Skills
skills/automateyournetwork/netclaw/drawio-diagram

drawio-diagram

SKILL.md

Draw.io Network Diagrams

Generate network diagrams using two complementary approaches:

  1. Native File Mode — Generate .drawio XML files on disk with optional PNG/SVG/PDF export via the draw.io desktop CLI (official jgraph skill-cli)
  2. Browser Mode — Open diagrams in the Draw.io browser editor via the @drawio/mcp MCP server (Mermaid, XML, or CSV input)

Mode 1: Native File Generation (Official Skill-CLI)

Generate native .drawio files directly. Optionally export to PNG, SVG, or PDF with the diagram XML embedded (so the exported file remains editable in draw.io).

How to Create a Diagram

  1. Generate draw.io XML in mxGraphModel format for the requested diagram
  2. Write the XML to a .drawio file in the current working directory using the Write tool
  3. If the user requested an export format (png, svg, pdf), export using the draw.io CLI with --embed-diagram, then delete the source .drawio file
  4. Open the result — the exported file if exported, or the .drawio file otherwise

Choosing the Output Format

Check the user's request for a format preference:

  • /drawio create a flowchart → flowchart.drawio
  • /drawio png flowchart for login → login-flow.drawio.png
  • /drawio svg: ER diagram → er-diagram.drawio.svg
  • /drawio pdf architecture overview → architecture-overview.drawio.pdf

If no format is mentioned, write the .drawio file and open it. The user can ask to export later.

Supported Export Formats

Format Embed XML Notes
png Yes (-e) Viewable everywhere, editable in draw.io
svg Yes (-e) Scalable, editable in draw.io
pdf Yes (-e) Printable, editable in draw.io
jpg No Lossy, no embedded XML support

PNG, SVG, and PDF all support --embed-diagram — the exported file contains the full diagram XML, so opening it in draw.io recovers the editable diagram.

draw.io CLI

The draw.io desktop app includes a command-line interface for exporting.

Locating the CLI

Try drawio first (works if on PATH), then fall back to the platform-specific path:

  • macOS: /Applications/draw.io.app/Contents/MacOS/draw.io
  • Linux: drawio (typically on PATH via snap/apt/flatpak)
  • Windows: "C:\Program Files\draw.io\draw.io.exe"

Use which drawio (or where drawio on Windows) to check if it's on PATH before falling back.

Export Command

drawio -x -f <format> -e -b 10 -o <output> <input.drawio>

Key flags:

  • -x / --export: export mode
  • -f / --format: output format (png, svg, pdf, jpg)
  • -e / --embed-diagram: embed diagram XML in the output (PNG, SVG, PDF only)
  • -o / --output: output file path
  • -b / --border: border width around diagram (default: 0)
  • -t / --transparent: transparent background (PNG only)
  • -s / --scale: scale the diagram size
  • --width / --height: fit into specified dimensions (preserves aspect ratio)
  • -a / --all-pages: export all pages (PDF only)
  • -p / --page-index: select a specific page (1-based)

Opening the Result

  • macOS: open <file>
  • Linux: xdg-open <file>
  • Windows: start <file>

File Naming

  • Use a descriptive filename based on the diagram content (e.g., login-flow, database-schema)
  • Use lowercase with hyphens for multi-word names
  • For export, use double extensions: name.drawio.png, name.drawio.svg, name.drawio.pdf — this signals the file contains embedded diagram XML
  • After a successful export, delete the intermediate .drawio file — the exported file contains the full diagram

Mode 2: Browser Editor via MCP Server

Open diagrams directly in the Draw.io browser editor using the @drawio/mcp MCP server. Supports three input formats.

Mermaid Diagrams (best for quick topology graphs)

python3 $MCP_CALL "npx -y @drawio/mcp" open_drawio_mermaid '{"content":"graph TD\n  A --> B"}'

XML Diagrams (best for detailed, styled diagrams with precise positioning)

python3 $MCP_CALL "npx -y @drawio/mcp" open_drawio_xml '{"content":"<mxGraphModel>...</mxGraphModel>"}'

CSV Diagrams (best for device inventories)

python3 $MCP_CALL "npx -y @drawio/mcp" open_drawio_csv '{"content":"## label: %name%\nname,refs\nA,B\nB,C"}'

All three tools accept optional "lightbox": true for read-only view and "dark": "auto"|"true"|"false" for dark mode.

The tool returns a Draw.io URL. Share it directly — the diagram opens in the browser editor where it can be edited, exported, or saved.

XML Format Reference

A .drawio file is native mxGraphModel XML. Always generate XML directly — Mermaid and CSV formats require server-side conversion and cannot be saved as native files.

