In this article we describe the hardware and software architecture of the prototypes of the archiving system of the very long base line interferometric Virgo antenna for gravitational wave detection. The characteristics which make this system very interesting and innovative are not only its performances but also the modularity of the architecture which makes it easier to both follow the progress of the technology without dramatic changes of the hardware and software architecture and to match the requirements according to the Virgo needs. This prototype has been tested in the data acquisition of the 3 m pendularly suspended and evacuated Michelson interferometer prototype which is operational in Naples and in the monitoring of physical environmental quantities, like electromagnetic noise, acoustic noise, etc., necessary for the correlation of the output of the interferometer with the environment. ©1997 American Institute of Physics.