This deliverable has been projected as the long-awaited and definitive description of the Data Lake, that mythical answer to all dwelling technical questions in the whole FAIR-EASE project. The approach presented in this document tries to address that expectation, yet allows itself to do so without conforming to any assumptions derived from common existing definitions of a Data Lake. Instead, it applies high-level systems engineering on the base requirements as gathered in D5.1 and presented during the one-on-one pilot interviews, to conclude in a General Architecture plan that replaces the "Central Data Lake" scenario with a "Many Lakes" one. Overall, this deliverable is intended to provide a framework for planning the rest of the work and should not be evaluated solely based on how accurately it describes the end result when the project finishes. It is as much a management tool as an actual architecture document, and we hope that it will serve as a useful guide for all stakeholders involved in the FAIR-EASE project.