Detectors Overview

archlint comes with 28+ built-in detectors categorized by the type of architectural or code quality issue they identify.

TIP

False Positives: Architectural analysis can sometimes produce false positives, especially in projects with heavy dynamic loading, reflection, or complex Dependency Injection containers.

Dependency Issues

Detector	ID	Description	Default
Cyclic Dependencies	cyclic_dependency	Circular dependencies between files	✅
Cycle Clusters	cycle_clusters	Complex web of circular dependencies	✅
Type Cycles	circular_type_deps	Type-only circular dependencies	❌
Package Cycles	package_cycles	Cyclic dependencies between packages	❌
Layer Violation	layer_violation	Violations of defined architectural layers	❌
SDP Violation	sdp_violation	Stable Dependencies Principle violations	❌

Module & Class Design

Detector	ID	Description	Default
God Module	god_module	Modules with too many responsibilities	✅
Hub Module	hub_module	Highly connected "hub" modules	❌
Low Cohesion	lcom	Classes with low internal cohesion (LCOM4)	❌
High Coupling	high_coupling	Modules with too many dependencies	❌
Scattered Module	module_cohesion	Functionality scattered across too many files	❌
Feature Envy	feature_envy	Methods that use more of another class than their own	❌

Code Quality & Organization

Detector	ID	Description	Default
Dead Code	dead_code	Unused exports	✅
Dead Symbols	dead_symbols	Unused local functions and variables	✅
Orphan Types	orphan_types	Types not connected to the codebase	✅
Barrel Abuse	barrel_file	Large barrel files causing coupling	✅
Primitive Obsession	primitive_obsession	Overuse of primitives instead of domain types	❌

Complexity & Size

Detector	ID	Description	Default
Cyclomatic Complexity	cyclomatic_complexity	Functions with high cyclomatic complexity	✅
Cognitive Complexity	cognitive_complexity	Functions with high cognitive complexity	✅
Deep Nesting	deep_nesting	Deeply nested code blocks	✅
Long Parameters	long_params	Functions with too many parameters	✅
Large File	large_file	Source files that are too large	✅

Change Patterns

Detector	ID	Description	Default
Shotgun Surgery	shotgun_surgery	Changes requiring modification in many files	❌
Unstable Interface	unstable_interface	Frequently changing public interfaces	❌

Runtime & Safety

Detector	ID	Description	Default
Test Leakage	test_leakage	Test code leaking into production	❌
Vendor Coupling	vendor_coupling	Tight coupling to external libraries	❌
Hub Dependency	hub_dependency	Over-reliance on external packages	❌
Side Effect Import	side_effect_import	Imports that trigger side effects	✅
Shared Mutable State	shared_mutable_state	Exported mutable variables	❌

Architectural Metrics

Detector	ID	Description	Default
Abstractness Violation	abstractness	Pain/Useless zones (I+A metric)	❌
Scattered Config	scattered_config	Configuration spread across many files	❌
Code Clone	code_clone	Duplicated code across the project	✅