfaces / Compatibility
• Domain Architecture
• Quality Attributes
• Structural Patterns
• Architectural Rules
• Severity levels
• The resolutions