How SPECTRALE Works

From technical evidence to a connected architecture.

SPECTRALE is built around a simple principle:

Software architecture is more than a collection of components. It is a system of relationships.

A repository may describe an application. Configuration files may reference a database. Deployment metadata may reveal a hosting environment. API definitions may expose connections to external services.

Individually, these are fragments of information.

Together, they can form a structured representation of the system.

The architecture pipeline

DISCOVERY SOURCES
       |
       v
TECHNICAL EVIDENCE
       |
       v
COMPONENT IDENTIFICATION
       |
       v
RELATIONSHIP MODELING
       |
       v
ARCHITECTURE GRAPH
       |
       +------> VISUAL WORKSPACE
       |
       +------> MCP CONTEXT

1. Discovery

SPECTRALE analyzes information from supported sources to identify technical components and potential dependencies.

Depending on the source and available evidence, this may include repositories, applications, APIs, databases, infrastructure resources, and external services.

2. Component identification

Discovered evidence is interpreted as architectural components.

Components represent meaningful parts of a software environment, such as an application service, database, repository, or external endpoint.

3. Relationship modeling

Components become more useful when their relationships are understood.

SPECTRALE models dependencies and connections between architectural elements, creating a structured graph.

4. Workspace visualization

The resulting architecture can be explored in an interactive workspace.

This provides a visual representation of how different parts of a system relate to one another.

5. AI-accessible context

Through MCP, authorized AI clients can request structured information about projects, components, and dependencies.

This allows architecture context to become part of AI-assisted development workflows.

Evidence and architectural inference

Not every architectural relationship can be observed directly.

Some components and connections may be inferred from technical evidence rather than confirmed through direct access to the underlying system.

SPECTRALE distinguishes architectural discovery from operational access.

Discovering an external service does not mean SPECTRALE has authenticated access to that service.

This distinction is fundamental to understanding the architecture model.