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Rearchitecting

Rearchitecting is the process of redesigning the fundamental structure of a system’s architecture to meet new requirements or constraints. It focuses on how components interact, how data flows, and how deployment is organized, rather than merely changing internal code. Rearchitecting can apply to software applications, information systems, networks, and enterprise architectures, and it often involves changing the technology stack, interfaces, data models, and governance to achieve goals such as scalability, reliability, security, or maintainability, while preserving external behavior where possible.

It is distinct from refactoring, which reorganizes code without altering external interfaces, and from full system

The process usually involves assessment of current architecture, definition of a target architecture, and a migration

Expected outcomes include improved scalability, resilience, and maintainability, along with increased deployment velocity and adaptability to

replacement,
which
substitutes
the
system
with
a
different
implementation.
Rearchitecting
is
typically
driven
by
nonfunctional
requirements,
legacy
limitations,
or
strategic
initiatives
like
digital
transformation,
cloud
adoption,
or
regulatory
changes.
Common
scenarios
include
moving
from
a
monolithic
architecture
to
microservices,
migrating
on-premises
systems
to
cloud
platforms,
adopting
API-first
designs,
implementing
event-driven
architectures,
and
redesigning
data
models
or
security
controls.
plan
that
prioritizes
risk
and
business
value.
Collaboration
among
stakeholders,
architecture
governance,
and
iterative
implementation
with
validation
and
testing
are
important.
Patterns
often
used
in
rearchitecting
include
modularization,
service-oriented
or
microservices
approaches,
event-driven
data
flows,
API
gateways,
containerization,
and
scalable
data
architectures.
future
requirements.
Risks
include
cost,
downtime
during
transitions,
data
migration
challenges,
architectural
mismatch,
and
stakeholder
alignment.
Examples
span
monolith-to-microservices
rewrites,
cloud-native
redesigns,
and
security-centric
overhauls
of
complex
systems.