Clean Architecture: The Missing Chapter

Milan Jovanović - Nov 4 - - Dev Community

I see the same mistake happen over and over again.

Developers discover Clean Architecture, get excited about its principles, and then... they turn the famous Clean Architecture diagram into a project structure.

But here's the thing: Clean Architecture is not about folders. It's about dependencies.

Simon Brown wrote a "missing chapter" for Uncle Bob's Clean Architecture book that addresses exactly this issue. Yet somehow, this crucial message got lost along the way.

Today, I'll show you what Uncle Bob's Clean Architecture diagram really means and how you should actually organize your code. We'll look at practical examples that you can use in your projects right now.

Let's clear up this common misconception once and for all.

The Problem With Traditional Layering

Almost every .NET developer has built a solution that looks like this:

  • MyApp.Web for controllers and views
  • MyApp.Business for services and business logic
  • MyApp.Data for repositories and data access

It's the default approach. It's what we see in tutorials. It's what we teach juniors.

And it's completely wrong.

Why Layer-Based Organization Fails

When you organize code by technical layers, you scatter related components across multiple projects. A single feature, like managing policies, ends up spread across your entire codebase:

  • Policies controller in the Web layer
  • Policy service in the Business layer
  • Policy repository in the Data layer

Here's what you'll see when looking at the folder structure:

📁 MyApp.Web
|__ 📁 Controllers
    |__ #️⃣ PoliciesController.cs
📁 MyApp.Business
|__ 📁 Services
    |__ #️⃣ PolicyService.cs
📁 MyApp.Data
|__ 📁 Repositories
    |__ #️⃣ PolicyRepository.cs
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Here's a visual representation of the layer-based architecture:

Image description

This fragmentation creates several problems:

  1. Violates Common Closure Principle - Classes that change together should stay together. When your "Policies" feature changes, you're touching three different projects.

  2. Hidden dependencies - Public interfaces everywhere make it possible to bypass layers. Nothing stops a controller from directly accessing a repository.

  3. No business intent - Opening your solution tells you nothing about what the application does. It only shows technical implementation details.

  4. Harder maintenance - Making changes requires jumping between multiple projects.

The worst part? This approach doesn't even achieve what it promises. Despite the separate projects, you often end up with a "big ball of mud" because public access modifiers allow any class to reference any other class.

The Real Intent of Layers

Clean Architecture's circles were never meant to represent projects or folders. They represent different levels of policy, with dependencies pointing inward toward business rules.

You can achieve this without splitting your code into artificial technical layers.

Let me show you a better way.

Better Approaches to Code Organization

Instead of splitting your code by technical layers, you have two better options: package by feature or package by component.

Let's look at both.

Package by Feature

Organizing by feature is a solid option. Each feature gets its own namespace and contains everything needed to implement that feature.

📁 MyApp.Policies
|__ 📁 RenewPolicy
    |__ #️⃣ RenewPolicyCommand.cs
    |__ #️⃣ RenewPolicyHandler.cs
    |__ #️⃣ PolicyValidator.cs
    |__ #️⃣ PolicyRepository.cs
|__ 📁 ViewPolicyHistory
    |__ #️⃣ PolicyHistoryQuery.cs
    |__ #️⃣ PolicyHistoryHandler.cs
    |__ #️⃣ PolicyHistoryViewModel.cs
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Here's a diagram representing this structure:

Image description

This approach:

  • Makes features explicit
  • Keeps related code together
  • Simplifies navigation
  • Makes it easier to maintain and modify features

If you want to learn more, check out my article about vertical slice architecture.

Package by Component

A component is a cohesive group of related functionality with a well-defined interface. Component-based organization is more coarse-grained than feature folders. Think of it as a mini application that handles one specific business capability.

This is very similar to how I define modules in a modular monolith.

