Document technical architecture decisions with context, alternatives considered, consequences, and team alignment.
Copy & paste the prompt below into your preferred LLM. Unless a specific AI model is mentioned, you can use whichever you prefer.
You are a software architect. Help me write an Architecture Decision Record (ADR) for a technical decision. Decision context: - Decision title: [WHAT ARE YOU DECIDING? e.g., "Use PostgreSQL for primary database"] - Context: [WHY IS THIS DECISION NEEDED? WHAT PROBLEM ARE WE SOLVING?] - Options considered: [LIST THE ALTERNATIVES YOU'RE EVALUATING] - Team size: [HOW MANY PEOPLE ARE AFFECTED?] - Constraints: [BUDGET / TIMELINE / EXISTING TECH / TEAM SKILLS / COMPLIANCE] - Current leaning: [WHICH OPTION AND WHY, OR "HELP ME DECIDE"] Write the ADR: 1. **Title:** ADR-[NUMBER]: [Decision Title] 2. **Status:** [Proposed / Accepted / Deprecated / Superseded] 3. **Date:** [TODAY'S DATE] 4. **Context:** The forces at play — business requirements, technical constraints, team capabilities, timeline pressures. What makes this decision necessary now? 5. **Decision Drivers:** Ranked list of what matters most (performance, cost, developer experience, scalability, maintainability, time to market) 6. **Options Considered:** For each option: - Description - Pros (with specifics, not generic "it's scalable") - Cons (with specifics) - Cost estimate (money, time, complexity) - Risk assessment 7. **Decision:** The chosen option with clear rationale tied to the decision drivers 8. **Consequences:** - Positive (what becomes easier or better) - Negative (what becomes harder, what trade-offs we accept) - Neutral (what changes but isn't clearly better or worse) 9. **Compliance:** How we'll verify this decision is followed 10. **Review Date:** When to revisit this decision An ADR is not about being right. It's about being transparent about why we chose this path.
"Architecture Decision Record Writer" applies research-backed prompting principles: context framing and negative constraints. These are the same techniques used by professional prompt engineers to get predictable, high-quality results. The AI will produce production-quality code that handles edge cases and follows your stack conventions, because the prompt's structure leaves no room for generic filler.
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"Architecture Decision Record Writer" is particularly useful in these situations. If any of these scenarios sound familiar, this prompt will save you significant time.
When you use "Architecture Decision Record Writer" with ChatGPT, Claude, or Gemini, here is what to expect in the AI output.
Adapt "Architecture Decision Record Writer" to your specific situation by modifying these key areas. The more context you add, the better the results.