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N-tier architecture

N-tier application architecture provides a model for developers to create a flexible and reusable application.

By breaking up an application into tiers, developers only have to modify or add a specific layer, rather than have to rewrite the enitire application over, if they decide to change technologies or scale up.

In the term "N-tier," "N" implies any number -- like 2-tier, or 4-tier; basically, any number of distinct tiers used in your architecture.