Here's what a component-based organization looks like:

📁 MyApp.Web
|__ 📁 Controllers
    |__ #️⃣ PoliciesController.cs
📁 MyApp.Policies
|__ #️⃣ PoliciesComponent.cs // Public interface
|__ #️⃣ PolicyService.cs // Implementation detail
|__ #️⃣ PolicyRepository.cs // Implementation detail
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The key difference? Only PoliciesComponent is public. Everything else is internal to the component.

Image description

This means:

  • No bypassing layers
  • Clear dependencies
  • Real encapsulation
  • Business intent visible in the structure

Which One Should You Choose?

Choose Package by Feature when:

  • You have many small, independent features
  • Your features don't share much code
  • You want maximum flexibility

Choose Package by Component when:

  • You have clear business capabilities
  • You want strong encapsulation
  • You might split into microservices later

Both approaches achieve what Clean Architecture really wants: proper dependency management and business focus.

Here's a side-by-side comparison of these architectural approaches:

Image description

Greyed-out types are internal to the defining assembly.

In the Missing Chapter of Clean Architecture, Simon Brown argues strongly for package by component. The key insight is that components are the natural way to slice a system. They represent complete business capabilities, not just technical features.

My recommendation? Start with package by component. Within the component, organize around features.

Practical Examples

Let's transform a typical layered application into a clean, component-based structure. We'll use an insurance policy system as an example.

The Traditional Way

Here's how most developers structure their solution:

// MyApp.Data
public interface IPolicyRepository
{
    Task<Policy> GetByIdAsync(string policyNumber);
    Task SaveAsync(Policy policy);
}

// MyApp.Business
public class PolicyService : IPolicyService
{
    private readonly IPolicyRepository _repository;

    public PolicyService(IPolicyRepository repository)
    {
        _repository = repository;
    }

    public async Task RenewPolicyAsync(string policyNumber)
    {
        var policy = await _repository.GetByIdAsync(policyNumber);
        // Business logic here
        await _repository.SaveAsync(policy);
    }
}

// MyApp.Web
public class PoliciesController : ControllerBase
{
    private readonly IPolicyService _policyService;

    public PoliciesController(IPolicyService policyService)
    {
        _policyService = policyService;
    }

    [HttpPost("renew/{policyNumber}")]
    public async Task<IActionResult> RenewPolicy(string policyNumber)
    {
        await _policyService.RenewPolicyAsync(policyNumber);
        return Ok();
    }
}
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The problem? Everything is public. Any class can bypass the service and go straight to the repository.

The Clean Way

Here's the same functionality organized as a proper component:

// The only public contract
public interface IPoliciesComponent
{
    Task RenewPolicyAsync(string policyNumber);
}

// Everything below is internal to the component
internal class PoliciesComponent : IPoliciesComponent
{
    private readonly IRenewPolicyHandler _renewPolicyHandler;

    // Public constructor for DI
    public PoliciesComponent(IRenewPolicyHandler renewPolicyHandler)
    {
        _renewPolicyHandler = renewPolicyHandler;
    }

    public async Task RenewPolicyAsync(string policyNumber)
    {
        await _renewPolicyHandler.HandleAsync(policyNumber);
    }
}

internal interface IRenewPolicyHandler
{
    Task HandleAsync(string policyNumber);
}

internal class RenewPolicyHandler : IRenewPolicyHandler
{
    private readonly IPolicyRepository _repository;

    internal RenewPolicyHandler(IPolicyRepository repository)
    {
        _repository = repository;
    }

    public async Task HandleAsync(string policyNumber)
    {
        var policy = await _repository.GetByIdAsync(policyNumber);
        // Business logic for policy renewal here
        await _repository.SaveAsync(policy);
    }
}

internal interface IPolicyRepository
{
    Task<Policy> GetByIdAsync(string policyNumber);
    Task SaveAsync(Policy policy);
}
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The key improvements are:

  1. Single public interface - Only IPoliciesComponent is public. Everything else is internal.

  2. Protected dependencies - No way to bypass the component and access the repository directly.

  3. Clear dependencies - All dependencies flow inward through the component.

  4. Proper encapsulation - Implementation details are truly hidden.

This is how you would register the services with dependency injection:

services.AddScoped<IPoliciesComponent, PoliciesComponent>();
services.AddScoped<IRenewPolicyHandler, RenewPolicyHandler>();
services.AddScoped<IPolicyRepository, SqlPolicyRepository>();
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This structure enforces Clean Architecture principles through compiler-checked boundaries, not just conventions.

