Technical Layer Reference — DNA Codes

Technical DNA describes how the system actually runs. Cells are the unit of deployment — they consume DNA from the upper layers and generate concrete artifacts (API code, database migrations, infrastructure templates).

Stability: Experimental shape may change without notice Beta stabilizing; minor changes possible Stable safe to build on; changes follow semver Deprecated slated for removal; migrate off

Cell Stable

A Cell is a deployed unit: DNA + Adapter + wired Constructs. It is the concrete embodiment of cell-based architecture — it accepts a DNA document, applies an adapter, and produces running software or infrastructure.

Fields

Field	Type	Required	Description
name	string	yes	The kebab-case name of the cell.
dna	string	yes	The path or identifier of the DNA document this cell consumes.
adapter	object	yes	The framework/runtime adapter that interprets the DNA.
constructs	string[]	—	The Construct names this cell uses.
variables	variable[]	—	Variables injected into this cell at runtime.
outputs	output[]	—	Values this cell exports for other cells to reference.
environment	string	—	If set, this cell definition is scoped to a specific Environment.
description	string	—	A human-readable explanation of what this cell does.

Example


          {
  "name": "api",
  "dna": "product/api",
  "adapter": {
    "type": "nestjs",
    "version": "10"
  },
  "constructs": [
    "primary-db",
    "auth-provider"
  ],
  "outputs": [
    {
      "name": "api.url",
      "cell": "api",
      "value": "api-gateway.url"
    }
  ]
}

Related: Construct · Connection · Provider

Construct Stable

A Construct is a named infrastructure component with a category and type. Constructs are declared once and referenced by multiple Cells.

Fields

Field	Type	Required	Description
name	string	yes	The kebab-case name of the construct, used as a reference key.
category	"compute" \| "storage" \| "network"	yes	The infrastructure category of the construct.
description	string	—	A human-readable explanation of what this construct represents.
provider	string	—	The Provider name that backs this construct.
environment	string	—	If set, this construct is scoped to a specific Environment.
config	object	—	Provider-specific configuration for this construct.

Example


          {
  "name": "primary-db",
  "category": "storage",
  "type": "database",
  "provider": "aws",
  "config": {
    "engine": "postgres",
    "version": "15"
  }
}

Related: Cell · Node

Connection Stable

A directed relationship between two nodes in an architecture view. Connections represent data flow, dependencies, or communication paths.

Fields

Field	Type	Required	Description
id	string	yes	Unique identifier for this connection within the view.
source	string	yes	The `id` of the source node.
target	string	yes	The `id` of the target node.
label	string	—	Text displayed on the connection line.
vertices	object[]	—	Intermediate waypoints for the connection path.
metadata	object	—	Arbitrary key-value pairs.

Example


          {
  "id": "api-to-db",
  "source": "api-cell",
  "target": "primary-db",
  "type": "depends-on",
  "label": "reads/writes"
}

Related: Cell · Zone

Environment Stable

An Environment is a named deployment context. All Technical primitives can be scoped to an Environment.

Fields

Field	Type	Required	Description
name	"dev" \| "staging" \| "prod"	yes	The name of the environment.
description	string	—	A human-readable explanation of this environment's purpose.
providers	provider[]	—	The Providers active in this environment.
variables	variable[]	—	Variables scoped to this environment.

Example


          {
  "name": "prod",
  "description": "Live production environment.",
  "providers": [
    {
      "name": "aws",
      "type": "cloud",
      "region": "us-east-1"
    }
  ]
}

Related: Cell · Provider · Variable

Node Stable

A visual element representing a system component in an architecture view. Nodes can reference DNA primitives from other layers via the `source` field.

Fields

Field	Type	Required	Description
id	string	yes	Unique identifier for this node within the view.
name	string	yes	Display name shown on the diagram.
status	"proposed" \| "planned" \| "deployed" \| "running"	—	Lifecycle status of this component. Drives visual styling in the viewer: proposed (dashed/dim), planned (solid/greyed), deployed (full color), running (full color + pulse).
source	string	—	Reference to a DNA primitive in another layer. Format: `<layer>:<primitive-type>:<name>`. Used for cross-layer traceability and auto-derivation.
position	object	—	Position on the canvas in pixels.
size	object	—	Dimensions on the canvas in pixels.
description	string	—	A human-readable explanation of what this node represents.
metadata	object	—	Arbitrary key-value pairs for adapter-specific or display-specific data.

