You can use modeling diagrams to visualize and manipulate the elements in a model. Different diagrams represent different views of the system, application, or database that you are developing. Because diagrams can illustrate multiple views of a model, the same model element can appear in one or more diagrams.
Opening modeling diagrams
When you open a modeling diagram, it is displayed in the diagram editor. The model file, location in the model, and diagram name are displayed on the tab at the top of the diagram editor. You can have multiple diagrams open at the same time and use the tabs to navigate between the them.Creating modeling diagrams
You can create new diagrams in models or in several model elements, such as packages, collaborations, classes, or state machines. You can create several diagrams of different types in a single model or model element.Saving modeling diagrams in image files
You can save your modeling diagrams as images so that you can use them in other media such as Microsoft® Word documents, presentations, or HTML pages. You can save diagrams in GIF, BMP, JPEG, JPG, or SVG format.Deleting modeling diagrams from models
You can delete from models the diagrams that you no longer require.Renaming modeling diagrams
You can rename diagrams to reflect changes in their contents or purpose.Managing page breaks in modeling diagrams
Modeling diagrams can become quite large, spanning a number of printed pages. You can control how your diagrams are printed by manipulating the page breaks in modeling diagrams. You can display the page breaks and recalculate the page breaks after you make changes to the diagrams.Printing modeling diagrams
In the Modeling perspective, standard printing features are available for printing diagrams; however, you can also specify which diagrams you want to print and how to scale them to fit on the paper.Viewing modeling diagrams
Some diagrams are larger than the viewable area in the diagram editor. If you want to see an entire diagram move quickly to a specific area in the diagram, you can use the Outline view.Linking modeling diagrams
In UML modeling, you can create links between related diagrams in the same modeling project or in different modeling projects. You can create a link in a diagram, or in a note that is attached to an element in a diagram.Specifying default modeling diagrams for packages
Packages can contain several different diagrams. You can specify which diagram opens by default when you open a package from the Model Explorer view.Removing the synchronization between the model and its diagrams
In sequence diagrams, partitions in activity diagrams, and regions in state machine diagrams, by default, any changes that you make to the model are reflected in the diagrams that represent the model. Conversely, any changes that you make to the diagram are reflected in the model. You can set the canonical property to false so that changes in the model are not synchronized with the diagram.
Parent topic: Building models
Related concepts
Models
Types of modeling diagrams
Canonical behavior in modeling diagrams