Edges and Connections

Connections (or Edges) define the communication pathways, data flow, and dependency topology between your architecture components.

1. Connecting Nodes

To connect two components:

Hover over the source component.
Connection handles (circular attachment dots) will appear on each edge of the node.
Click and drag from a handle on the source node toward the target node.
Release the mouse when hovering over a handle on the target node.

Rekhic will automatically create an orthogonal smart connector connecting the two components.

Rekhic avoids chaotic diagonal lines that cross through other components:

Connectors calculate 90-degree right-angle turns.
When you move or drag either connected node, the edge dynamically recalculates its bends and route to preserve clean layout structure.
Lines avoid cutting through the center of intervening nodes wherever possible.

Connectors represent communication directions:

Unidirectional (Default): Arrow pointing from source to target (e.g. Client -> API Gateway).
Bidirectional: Arrows on both ends for two-way protocols (e.g. WebSocket or gRPC bidirectional stream).
Nondirectional: Plain straight line for network association or subnet containment.

Double-click on any connection line to attach a protocol or payload label:

Examples: HTTPS /v1/checkout, gRPC :50051, Kafka Topic: events.order, SQL read/write.
These labels are automatically extracted when exporting Markdown Documentation.

To delete an edge, click directly on the connector line to select it and press Backspace or Delete.
To reroute a connection, drag the endpoint circle from one target handle to a different handle or node.

Next: Learn how to customize colors and styling in Node Properties.