How to connect elements with relationships

There are two ways to create a relationship on the Canvas, and they start from opposite ends:

• The quick linker starts from the elements: drag between two elements, then choose from the relationship types that are valid between them.
• The Palette relationship tool starts from the type: pick a relationship type, then click the elements to connect.

Use the quick linker when you’re exploring or unsure which relationship types are allowed. Use the Palette tool when you’re drawing several relationships of the same type in a row.

Use the quick linker

1. Hover over the source element — a small button with an up arrow appears at its top-right corner
2. Press on the arrow and drag onto the target element — the target highlights green with a Drop here hint
3. Release — a Select Relationship Type menu opens at the drop point
4. Click a relationship type — the relationship is created, and its name is highlighted ready to type over (see Name a relationship)

The menu lists only the relationship types whose constraints allow that source → target combination, grouped by metamodel with a line-style preview for each. If no relationship type allows the combination, no menu appears and an error message explains why.

Viewers don’t see the quick-linker arrow — creating relationships requires edit access.

Use the Palette relationship tool

1. In the Palette, find the relationship type you want (e.g., Flow, Association, Composition)
2. Click it once — it becomes the active tool, and the status bar prompts you: Flow: Click source node (ESC to cancel)
3. On the Canvas, click the source element — no dragging; a single click marks it as the source
4. Click the target element — the relationship edge appears connecting the two, with its name highlighted ready to type over

The tool stays active after each relationship, so you can keep clicking source–target pairs. Press Escape (or click the tool again in the Palette) to put the tool away and return to the pointer.

If the metamodel’s constraints don’t allow the relationship between those two element types, an error message appears and the source selection is cleared — click a new source to try again.

Name a relationship

A new relationship is named automatically as a short sentence built from its two elements and the relationship type’s verb — for example, My Organisation builds Brand, or FQ Orders flows to FQ Vessels. If the relationship type doesn’t define a verb, the name uses an arrow instead: FQ Orders → FQ Vessels.

Just as with a new element, the new relationship is selected and its name is highlighted as soon as it’s created:

• Type a new name and press Enter to replace it
• Press Enter, press Escape, or click elsewhere to keep the suggested name

To rename a relationship later:

1. Click the edge to select it
2. Press F2 (or right-click the edge and choose Rename), type the name, and press Enter

You can also edit the name in the Properties panel while the edge is selected.

Reset a relationship’s name

If you rename one of the connected elements, the relationship’s name doesn’t change by itself. To bring it up to date, right-click the edge and choose Reset Name. The name is rebuilt from the current element names and the relationship type’s verb, exactly as when the relationship was created. Reset Name is greyed out when the name already matches.

Reset Name replaces the current name, including one you typed yourself.

Choose what the relationship labels show

A diagram labels its relationship lines in one of three ways. Use the Relationship labels drop-down on the diagram toolbar:

Choice	Each line shows
Name	The relationship’s name, such as Design & Engineering enables Integrated Quality. The default
Verb	Just the verb of the relationship’s type, in italics: enables
None	No label

Verb makes a busy diagram much easier to read: the two boxes already say what is being connected, so the line only needs to say how.

• The verb is the one that reads from the source to the target, the direction the line’s arrow points. It is set on the relationship type in the metamodel (see How to create a relationship type), so changing it there changes every diagram.
• A relationship type with no verb shows the type’s name instead.
• A name you typed yourself is not shown in Verb mode. Switch to Name to see it.
• Rename (F2) on a line still edits the relationship’s name; the line shows the verb again afterwards.
• A label dragged to a new position stays there in either mode. A verb label sizes itself and cannot be resized.
• To hide the label on one line only, right-click the label and choose Hide Label.

The choice belongs to the diagram: it is saved with it, and one undo takes it back. Viewers can change it for themselves without affecting the saved diagram.

Save the diagram

A new relationship is added to the model immediately — it appears in the Explorer as soon as it’s created. Its edge on the diagram is part of the diagram’s unsaved changes, so press Ctrl+S (Cmd+S on Mac) to save the diagram.

Constraint checking

If the metamodel defines pair-wise constraints on a relationship type, that relationship can only connect valid source and target types. For example, an ArchiMate Serving relationship is only valid between certain element types.

The two creation methods surface constraints differently: the quick linker filters its menu to valid types up front, while the Palette tool checks the pair when you click the target and rejects invalid combinations with an error message. See Relationships and Constraints for how constraints are defined.

Relationship direction

Relationships have a source and a target. With the quick linker, the source is the element you drag from; with the Palette tool, the source is the first element you click. Some relationship types display arrow markers to indicate direction.

To reconnect an existing relationship to a different element, see How to retarget an edge.

Relationships in the Explorer

Every relationship you create on the Canvas also appears in the Explorer as an element. Relationships are first-class model elements — they have names, properties, and can appear on multiple diagrams.