Basic Structure

Every diagram must have this structure:

<mxGraphModel>
  <root>
    <mxCell id="0"/>
    <mxCell id="1" parent="0"/>
    <!-- Diagram cells go here with parent="1" -->
  </root>
</mxGraphModel>
  • Cell id="0" is the root layer
  • Cell id="1" is the default parent layer
  • All diagram elements use parent="1" unless using multiple layers

Common Styles

Rounded rectangle:

<mxCell id="2" value="Label" style="rounded=1;whiteSpace=wrap;" vertex="1" parent="1">
  <mxGeometry x="100" y="100" width="120" height="60" as="geometry"/>
</mxCell>

Diamond (decision):

<mxCell id="3" value="Condition?" style="rhombus;whiteSpace=wrap;" vertex="1" parent="1">
  <mxGeometry x="100" y="200" width="120" height="80" as="geometry"/>
</mxCell>

Arrow (edge):

<mxCell id="4" value="" style="edgeStyle=orthogonalEdgeStyle;" edge="1" source="2" target="3" parent="1">
  <mxGeometry relative="1" as="geometry"/>
</mxCell>

Labeled arrow:

<mxCell id="5" value="Yes" style="edgeStyle=orthogonalEdgeStyle;" edge="1" source="3" target="6" parent="1">
  <mxGeometry relative="1" as="geometry"/>
</mxCell>

Useful Style Properties

Property Values Use for
rounded=1 0 or 1 Rounded corners
whiteSpace=wrap wrap Text wrapping
fillColor=#dae8fc Hex color Background color
strokeColor=#6c8ebf Hex color Border color
fontColor=#333333 Hex color Text color
shape=cylinder3 shape name Database cylinders
shape=mxgraph.flowchart.document shape name Document shapes
ellipse style keyword Circles/ovals
rhombus style keyword Diamonds
edgeStyle=orthogonalEdgeStyle style keyword Right-angle connectors
edgeStyle=elbowEdgeStyle style keyword Elbow connectors
dashed=1 0 or 1 Dashed lines
swimlane style keyword Swimlane containers

Diagram Types for Network Engineering

1. Physical Topology Diagram

Shows devices, physical links, interface names, IP addresses, and link speeds.

python3 $MCP_CALL "npx -y @drawio/mcp" open_drawio_mermaid '{"content":"graph TD\n  R1[\"R1\\nCore Router\\n10.255.255.1\"]\n  R2[\"R2\\nCore Router\\n10.255.255.2\"]\n  SW1[\"SW1\\nDist Switch\\n10.255.255.3\"]\n  R1 -->|\"Gi0/0 -- Gi0/0\\n10.1.1.0/30\"| R2\n  R1 -->|\"Gi0/1 -- Gi0/1\\n10.1.2.0/30\"| SW1\n  R2 -->|\"Gi0/1 -- Gi0/1\\n10.1.3.0/30\"| SW1"}'

2. Logical Topology Diagram

Shows routing protocol relationships, areas, AS numbers, VRFs.

python3 $MCP_CALL "npx -y @drawio/mcp" open_drawio_mermaid '{"content":"graph TD\n  subgraph \"OSPF Area 0\"\n    R1[\"R1 ABR\"]\n    R2[\"R2 ABR\"]\n  end\n  subgraph \"OSPF Area 1\"\n    R3[\"R3\"]\n  end\n  R1 --- R2\n  R1 --- R3"}'

3. Security Zones Diagram

Shows firewalls, DMZs, trust boundaries, ACL enforcement points.

python3 $MCP_CALL "npx -y @drawio/mcp" open_drawio_mermaid '{"content":"graph LR\n  subgraph \"Untrusted\"\n    INET((Internet))\n  end\n  subgraph \"DMZ\"\n    WEB[\"Web Server\"]\n  end\n  subgraph \"Trusted\"\n    CORE[\"Core Switch\"]\n  end\n  INET --> FW[\"Firewall\"]\n  FW --> WEB\n  FW --> CORE"}'

CRITICAL: XML Well-Formedness

  • NEVER use double hyphens (--) inside XML comments. -- is illegal inside <!-- --> per the XML spec and causes parse errors. Use single hyphens or rephrase.
  • Escape special characters in attribute values: &amp;, &lt;, &gt;, &quot;
  • Always use unique id values for each mxCell

When to Use Each Mode

Scenario Mode Why
Generate .drawio file for version control Native File Produces actual file on disk
Export PNG/SVG/PDF for documentation Native File CLI export with embedded XML
Quick topology preview from discovery data Browser Instant visual in browser
CSV-based inventory diagram Browser CSV format only available via MCP
Mermaid syntax diagram Browser Mermaid conversion only via MCP
Offline/air-gapped environment Native File No network needed
Sharing a link to the diagram Browser Returns shareable URL

Integration with Other Skills

  • Use pyats-topology to discover the network, then generate diagrams from the data
  • Use netbox-reconcile to color-code links by reconciliation status (documented/undocumented/missing)
  • Use markmap-viz for hierarchical views alongside Draw.io for topology views
  • Use aci-fabric-audit data to generate ACI fabric topology diagrams
  • Use gait-session-tracking to record diagram generation with source data references
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