Mermaid Diagrams
Preserve editable Mermaid source. Temporary renders used only for validation are allowed; preserve or deliver a static asset only when the consumer requires one.
Route by Structure
| Type | Best for | Basic source |
|---|---|---|
| Flowchart | processes and decisions | assets/examples/flowchart/basic.mmd |
| Sequence | ordered system interactions | assets/examples/sequence/basic.mmd |
| Class | object models | assets/examples/class/basic.mmd |
| State | lifecycle transitions | assets/examples/state/basic.mmd |
| ER | data entities and relationships | assets/examples/er/basic.mmd |
| Other | Gantt, pie, git, journey, timeline, mindmap, requirement, C4 | assets/examples/other/gantt-basic.mmd |
Read references/types.md only for type-specific decisions or syntax beyond the basic source.
Workflow
- Identify the relationships, sequence, or states the diagram must communicate and choose the matching type.
- Write one focused
.mmdsource with descriptive labels and simple alphanumeric or underscore IDs. Split a graph that becomes unreadable. - Validate with the consumer's Mermaid renderer when known. Otherwise, use Mermaid CLI when available:
mmdc -i diagram.mmd -o /tmp/diagram-check.svg
- If a slide or document needs a static asset, render the requested SVG with an appropriate theme, background, and dimensions, then inspect it in the target artifact.
- Return or preserve the source, any requested rendered artifact, validation performed, and renderer/version compatibility caveats.
Quote labels containing punctuation. Prefer high contrast for slides. Diagram creation does not authorize a Git commit or publication.