Introduction to the Standards Information Base (SIB)

Role    Access

Role of the Standards Information Base

Previous sections of Part III have set the TOGAF Foundation Architecture in context, and described in detail one part of it, the TOGAF Technical Reference Model. This section describes the other part of the TOGAF Foundation Architecture, the Standards Information Base.

What is the Standards Information Base?

The Open Group's Standards Information Base is a database of facts and guidance about information systems standards. The standards to which it refers come from many sources: from formal standards bodies such as ISO or IEEE; from authoritative standards makers such as the Internet Society; and from other consortia, like the World Wide Web Consortium and the Object Management Group.

What is it for?

The Standards Information Base has three main uses:

• Architecture development: For an organization that is creating an architecture for its information systems, the Standards Information Base provides a valuable source of information about standards that may be used to populate the architecture.
• Acquisition / Procurement: An organization that is planning a procurement (whether or not based on an architecture) will find that the Standards Information Base can help ensure that the procurement gives a clear statement of technical requirements, with an assurance of conformance.
• General information : Finally, it can simply be a source of information about relevant IT standards, for use by anyone at any time.

The standards listed in the various tables are all Open Group standards - that is, standards endorsed by The Open Group as fit for purpose in architecture specification and procurement. They have been approved by the members of The Open Group as appropriate for use in Architecture and Procurement.

How is it Used in Architecture Development?

The entries in the Standards Information Base are linked either to other Open Group databases and resources, in particular those relating to Product Standards and Registered Products, or, where relevant, to the web sites of other organizations.

In this way, the SIB provides the architect with a gateway to a uniquely powerful set of tools for defining the standards that an architecture is to mandate, and for checking the availability in the market place of products guaranteed to conform to those standards.

In the context of TOGAF, the Standards Information Base can be used to dynamically generate lists, structured according to the TOGAF Technical Reference Model taxonomy, of the standards endorsed by The Open Group for use in open systems architectures.

For a detailed explanation of how the standards generated in this way are used, refer to Part II Architecture Development Method, which describes how to use the complete TOGAF Foundation Architecture as a basis for defining (by service) all the standards that make up the target architecture, and all the software building blocks that will be used to implement it.

Accessing the Standards Information Base

Originally held as part of the TOGAF document set, the Standards Information Base is now held in a database with web-enabled user access.

• The Standards Information Base home page is the usual starting point. You may want to bookmark the home page after following the hyperlink. It contains the two direct links shown below, plus a link to the detailed explanation on Using the SIB.
• You can access the SIB selectively through a search interface, according to your own defined criteria.
• Alternatively, you can view the entire SIB.

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