Bring in a diagram, an API or plain words

Turn a diagram file, an API, a picture or a few sentences into a design, or merge one into the design you have open.

In short

Start a design from what you already have. The Designer reads Mermaid, draw.io (with Visio, Lucidchart and Gliffy diagrams saved through it), Excalidraw, BPMN, Structurizr, C4-PlantUML, Gherkin and {{brand}} files on your device - nothing is uploaded. A docker-compose file is sent to {{brand}} to be read and is not kept. An OpenAPI file or an API Tester project becomes a service with its API calls. Plain words become a workflow with AI, and AI can read a picture of a diagram.

Before you start

Who: In an organization you need "Create and change designs" (an Organization Admin, Manager or Member holds it). A Viewer holds "See designs" and can read designs and the catalog. In your Personal Workspace you do everything on your own designs. A Viewer cannot import.
Plan: Designer is part of every plan, Free included. The Free plan limits how many designs a workspace keeps; Plan & usage shows the limit and what you hold. Plain words and a picture of a diagram are AI work: a paid plan, or your own AI key.
First: have the file, the pasted text or the API Tester project ready. Files in diagram formats are read on your device; a docker-compose file is sent once to be read and not kept.

Steps

On the Designer home, press "Import" in the header. A file dropped anywhere on the list opens the same import.
In the "Import a design" sheet, press "Choose a file", drop a file on the area, or press "Paste text" and paste it. For an API you already test, choose "From API Tester" and pick the project.
Check "Read as" (the format it found). Under "Make it", choose "Architecture" or "Workflow" if you want the other type.
Give it a "Name" and press "Make the design".

Open the design, choose "Panels" and press "Merge a file into this design".
Choose a file or paste text, then press "Preview the merge". What it adds is drawn to the right of your drawing; nothing moves.
Press "Merge into this design", or "Discard".

Result: the design opens with the "Import report" panel, found again under "Review": "Mapped 14 · Guessed 3 · Dropped 1". Choose a row to select that part on the canvas.

What each source becomes

Good to know

"Guessed" rows are parts whose kind was guessed from their shape or label. Check them first.
"Dropped" rows say why: a connection with a loose end, a picture, a freehand line or another page.
A design holds a limited number of shapes and connections; a larger file is refused with the counts.
When a file places nothing, the design is laid out for you.
Plain words need AI: on a paid plan, or with your own AI key. Architectures do not take plain words.
"Import into API Tester" hands an OpenAPI file to API Tester's own import, so its requests can be tested too.
What happens next: the new design opens with the "Import report" panel. To undo, delete the new design. Before a merge, "Discard" drops it.
On a phone the import area stacks, so the file, the format and the report follow each other down the screen.

If something goes wrong

"The Designer cannot read this file. Try Mermaid, draw.io, Excalidraw, BPMN, Structurizr, C4-PlantUML, Gherkin, docker-compose, a picture of a diagram or a {{brand}} file." - export the diagram from its tool in one of those formats.
"This file declares entities, which the Designer never reads." - save the draw.io file again without a DOCTYPE.
"This file has N shapes. A design holds at most M." - split the diagram into smaller designs.
"Plain words become a workflow with AI. On this plan that needs your own AI key." - add your key under Settings › AI, or use a file.
"This file holds a design of the type Workflow, and this design is of the type Architecture." - make it a new design instead of merging.

/help/designer/start-a-design
/help/designer/import-from-modeling-tools
/help/designer/read-a-picture-of-a-diagram
/help/designer/create-the-plan
/help/api-testing/har-and-openapi-imports