c4-model

c4-model

Produces a canonical-C4 LikeC4 model — Context and Container views by default, Deployment optional. Refuses every LikeC4 feature that would push the diagram beyond Simon Brown's canonical C4. The canonical-C4 features used here are stable across LikeC4 versions; re-validate with npx likec4 validate to confirm against your installed version.

What this skill makes

• A model.c4 file containing the specification + the model
• A <system>.c4 file scoped to the single system in focus
• A views.c4 file with one Context view and one Container view (optionally one Deployment view)
• A likec4.config.js file

What this skill refuses

Refused thing	Why	Architect alternative
Component views	"Component views belong at a deeper level than ADRs work at."	Use a code-level diagram tool (e.g., Mermaid in source) — outside C4.
Dynamic views	Sequence/runtime flows are not canonical C4.	Use a sequence diagram tool separately.
Custom element kinds	Canonical C4 has Person / Software System / Container — period.	Use container and put the type in the technology attribute.
Custom relationship kinds	Canonical relationships: uses, reads, writes, publishes, consumes.	Pick the closest canonical kind.
Custom styles	Diagram should look recognizably C4.	If styling matters more than canonicality, use LikeC4 directly outside this skill.
Nested systems	C4 has Context and Container; nesting systems-in-systems muddies the levels.	Split into separate models.
Multiple systems in focus	One system per .c4 file is canonical.	Make separate models for each, link via externalSystem.

The refusals are the point. An architect who wants full LikeC4 freedom should not use this skill.

Vocabulary

• Actor — a Person in C4 terms (a human role). Render outside the system boundary.
• External system — a system the team does not own. Render outside the system boundary.
• System — the one bounded product in focus. Exactly one per file.
• Container — a runnable/deployable unit inside the system in focus. Not a code class.
• Relationship — directed edge with a one-line description; the description is required.

Hard rules

1. Every relationship has a one-line description. No description → no edge.
2. Element names match what the architect confirmed in discovery. Don't translate, abbreviate, or pluralize.
3. No invented styling unless the architect explicitly requests it.
4. Exactly one system definition per .c4 file.

Locked specification block

Use this specification block verbatim. Do not edit, extend, or rename.

specification {
  element actor {
    style {
      shape person
    }
  }
  element externalSystem {
    style {
      color secondary
    }
  }
  element system
  element container

  relationship uses
  relationship reads
  relationship writes
  relationship publishes
  relationship consumes

  tag open-question {
    style {
      color red
      border dashed
    }
  }
}

Open-question convention

For elements or relationships that exist but have unresolved details:

• Add the tag #open-question
• Prefix the description with OPEN Q<N>: matching the entry number in docs/architecture/open-questions.md
• The style renders red + dashed — visually obvious

Example:

container payments-service "Payments Service" "OPEN Q7: tech stack unconfirmed" {
  #open-question
}

The eight phases

Phase 1 — Intake

If docs/architecture/discovery-brief.md exists with CONFIRMED elements, use it directly — do not re-ask. Otherwise walk the architect through each element one at a time (one question per turn, same discipline as adr-discovery).

Phase 2 — Locate or scaffold

Glob **/*.c4 and **/likec4.config.*. Two cases:

• Files exist: read them. Identify the system in focus. Add to the existing model if the architect confirms scope.
• No files: scaffold model.c4, <system>.c4, views.c4, likec4.config.js at the architect's chosen path (default likec4/ at the repo root).

Phase 3 — Generate DSL

Three blocks in model.c4:

1. Specification — verbatim from the locked block above.
2. Model — actors and external systems at top level; containers nested inside the system block. See references/likec4-dsl-cheatsheet.md.
3. Views — in views.c4: one context view (the system + its actors + external systems), one container view (containers inside the system), optionally one deployment view.

Phase 4 — Canonical-C4 lint

Before validation, run the 11-item checklist:

#	Check
1	Exactly one system definition.
2	All containers nested inside that one system.
3	All actors at top level (not inside the system).
4	All external systems at top level.
5	Every relationship has a non-empty description.
6	No relationship kinds outside the canonical five.
7	No element kinds beyond actor, externalSystem, system, container.
8	No nested systems.
9	No views beyond context, container, deployment.
10	Specification block matches the locked block verbatim.
11	No #open-question tagged element lacks a OPEN Q<N>: description prefix.

Print PASS or FAIL with a numbered list of violations. Do not proceed on FAIL.

Phase 5 — Show diff, not apply

Render the proposed file changes as a diff, hunk by hunk. Per-hunk approval. Do not write files until the architect approves.

Phase 6 — Validate syntax

Run npx likec4 validate. If validation fails, surface the error to the architect — do not auto-fix.

Phase 7 — Render guidance

Tell the architect how to view the diagram. Do not start a server uninvited.

To view: npx likec4 start    # interactive browser at http://localhost:5173
To serve: npx likec4 serve   # static export

Phase 8 — Drift check

Glob ADR directories (docs/adr/, docs/decisions/, docs/architecture/decisions/, **/adr/*.md; also check legacy architecture/decisions/). For each ADR, compare component names mentioned in the text against names in the LikeC4 model. Report name mismatches as drift candidates — let the architect choose which side is canonical. Do not auto-rename either side.

DSL notes

For complex DSL questions (scoped views, extend, deployment specs), consult references/likec4-dsl-cheatsheet.md. For features that fall outside canonical C4, refer the architect to the upstream LikeC4 documentation rather than implementing them in this skill.

References

• references/likec4-dsl-cheatsheet.md — minimal cheat-sheet of canonical-C4 LikeC4 DSL
• references/canonical-c4-refusals.md — verbatim refusal scripts for the disallowed features
• The adr-discovery skill — upstream source of confirmed elements and relationships
• The adr-critique skill — downstream consumer for drift detection against ADRs