Edit relationship table

[michielper]

I would like to be able to edit the relationship table to allow some relationships that are currently forbidden in Archimate 2.0, unjustified in my opinion.

Specifically, I want Flow and Trigger to be allowed between all elements that exchange dataflow or control flow.

So, is it easy or possible to edit the relationship table?

[Jean-Baptiste Sarrodie]

Hi,

The relationship table is in fact an XML file located inside the sub folder "plugins/com.archimatetool.model_3.2.1.201509031003/model" of your Archi installation (the exact name may vary depending on exact Archi version). In this folder you'll find "relationships.xml" that you can edit (format is easy to understand) and then reload Archi.

But pay attention, the model you'll gonna create will not be usable outside your local Archi setup and will no longer be real ArchiMate. IMHO, you are here just trying to workaround some lack of ArchiMate knowledge. Maybe you'd better explain why you want this and why the existing flows are not enough...

Regards,

JB

[Phil Beauvoir]

Thanks, JB.

That's right you can edit the file "relationships.xml" and it should be pretty obvious how it works. There's also a file called "relationships-keys.xml" in the same folder which shows what the letters mean.

But, as JB says, if you want to share those models then the recipient will not have the same relationship rules. Also, if Archi gets updated that file will be over-written.

TBH, there's a lot of contention about whether some of the relationships are correct. The relationship matrix in the appendix of the spec conflicts with some of the metamodel diagrams in some places, and some tools break or bend the rules. Perhaps this will be fixed in a future version of ArchiMate.

Phil