How-To Model an Interface
Using Txture's default Structure model, there is a separate Asset-Type for depicting and modeling an interface between two or more applications, databases or other technical components. For the sake of simplicity, we will only describe the modeling of interfaces between applications. The procedure is the same for the other asset types.
Properties & Links
All information about the interface and the data transferred by the interface is managed on the interface asset as properties. Examples from the default structure model are:
- Personal Data is processed (yes/no)
- Used Ports
- Protocol Types
- Traffic
In addition to the interface asset type, two types of links between the application and the interface exist:
- An application provides an interface.
- An application communicates with an interface.
Important
Each interface asset is provided by exactly one single application (provides-link is single-valued) but one or more applications can communicate with the interface (communicates with-link can be multi-valued).
Naming
It is recommended to ensure a unique and transparent naming of interfaces. We recommend to name the interface after what will be handled via the interface. If nothing specific exists, name it after the application providing it. If an application provides a generic interface via several protocols, it is recommended to create a separate interface asset for each single protocol, e.g.
- Asset 1: "BRM LDAP"
- Asset 2: "BRM Http"
Examples
The following screenshots show examples, one for modeling a "1-to-1 interface", the second one shows how to model a "1-to-n interface". The last one shows an example where separate interface assets have been modeled for multiple protocol-types: