Modeling diagrams are fully customizable. In edit mode, add or remove objects and add new elements such as folders, shapes, or images. To connect objects and elements once they’re on the canvas, see Relations.
The left-side menu displays Diagram objects by default. Click any object or element to quickly center the view on it.
Objects
First, add objects to your model. The same object can be added multiple times. Frame color and icon of added objects are based on the package configuration.
Add objects to diagrams using the following methods:
A. Action panel
- In the action panel at the bottom of the diagram, click + Add object.
- Look your object up. Use facets to filter your results by clicking the funnel icon on the right.
- Click your object in the results. It is added to the diagram right away and the window closes.
B. Left-menu hierarchy
- In the left-menu, switch to the All objects tab.
- Select which Space and Application you want to add objects from. If needed, use the search bar to look up a specific object.
- Identify your object and drag and drop it to the diagram.
Objects from various spaces and applications can be added to the same diagram.
Right-click an object to open its context menu, with options to:
- Open the object detail.
- Open another diagram type associated with the object (such as a lineage diagram or ERD).
- Open the object page in a new window.
- Copy and paste an object.
- Delete an object.
- Bring the object to the front or send it to the back.
Elements
Apart from objects, add custom shapes as elements to your diagram.
- In the action panel at the bottom of the diagram, click the arrow next to Create and select your shape.
- Add the shape or text to the diagram.
The following shapes are available:
Resizing or moving a folder element so that it fully contains another element creates a parent-child relation between them: Object A then belongs to Folder 1. The same happens when you drag a folder as part of a multi-selection over loose objects: every loose object it ends up covering becomes its child too.
Moving an element to another folder changes its parent, and that’s a single undo step: one Undo restores both the folder membership and the element’s position.
Folders and the repository hierarchy
Folders in modeling diagrams:
- Group elements visually on the diagram.
- Group published objects in the metadata repository:
- Dragging a published object into or out of a folder also moves it in the repository.
- Dragging an object out of a folder moves it next to that folder, not to the top of the space.
The first time you move a published object in or out of a folder, you must confirm the action. Each change is reversible: a notification names the object and its new folder, with an Undo action to move it back.
Moving an object also moves its children.
Objects that aren’t yet published keep their folder membership only on the diagram. Publishing a folder moves its published children under it in the repository.
Limitations
The move fails when:
- The target folder doesn’t accept that type of child object.
- The target folder belongs to a different application or space.
- The object’s workflow state doesn’t allow the move.
Element actions
Right-click an element (a shape, sticky note, text, line, or image) to open its context menu:
- Copy: Copy the element, or press
ctrl+c(cmd+con Mac). - Paste: Insert the copied element next to the original, or press
ctrl+v(cmd+von Mac). This option appears only when you have already copied something. - Lock: Lock the element so it can no longer be moved or resized. To unlock it, click and hold the element.
- Delete: Remove the element from the diagram.
- Bring to front and Send to back: Change which elements the selected one overlaps.
Element actions change the diagram, so the context menu opens only in the fullscreen edit mode. Right-clicking an element in the view mode or on the object page opens no menu.
Images
Enrich a diagram with an image, such as a screenshot or a picture from another tool. There are three ways to add one:
- Copy the image, then press Ctrl+V on the canvas.
- Copy the image, then right-click the canvas and select Paste.
- Drag an image file from your computer onto the canvas. A blue border marks the area that accepts the file.
Supported formats are PNG, JPEG, GIF, and WEBP, up to 10 MB per image.
Once added, an image behaves like any other element. Drag it to move it, resize it using the handles in its corners, and use Bring to front or Send to back from its right-click menu to control which elements it covers.
Images are stored as attachments of the diagram, so they also appear in the Attachments section of the diagram object. Deleting an image from the canvas removes that attachment as well.
Drawing a line
Draw a standalone line alongside shapes to visually group objects or point at them, without creating a relation between them.
- In the action panel at the bottom of the diagram, select the line icon (second from the left, next to the cursor), press
Alt+L, or right-click the canvas and choose Line. - Click and hold where the line should start.
- Drag to where it should end and release.
Clicking the line opens the same editing menu as a relation: color, thickness, line style, and whether each end shows an arrow.
A drawn line is decoration only. Unlike a relation, it doesn’t connect the objects in the metadata repository and doesn’t appear in their relation lists.
Resizing several items at once
Resize a whole group of objects and elements in one gesture:
- Hold Shift and click each object or element you want to resize.
- Drag any corner handle of the selection.
The selected items resize together and keep their spacing, so the layout stays intact and nothing overlaps. The corner opposite the one you drag stays in place — drag the bottom-right handle and the top-left corner of the group stays put.
Changing element background color
To change an object’s or an element’s background color:
- Select your object.
- In the small menu that appears near the element, click the circle icon and select the new background color.