Node   A node is a physical resource, that carries out some of the work of the system. It can be an electronic, mechanical or human resource.

Explanation

A node represents a physical part of a system. Many UML models describe the logical or conceptual aspects of a system; nodes on the other hand are physical, and have processing power and usually contain memory. A node is represented by a pseudo three-dimensional rectangular prism that indicates this physical aspect. There is an historical tendency to consider the node as simply a representation of a production computer but their usage and meaning is more diverse than that. They can represent many other devices and environments, and can be used extensively to represent physical aspects of the business system.

Important Points

An association between nodes denotes a communication path between the nodes.

An association between two nodes represents some type of communication between the two nodes. The use of stereotypes can qualify the type of relationship.

Related Entries

Node Instance  Instance of,  Graphically Similar,  Confused with A node instance is related to a node as an instance. It represents a specific example of a node. It has the same appearance but only has attributes.

Device  Child A device is related to a node as it is a type of node. While a node represents both physical and logical environments for the deployment of artifacts a device is a specialized form of a node that is used to describe physical environments.

Execution Environment  Child An execution environment is related to a node as it is a type of node. While a node represents both physical and logical environments for the deployment of artifacts an execution environment is a specialized form of a node that is used to describe logical environments.