Design Mode Workflow

Design Mode helps you build architecture assets step by step, starting with high‑level context and progressively adding detail. It also lets you focus on a specific system or container and share audience‑specific views.

Workflow Steps

Step 1: Context — define `person` and `system`

Start with the high-level context:

import { * } from 'sruja.ai/stdlib'


User = person "User"
Shop = system "Shop"

view index {
include *
}

Step 2: Containers — add `container`, `datastore`, `queue` to a chosen system

Add containers and datastores:

import { * } from 'sruja.ai/stdlib'


User = person "User"
App = system "App" {
WebApp = container "Web Application"
API = container "API Service"
DB = database "Database"
}

User -> App.WebApp "Uses"
App.WebApp -> App.API "Calls"
App.API -> App.DB "Reads/Writes"

view index {
include *
}

Step 3: Components — add `component` inside a chosen container

Drill down into components:

import { * } from 'sruja.ai/stdlib'


App = system "App" {
WebApp = container "Web Application" {
  UI = component "User Interface"
}
API = container "API Service" {
  Auth = component "Auth Service"
}
}

// Component‑level interaction
App.WebApp.UI -> App.API.Auth "Calls"

view index {
include *
}

Add relations and scenarios to complete the model.

Layers and Focus

Levels: L1 Context, L2 Containers, L3 Components, All
Focus:
- L2 focus by systemId
- L3 focus by systemId.containerId

When focused, non‑relevant nodes/edges are dimmed so you can work deeper without distractions.

Viewer opens focused views via URL params:

?level=1 → Context
?level=2&focus=Shop → Containers of system Shop
?level=3&focus=Shop.API → Components in container API of system Shop
DSL payload is passed with #code=<lz-base64> or ?code=<urlencoded>.

Studio Experience

Diagram‑first: Studio opens with the diagram; a Design Mode overlay guides steps
Contextual palette: add containers at L2 (focused system), components at L3 (focused container)
Autosave on close: resume drafts; share per‑layer links from the toolbar

Viewer Experience

Use level buttons and focus to tailor the view
Dimming clarifies what's relevant at each depth
Share via copied URL (includes level, focus, and DSL)

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