drawio

SKILL.md

Draw.io Diagram Skill

Generate draw.io diagrams as native .drawio files. Author each diagram either as Mermaid (concise text that the draw.io desktop CLI converts and lays out for you) or as draw.io XML directly. Optionally auto-layout XML-authored diagrams with ELK, export to PNG/SVG/PDF with the diagram XML embedded (so the exported file stays editable in draw.io), or generate a browser URL that opens the diagram directly in the draw.io editor.

Authoring: Mermaid or XML?

The desktop CLI can convert Mermaid to a native .drawio file, so prefer Mermaid for the diagram types it handles well — its parser lays the diagram out automatically, which is far more reliable than hand-positioning cells in XML.

Author as
Best for
Needs desktop CLI?

Mermaid
Flowcharts, sequence, class, state, ER, gantt, mindmap, timeline, user journey, quadrant, C4, git graph, pie, and other standard types
Yes — to convert to .drawio

XML
Custom styling, precise/hand positioning, specific shape libraries (AWS, Azure, network, UML detail…), or when the desktop CLI is not installed
No (optional ELK --layout needs the CLI)

Prefer Mermaid when the desktop CLI is available and the request is one of the standard types above — write terse Mermaid and let draw.io lay it out.

Use XML for precise control, or as the universal fallback: XML needs no CLI at all, so it's the only option when the desktop app isn't installed (output a .drawio file or a url).

For XML-authored diagrams you can ask the CLI to apply an ELK auto-layout (--layout) instead of computing coordinates yourself — the same layouts the draw.io editor's Arrange ▸ Layout menu applies, and the same engine the draw.io MCP app server uses. See ELK layout for XML.

If you're unsure whether the desktop CLI is present, detect it first (see Locating the CLI). No CLI → author as XML and deliver a .drawio file or a url.