1. Home
2. Docs
3. Concepts
4. Architecture and Data Flow

Architecture and Data Flow

HexView is organized as a small set of layers.

Layers

1. Reader layer
   • ILineReader
   • MemoryMappedLineReader
   • ByteOverlayLineReader
2. Edit layer
   • ByteOverlay
   • EditJournal
   • SelectionService
   • NavigationService
3. Presentation layer
   • HexFormatter
   • HexViewControl
4. Workflow layer
   • sample views such as SingleView and DiffView

Data Flow

The normal read path is:

file -> MemoryMappedLineReader -> ByteOverlay -> ByteOverlayLineReader -> HexViewControl

The edit path is:

keyboard/paste/search-replace -> ByteWriteAction or services -> ByteOverlay -> render refresh

Why The Split Exists

• The control does not have to know how bytes are persisted
• Large files remain practical because reading is chunked and memory-mapped
• Alternate readers and formatters can be introduced without rewriting the control

Diff and Annotation Paths

• Diff mode uses DifferencesProvider to supply changed offsets
• Annotation mode uses Annotations plus HexAnnotationStorage to draw, navigate, and persist labeled ranges