Quickstart

This guide walks you through creating your first architecture diagram in Archflow.

1. Sign Up

Go to archflow.net and create an account. You can sign up with your email or use a social login provider.

2. Create a Project

After signing in, you'll land on your Dashboard. The dashboard shows summary statistics --- Projects, Systems, Diagrams, Connections, and Deployments --- plus a list of your recent projects.

Click New Project to get started. Give your project a name and an optional description. Projects are the top-level container for all your architecture work --- diagrams, systems, connections, workflows, and documentation all live within a project.

On the right side of the screen, you'll notice the Archie AI assistant panel. Archie is available on every page and can help answer questions about Archflow or analyze your architecture.

3. Explore the Project Sidebar

Once inside your project, the sidebar navigation gives you access to all project areas:

• Dashboard --- Project overview and statistics
• Explorer --- Auto-layout read-only canvas showing your full architecture at a glance
• Architecture --- Hub for Arc42, Context Map, Complexity Analysis, Blast Radius, and Context
• Systems --- Manage your architectural elements (tree, card, or table view)
• Workflows --- Map business processes across systems
• Deployments --- Model infrastructure with C4 deployment diagrams
• Diagrams --- Your diagram views with Editor, Workflows, Infrastructure, and Documentation tabs
• Settings --- Project sharing, MCP integration, and API keys

4. Create a Diagram View

Navigate to Views in the project sidebar and click Create Diagram. Give your view a name (e.g., "System Context" or "Container View") and you'll be taken to the view page.

From the view page, click Editor to open the canvas.

5. Add Systems

On the canvas, use the toolbar to add your first systems:

1. Click Add to View in the toolbar to open the system panel
2. If you need to create a new system first, go to the Systems page and click Add Element
3. Set the system's name, type (Person, Software System, Container, or Component), and optionally add a description and technology details
4. Back on the canvas, drag systems from the panel onto the canvas to position them

For a typical C4 Context diagram, you might add:

• Your main software system
• External systems it integrates with
• User groups that interact with it

The Systems page also offers three view modes --- Tree view, Card view, and Table view --- for browsing your elements.

6. Draw Connections

Connect your systems to show their relationships:

1. Hover over a system on the canvas to reveal connection handles
2. Drag from a handle to another system
3. A connection is created --- click it to add a label and description
4. Specify the technology or protocol (e.g., "REST/HTTPS", "gRPC")

7. Save and Share

Your work is automatically saved. To share your diagram:

• Team members: Create a Group and invite collaborators with appropriate roles
• Documentation: Switch to the Documentation tab on your view to generate AI-powered docs
• Export: Download your project as a portable .archflow.gz archive from Import/Export

What's Next?