Magic Value

Kind: anti-pattern

Layer: Enforcement Core

Aliases: Magic Number

Record: architecture:magic-value

Severity: discouraged

Scope: domain_boundary

Formed by: Encode policy, thresholds, status, timing, permissions, or domain rules as unexplained literals.

Canonical: Ontology

A defect in which policy, thresholds or states are written as unexplained literals.

Listed in Architecture principles, after Long Parameter List and before Speculative Generality.

Refactored by

• Name Constant
• Centralize the Rule
• Externalize Configuration
• Name the Concept

Severity

• discouraged

Category

• Anti-patterns

Force

• Domain boundary

Negated by

• Single Source of Truth

Linked from

• Anti-patterns
• Schema / Canonical Data / Semantics
• Control / Coordination / Centralization
• Core Modular Design
• Core Vocabulary
• Schema / Canonical Data / Semantics
• Severity levels
• The forces