Diagrams is a built in draw.io editor for flowcharts, network diagrams, mind maps, system architectures, anything you would otherwise sketch on a whiteboard. This guide covers where diagrams live, how to create, organize, and share them, and how to embed one in a notebook page or on a dashboard.
1
What is Diagrams?
A dedicated draw.io editor, separate from your boards and notebook pages.
DiagramsWhat it is
Where it livesIts own workspace, reached from the Diagrams card in the sidebar.
What a diagram isA full draw.io canvas, saved as XML.
Where it can goKeep it on its own, embed it in a notebook page, or drop it onto a dashboard.
The full draw.io toolbox
Shapes, lines, text, swimlanes, and every drawing tool draw.io ships with, embedded directly in Gript.
Saves as you work
Changes autosave in the background a couple of seconds after you stop editing, on top of manual Save buttons.
Reusable everywhere
The same saved diagram can be embedded in a notebook page and pinned to a dashboard at the same time.
Good uses: flowcharts and decision trees, system architecture, network topology, org charts, mind maps, swimlane diagrams, ER diagrams, and UML. Anything draw.io can draw, Diagrams can hold.
2
The Diagrams Workspace
What you see when you open Diagrams from the sidebar.
On the Diagrams pageWhat it does
Import and New DiagramThe two buttons across the top.
SearchFind a diagram by name.
SortNewest, Oldest, Name A to Z, Name Z to A, or a custom order you set.
Grid or ListA view toggle.
The folder sidebarAll Diagrams plus any folders you have made, each with its diagram count.
Folders
Create a folder from the sidebar and drag diagrams onto it, or use Move to folder from a diagram's context menu. Folders are a flat organizing layer, not a permission boundary.
Selecting several diagrams
Tick a diagram's checkbox to start a selection. A bar appears with a Share button that shares every selected diagram at once.
3
Creating a Diagram
A blank draw.io canvas, opened right in Gript.
1
Click New Diagram
From the Diagrams workspace, click New Diagram in the header. The editor opens over the page with a blank canvas, a name field defaulted to Untitled diagram, and a folder dropdown.
2
Draw
Use the standard draw.io toolbox: shapes, connectors, text, swimlanes, and the rest of draw.io's own editing tools, all inside the embedded canvas.
3
Save
The footer has Cancel and a single Save button; Save writes your work and closes the editor in one step. (When you are creating a diagram directly inside a notebook page, that button reads Insert instead.) A brand-new diagram is only written to the database on your first save; after that, edits autosave in the background about two seconds after you stop typing or drawing.
4
Choose how the editor is shown
A segmented Popup / Full page control at the top lets you switch how the editor appears: Popup keeps it in a window over the page, Full page expands it to fill the whole window. Switch between them at any time.
Closing the editor with Cancel or the X button discards any changes since the last save. Use Save when you want to keep your work; it saves and closes in one step.
4
Organizing: Rename, Duplicate, Move, Delete
Right-click a diagram card (or use its three-dot menu) for the full set of actions.
ActionWhat it does
RenameEdits the diagram name in place. You can also click directly on the name in Grid or List view.
DuplicateCreates a full copy, named "<original name> (copy)", in the same folder as the original.
Move to folderA submenu lists every folder plus No folder. Diagrams can also be dragged onto a folder in the sidebar.
ShareOnly shown to the diagram's owner. Opens the sharing dialog covered in section 8.
DeleteMoves the diagram to the Recycle Bin. A toast confirms the move and offers Undo for a few seconds.
Deleting is not instantly permanent. It moves the diagram to the Recycle Bin, and the toast's Undo button restores it right away if you clicked by mistake.
5
Importing a Diagram
Bring in a file from another tool instead of starting from a blank canvas.
Click Import in the Diagrams header. Pick a source format, then drag a file onto the drop zone or click it to browse. On the next step, name the diagram and optionally pick a folder before confirming the import.
FormatHow it imports
Draw.io (.drawio, .xml)Native format, imports directly.
Visio (.vsdx)Converted on import.
Mermaid (.mmd, .md)Text-based diagram source, converted on import.
Excalidraw (.excalidraw)Converted on import.
yEd / GraphML (.graphml, .gml)Converted on import.
6
Embedding in Notebook Pages
Type / in any notebook page to drop a diagram in, where it behaves like an inserted picture.
A diagram embedded in a notebook page, rendered as an image 1
Type / and pick Diagram
On a notebook page, type / to open the slash menu and choose Diagram (Insert a draw.io diagram). The entry also matches drawio, flowchart, and shapes if you keep typing.
2
Insert existing or Create new
A picker opens with two tabs. Insert existing lets you search your saved diagrams and filter them by folder. Create new starts a brand-new diagram inline.
3
It renders as an image
The diagram is placed on the page as a static image, the same way an inserted picture looks. It is not a scrollable canvas and it does not stay live: it is a fixed picture of the diagram as it was last saved.
4
Resize and align it like a picture
Click the diagram to select it. A floating toolbar gives you width presets, a Width in pixels field, Align left, Align center, and Align right, and a Delete diagram button. You can also drag any corner handle to resize it by hand, exactly like an image.
