title: TOGAF 9: difference between enterprise continuum and architecture repository
body: <p>I am trying to understand the core concepts of TOGAF 9.</p>
  <p>No matter how often I read the explanation in the TOGAF manual, I don't understand the differences and the relationship between the Enterprise Continuum and the Architecture Repository.</p>
  <hr />
  <p>Some quotes from the documentation:</p>
  <p><em>Enterprise Continuum</em></p>
  <blockquote>
  <p>&quot;The simplest way of thinking of the Enterprise Continuum is as a view of the repository of all the architecture assets. It can contain architecture descriptions, models, building blocks, patterns, viewpoints, and other artifacts&quot;</p>
  <p>&quot;The Enterprise Continuum provides a valuable context for understanding architectural models: it shows building blocks and
  their relationships to each other, and the constraints and requirements on a cycle of architecture development.&quot;
  (pages 565 and 48)</p>
  </blockquote>
  <p><em>Architecture Repository</em></p>
  <blockquote>
  <p>&quot;This section of TOGAF provides a structural framework for an Architecture Repository that allows an enterprise to distinguish between different types of architectural assets that exist at different levels of abstraction in the organization.&quot;
  (page 593)</p>
  </blockquote>
  <p><strong>Assumptions</strong></p>
  <p>The samples/template-package of TOGAF contains a word document <em>&quot;TOGAF 9 Template - Architecture Repository.doc&quot;</em>, so</p>
  <p><strong>1)</strong> I think of the architecture repository as a large document, containing all outputs of all projects related to the architecture.</p>
  <p><strong>2)</strong> The enterprise continuum is another document classifying the contents of the architecture repository from foundation architecture to organization architecture and providing information about the relationship between these objects.</p>
  <hr />
  <p>What is the difference/relationship between the enterprise continuum and the architecture repository?</p>