Chapter 1: Introduction to Microsoft Visio for Enterprise Architects

Visio is a diagramming tool that allows you to create drawings and document processes, systems, and applications using Unified Modeling Language (UML) diagrams. You can generate the .NET skeleton code for an application from the UML diagram of that application. You can customize this code later according to the requirement of your application. In addition, Visio can generate database models and databases from the UML diagrams.

This chapter describes the various types of UML diagrams you can use to model enterprise applications. It also describes the various features of Visio, such as database modeling, reverse engineering, Component Object Model (COM) add-ins, and Visio ActiveX control, that enable you to integrate Visio with the Visual Studio .NET Enterprise Architect to develop enterprise applications.

Unified Modeling Language

UML is a set of standard notations that helps you analyze, visualize, and create object-oriented models or diagrams of real-world objects, enterprise systems, and software modules. You can use UML diagrams to represent the application architecture as a collection of modules or components .

Visio allows you to model disparate applications that run on various computing platforms. For example, you can draw models for applications created in object-oriented languages, such as C++, Java, Visual Basic .NET, and C#. In addition, you can draw models for non-object oriented applications.

To model enterprise applications, you can create the following types of diagrams:

• Structural Diagrams

• Behavior Diagrams

• Model Management Diagrams

Structural diagrams display the components such as, classes, objects, and interfaces of an enterprise system. The various types of structural diagrams are:

• Component diagram: Describes the dependencies between various software components in an application, such as source and executable files.

• Deployment diagram: Displays the physical architecture of an enterprise application at run time. It shows the hardware components you use to implement that application, the software that you install on that hardware, and the middleware used to connect the disparate hardware components.

Behavior diagrams display the behavior and the interactions of real world entities in an enterprise system. The various types of behavior diagrams are:

• Use case diagram: Identifies the functionality provided by an application or system and the entities that interact with the application or system. This diagram shows how the entities use the functionality of that system. You can find the requirements of the target system from the end user 's perspective using this diagram.

• Sequence diagram: Depicts the sequence of actions that occur in a system. The diagram displays the actions horizontally and time vertically, and models the events that the actions generate over time. It does not display association between the objects that perform actions.

• Collaboration diagram: Models the interaction and association between various objects in an enterprise system. Arrows in the diagram denote the interaction between the objects. Numbers that are placed next to each of the arrows, identify the sequence of invocation of these objects.

• State diagram: Displays the various states an object undergoes in its life cycle and the events that cause a change in the state of that object. For example, your car is in a stationary state. This state changes when you switch on the car ignition key.

• Activity diagram: Displays workflows in a system, from the business level down to the operational one. It shows the activity and the event that causes the object to be in the particular state. These diagrams are detailed in comparison to state diagrams.

A model management diagram displays the organization and management of modules in an application. This diagram includes:

• Package diagram: Displays a group of objects that provide related services in an enterprise system. A package can contain sub packages, classes, and interfaces. For example, a BookStore package for a Book Store application may include classes, such as customers, placeorder, books, and login.

• Static structure diagram: Displays a software system in the form of classes and objects, and the relationship between these classes and objects. A static structure diagram decomposes a software system into sub systems. Each sub system can consist of classes, interfaces, packages, actors, and use cases.

Note  

To learn more about UML, see the Modeling Applications with Rational Rose and UML book.