Within the IDSA documentation ecosystem, the Reference Architecture Model has always played a central role. It provides the technical backbone for sovereign data sharing: The architecture, interaction models, and capabilities needed to implement a data space. As IDSA evolves its guidance, RAM 5 becomes the document that connects governance principles with implementable system designs.
The IDSA Manifesto sets the overall direction. It explains why sovereign data spaces matter and lays out the values that shape IDSA’s work: Trust, interoperability, fairness, and data sovereignty. These foundations inform every technical and governance decision.
The IDSA Rulebook sits directly beneath the Manifesto. It defines roles, responsibilities, collaboration models, and mandatory conditions for trust. It specifies what every data space must satisfy but deliberately avoids prescribing technologies. Its purpose is to provide governance requirements without dictating implementation choices.
This coherence – values, rules, then technical guidance ensures that data space design remains consistent and trustworthy, regardless of the technical solutions chosen.
Where topic-specific papers fit
The landscape of data spaces is evolving quickly, and several areas require deeper, more targeted guidance. To support this, IDSA develops focus papers on topics such as:
- Identity and trust
- Observability
- Semantic Interoperability
- Emerging areas such as agentic AI
These papers are designed to be modular. They can evolve independently of each other, allowing each domain to advance at its own pace. Their insights feed directly into RAM 5, enriching the architecture with detailed technical guidance.
RAM 5 as the architectural foundation
RAM 5 sits directly underneath the Manifesto, Rulebook, and topic papers. Its function is to translate governance concepts and technical insights into implementable system architectures. It explains:
- Logical components
- Interaction models
- Capabilities
- Integration points with specifications such as the Dataspace Protocol (DSP) and the Decentralized Claims Protocol (DCP)
Beyond the IDSA documentation landscape, the new generation of the IDS Reference Architecture Model also aligns with ongoing international standardization efforts. Work such as ISO/IEC 20151 and DIN EN 18235 Trusted Data Transaction complements IDSA’s specifications by providing additional formal structures for trusted data transactions and interoperability. Incorporating these references ensures that the IDS‑RAM remains consistent not only with the IDSA Rulebook and specification projects like DSP and DCP, but also with the broader standards ecosystem shaping data space technology globally.
RAM 5 structures this guidance in two parts. The first maps capabilities such as data discovery, policy enforcement, identity resolution, contract negotiation, secure transfer, and observability to the underlying governance requirements and relevant specifications. The second presents architectural patterns – centralized, federated, and decentralized – and explains the implications and trade‑offs of each.
By doing so, RAM 5 becomes a flexible design space for architects and developers. It remains implementation‑neutral yet clearly aligned with the emerging standards across the data space ecosystem.
RAM 4 and RAM 5 coexist
RAM 4 and RAM 5 coexist for a transition period. RAM 4 remains the stable, frozen baseline for projects that rely on the existing architecture. Many organizations depend on its conceptual framing and layered structure, and freezing the document avoids unnecessary disruption.
RAM 5, on the other hand, provides the forward path. It reflects the current state of the ecosystem, links to specifications like DSP and DCP, and incorporates insights from topic‑specific workstreams. There is no forced migration. Projects can adopt RAM 5 when the relevant modules and capabilities match their needs.
In practice:
- RAM 4 stays valid: a stable conceptual foundation that will not be further developed
- RAM 5 evolves: a more practical, granular, and standards‑aligned architecture.
Each project can choose the version that fits its context, timeline, and interoperability requirements.
Is RAM 5 ready to use?
Parts of RAM 5 are ready today. The core architecture and the first topic papers already support projects that want to align with emerging specifications or need detailed guidance for identity, semantic interoperability, or observability.
Other areas are still in development. RAM 5 grows incrementally by design, allowing each capability or topic area to mature at its own pace. Organizations can therefore adopt the available parts of the model now, while understanding that RAM 5 is evolving rather than finalized.
A clear place in the document landscape
In the broader IDSA documentation structure:
- The Manifesto sets ambition and values
- The Rulebook defines governance and requirements
- Topic papers provide depth where needed
- RAM 5 connects all of this to concrete system architectures and interoperability specifications
RAM 5 becomes the document that makes the governance framework implementable. It turns rules and principles into logical components, capabilities, interactions, and architectural choices that support real‑world deployment.
Meet us at the Data Spaces Symposium in Madrid
IDSA will host a meeting during the Data Spaces Symposium: IDSA Working Group Architecture Community Meet-up – Way Forward for IDS-RAM
Day 2 (February 11, 2026), 9:00 AM in room London 1.
Check out the program and register now: Data Spaces Symposium 2026 – Scaling cross-border data ecosystems.
