Bring your draw.io diagrams to life
Import a draw.io diagram and watch a request travel through it. Shapes become components and connectors become arrows. Free, with nothing uploaded.
What your drawing becomes
| In draw.io | In HowItScales |
|---|---|
| A shape with a label | A component, with its kind guessed from the label and shape |
| A container, group or swimlane | A group of components |
| A class or table with rows | One component, with the rows kept in its details |
| A connector attached to two shapes | An arrow, keeping its label |
| A tooltip | The component's summary |
Your layout stays as you drew it. Anything that doesn't fit, such as free text or images, is listed for you, not dropped silently.
From drawing to moving diagram
- Import the file. If it has several pages, choose one.
- Fix any loose arrows. If an arrow wasn't attached at both ends, we suggest where it goes and you decide.
- Record a flow. Click the arrows in the order a request travels. A drawing can't say what that order is, so this part is yours.
- Press Play. Watch the request go there and back, then share a link or download the file.
Importing and building need a computer. Anything you share can be viewed on a phone.
Which files work
.drawioand.xmlfiles saved from draw.io, including compressed ones..drawio.svgfiles. If you export an SVG yourself, turn on “Include a copy of my diagram”.- Up to 1 MB, 200 components and 600 arrows.
It works best on architecture diagrams, where boxes are parts of a system and connectors show how they talk.
Your diagram stays yours
The file is read in your browser and never uploaded. See the privacy page for details. Share only diagrams you drew or may license, and every component starts as Hypothetical, because a drawing isn't evidence.
HowItScales isn't affiliated with draw.io or diagrams.net.