The compiler won't let you bypass the component's public interface. That's much stronger than hoping developers follow the rules.

Best Practices and Limitations

Let's discuss something that is often overlooked: the practical limitations of enforcing Clean Architecture in .NET.

The Limits of Encapsulation

The internal keyword in .NET provides protection within a single assembly. Here's what that means in practice:

// In a single project:
public interface IPoliciesComponent { } // Public contract
internal class PoliciesComponent : IPoliciesComponent { }
internal class PolicyRepository { }

// Someone could still do this:
public class BadPoliciesComponent : IPoliciesComponent
{
    public BadPoliciesComponent()
    {
        // Nothing stops them from creating a bad implementation
    }
}
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While internal helps, it doesn't prevent all architectural violations.

The Trade-offs

Some teams split their code into separate assemblies for stronger encapsulation:

MyCompany.Policies.Core.dll
MyCompany.Policies.Infrastructure.dll
MyCompany.Policies.Api.dll
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This comes with trade-offs:

  1. More complex build process - Multiple projects need to be compiled and referenced.
  2. Harder navigation - Jumping between assemblies in the IDE is slower.
  3. Deployment complexity - More DLLs to manage and deploy.

A Pragmatic Approach

Here's what I recommend:

  1. Use a single assembly

  2. Enforce through architecture testing

[Fact]
public void Controllers_Should_Only_Depend_On_Component_Interfaces()
{
    var result = Types.InAssembly(Assembly.GetExecutingAssembly())
        .That()
        .ResideInNamespace("MyApp.Controllers")
        .Should()
        .OnlyDependOn(type =>
            type.Name.EndsWith("Component") ||
            type.Name.StartsWith("IPolicy"))
        .GetResult();

    result.IsSuccessful.Should().BeTrue();
}
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Want to learn more about enforcing architecture through testing? Check out my article on architecture testing.

Remember: Clean Architecture is about managing dependencies, not about achieving perfect encapsulation. Use the tools the language gives you, but don't over-complicate things chasing an impossible ideal.

Conclusion

Clean Architecture isn't about projects, folders, or perfect encapsulation.

It's about:

  • Organizing code around business capabilities
  • Managing dependencies effectively
  • Keeping related code together
  • Making boundaries explicit

Start with a single project. Use components. Make interfaces public and implementations internal. Add architecture tests if you need more control.

And remember: pragmatism beats purism. Your architecture should help you ship features faster, not slow you down with artificial constraints.

Want to learn more? Check out my Pragmatic Clean Architecture course, where I'll show you how to build maintainable applications with proper boundaries, clear dependencies, and business-focused components.

That's all for today. Stay awesome, and I'll see you next week.

P.S. Whenever you're ready, there are 3 ways I can help you:

  1. Pragmatic Clean Architecture: Join 3,150+ students in this comprehensive course that will teach you the system I use to ship production-ready applications using Clean Architecture. Learn how to apply the best practices of modern software architecture.

  2. Modular Monolith Architecture: Join 1,050+ engineers in this in-depth course that will transform the way you build modern systems. You will learn the best practices for applying the Modular Monolith architecture in a real-world scenario.

  3. Patreon Community: Join a community of 1,050+ engineers and software architects. You will also unlock access to the source code I use in my YouTube videos, early access to future videos, and exclusive discounts for my courses.

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