System Architect XT provides live read and/or write access to information in a System Architect encyclopedia repository, through a .NET web interface front end.
XT stands for Extended Team, reflecting the fact that System Architect XT opens up access to the repository information to a wide audience.
Viewing repository information
System Architect XT runs XML report template files against the repository and presents all information in real time. These XML report template files provide two basic functions: they use the System Architect XT reporting system to run SQL-like queries against the repository, and they provide output that is formatted based on XML, XSL and CSS stylesheets, and deploy SVG graphics for diagrams and other graphical presentations such as Pie and bar charts.
System Architect XT also enables you to write your own queries against the repository information (using the SQL-like query capability of the reporting system) to answer business or technical questions about your enterprise architecture in real time. See Creating and building questions/queries.
Adding and modifying repository information
Users with proper access rights can also add information to the repository, and modify existing information in the repository.
You can view and create definitions in the repository that are “keyed” or “unkeyed” (see Creating definitions in the repository). A keyed definition is one whose namespace is provided by another artifact type, such as UML classes, which are keyed to Packages, and data modeling Entities, which are keyed to the models to which they belong. You can also modify most definition text fields: see Modifying definitions.
In summary
In short, System Architect XT is the next step forward in enabling an “actionable” enterprise architecture in real time, and enables you to roll out use of the enterprise architecture (reading, querying, and adding to it) to a large audience.
Information output pages
System Architect XT runs XML report template files against the repository and presents all information in real time.
Creating and editing definitions in System Architect XT is similar to how it is done in System Architect. You can create most of the same definition types (including keyed and unkeyed), create references to other definitions with the OneOf and ListOf properties, and add links from reference properties to their underlying definitions. In the encyclopedia repository, a keyed definition has its namespace provided by another artifact type. For example, a Class definition is keyed to a Package, and an Entity definition is keyed to a Model.
The Diagram Compare feature overlays the diagrams you select and displays them as layers in a browser window. System Architect XT determines the best opacity for each diagram based on the number of diagrams. You can change the opacity of each diagram with interface controls presented with the diagram comparison.
The Search function is on the right side of System Architect XT pages, if the default template is being used. Type a word, and System Architect XT displays a list of all diagram, symbol, and definition instances in which that word or phrase appears in.
System Architect XT Web Service is a .Net 2.0 XML Web Service application that exposes a set of Read-Only methods. Users can create consumer applications to use these methods to run System Architect reports and retrieve the XML for encyclopedia objects by DDID. A consumer application can be an ASP.NET or .NET Windows form that uses web service components to read encyclopedia repositories and present the data to end users through an intranet.
The System Architect XT/Focal Point Gadget Dashboard add-on provides the ability to display OpenSocial-style gadgets on your System Architect XT website.