5
Double-click to edit
Double-click the diagram to open the full draw.io editor in a popup over the page. Save your changes there, and when you close the popup the page re-renders the image to match. (An empty placeholder shows Double-click to add a diagram until a diagram is set.)
This is the pattern for runbooks and architecture docs: prose, an embedded diagram, both in one notebook page. The same diagram can be embedded on more than one page. If you edit one that appears on several pages, Gript asks whether to edit the original (updates all pages) or create a copy (this page only).
The Diagram slash command is only available on notebook pages, not on the document attached to a board item.
7
Diagrams inside a Word, Excel or PowerPoint file
Not a screenshot: the real diagram, still linked.
An Office file you are editing in Gript can hold a draw.io diagram, and that diagram can be one of the real ones from your Diagrams workspace rather than a picture pasted in.
Open the file, then Plugins, then draw.io. Above the drawing canvas is a strip with two buttons.
1
Open from Diagrams
Pulls a diagram out of your workspace and onto the canvas, so you are editing the real thing rather than a copy of how it looked when somebody pasted it.
2
Save to Diagrams
Sends your changes back. If the picture came from the workspace it updates that diagram. If it was a one-off drawing, Gript asks for a name and a folder and creates it properly.
A linked diagram in an Office fileHow it behaves
Editing it in WordPress Insert and the workspace copy updates in the same move, with a message naming which diagram changed.
The link itselfStored inside the picture, so it survives copying the picture, copying the document, and emailing it on.
Breaking it deliberatelyThe unlink control on the draw.io strip turns the picture back into a plain one-off copy.
Office documents now count as places a diagram is used, so the diagram own "where is this used" list includes the documents it appears in, alongside the notebook pages and dashboards.
8
On a Dashboard
Pin a diagram to a dashboard as a fitted, static tile.
Add a Diagram widget to a dashboard and pick one of your saved diagrams.
Unlike the notebook embed, the widget is not a scrollable canvas: it renders the whole diagram as a fitted image that always shows everything at once, sized to the tile. It suits a process map, a system architecture or an escalation flow kept beside your charts.
Hover the widget header for two icons: a pencil to edit the diagram in place, and a shapes icon to switch it to a different saved diagram (or create a new one) without leaving the dashboard.
9
Sharing
Diagrams are private to their creator until you share them.
Every diagram is private to whoever created it by default. Open a diagram's context menu and choose Share (owners only) to grant access to a specific user or an access group, as either:
RoleWhat they can do
ViewerRead-only. They can open and look at the diagram but not change it.
EditorFull edit access to the diagram.
A worked example: keep a personal brainstorm mind map unshared. Share a team's system architecture diagram with the engineering access group as Editor, so anyone on the team can update it. Share a customer-facing process diagram with a client contact as Viewer.
To share several diagrams at once, select their checkboxes in the workspace and click Share in the selection bar. That opens the same dialog, applied to every selected diagram in one go.
10
Common Questions
Quick answers to what people ask most.
Where do I find Diagrams?
Click the Diagrams card in the sidebar, or go straight to /notebooks/diagrams. It is its own workspace, separate from your notebooks and boards.
How is a diagram stored?
As draw.io XML. There is no separate freehand or sketch format: every diagram, whether created from scratch or imported, is stored and edited as draw.io content.
Does a diagram save automatically?
Once a diagram exists in Gript (after its first manual save), further edits autosave in the background a couple of seconds after you stop working. A brand-new, never-saved diagram is not auto-created, so save it manually at least once.
Can I embed the same diagram in more than one place?
Yes. The same saved diagram can appear on multiple notebook pages and on a dashboard widget at the same time. Editing it anywhere updates every place it is embedded.
What file types can I import?
Draw.io's own .drawio and .xml files import natively. Visio (.vsdx), Mermaid (.mmd, .md), Excalidraw (.excalidraw), and yEd/GraphML (.graphml, .gml) are converted on import. Drag the file onto the import drop zone or click it to browse.
Who can see my diagrams?
Only you, until you share. Each diagram is private to its creator by default; share it with a specific user or an access group as Viewer or Editor from its context menu.
If I delete a diagram by mistake, can I get it back?
Yes, right away. Deleting moves it to the Recycle Bin and shows a toast with an Undo button. After that window, restore it from the Recycle Bin.
What happens if two people edit the same diagram at the same time?
There is no live co-editing lock. Whoever saves last wins, so if two people are editing the same diagram at once, one person's changes can overwrite the other's. Coordinate before editing a shared diagram together.
Can I use /diagram on a board item's document, not just a notebook page?
No. The /diagram slash command is available on notebook pages only. Board item documents use a reduced set of slash commands that does not include diagrams.
Can I use one of my saved diagrams inside a Word document?
Yes. In the document, open Plugins, then draw.io, then Open from Diagrams. It is the real diagram, and Save to Diagrams sends your edits back to the workspace copy.
If I email the document, does the link break?
No. The link is stored inside the picture itself, so it survives copying the picture, copying the document and sending it on.
How do I stop a picture from updating the workspace diagram?
Use the unlink control on the draw.io strip. The picture becomes an ordinary one-off drawing.