Example


          {
  "id": "api-cell",
  "name": "API Cell",
  "type": "cell",
  "status": "running",
  "source": "technical:cell:api-cell",
  "position": {
    "x": 200,
    "y": 100
  },
  "size": {
    "width": 160,
    "height": 80
  },
  "metadata": {
    "adapter": "node/express"
  }
}

Related: Construct

Zone Stable

A visual container that groups related nodes. Zones represent logical boundaries such as tiers, security boundaries, environments, or domain boundaries.

Fields

Field	Type	Required	Description
id	string	yes	Unique identifier for this zone within the view.
name	string	yes	Display name shown on the zone container.
nodes	string[]	yes	IDs of nodes contained in this zone.
position	object	—	Position on the canvas in pixels. Auto-calculated if omitted.
size	object	—	Dimensions on the canvas in pixels. Auto-calculated if omitted.
description	string	—	A human-readable explanation of what this zone represents.
metadata	object	—	Arbitrary key-value pairs.

Example


          {
  "id": "storage-tier",
  "name": "Storage Tier",
  "type": "tier",
  "nodes": [
    "primary-db",
    "session-cache"
  ],
  "description": "Persistent and ephemeral storage constructs."
}

Related: Connection · Environment

Provider Stable

A Provider is a named external platform that backs Constructs — AWS, GCP, Auth0, Stripe, etc.

Fields

Field	Type	Required	Description
name	string	yes	The kebab-case name of the provider, used as a reference key.
description	string	—	A human-readable explanation of what this provider supplies.
region	string	—	The primary deployment region for cloud providers.
config	object	—	Provider-specific configuration (account IDs, project names, etc.).

Example


          {
  "name": "aws",
  "type": "cloud",
  "region": "us-east-1",
  "config": {
    "account_id": "123456789"
  }
}

Related: Cell · Environment

Variable Stable

A Variable is an environment variable or secret reference used by Cells and Constructs.

Fields

Field	Type	Required	Description
name	string	yes	The SCREAMING_SNAKE_CASE name of the variable.
source	"env" \| "secret" \| "output" \| "literal"	yes	Where the variable value comes from.
description	string	—	A human-readable explanation of what this variable is used for.
value	string	—	The literal value when source is 'literal', or the secret/output reference path when source is 'secret' or 'output'.
required	boolean	—	Whether this variable must be present for the cell to run.
environment	string	—	If set, this variable is scoped to a specific Environment.

Example


          {
  "name": "DATABASE_URL",
  "source": "secret",
  "value": "arn:aws:secretsmanager:us-east-1:123:secret:db-url",
  "required": true
}

Related: Environment · Output

Output Stable

An Output is an exported value from one Cell that other Cells can reference via a Variable with source 'output'.

Fields

Field	Type	Required	Description
name	string	yes	The dot-separated reference key for this output (e.g. 'api.url', 'db.connection_string').
cell	string	yes	The Cell name that produces this output.
value	string	yes	The construct attribute or computed expression that produces this output value.
description	string	—	A human-readable explanation of what this output contains.

Example


          {
  "name": "api.url",
  "cell": "api",
  "value": "api-gateway.url",
  "description": "The public URL of the API gateway."
}

Related: Cell · Variable

View Stable

A named diagram perspective showing a specific aspect of the architecture. Each view contains its own set of nodes, connections, and zones.

Fields

Field	Type	Required	Description
name	string	yes	The unique name of this view.
description	string	—	A human-readable explanation of what this view shows.
layout	object	—	Layout hints for auto-positioning.
nodes	node[]	yes	The visual elements in this view.
connections	connection[]	—	The relationships between nodes in this view.
zones	zone[]	—	Visual groupings of nodes in this view.

Example


          {
  "name": "deployment",
  "description": "Cell deployment topology with infrastructure",
  "layout": {
    "type": "hierarchical",
    "direction": "TB"
  },
  "nodes": [
    {
      "id": "api-cell",
      "name": "API Cell",
      "type": "cell",
      "source": "technical:cell:api-cell"
    },
    {
      "id": "primary-db",
      "name": "Primary DB",
      "type": "construct",
      "source": "technical:construct:primary-db"
    }
  ],
  "connections": [
    {
      "id": "api-to-db",
      "source": "api-cell",
      "target": "primary-db",
      "type": "depends-on",
      "label": "reads/writes"
    }
  ],
  "zones": [
    {
      "id": "storage-tier",
      "name": "Storage",
      "type": "tier",
      "nodes": [
        "primary-db"
      ]
    }
  ]
}

Related: Cell · Environment