---

name: generate-workflow-diagram locale: caveman-ultra source_locale: en source_commit: 82c77053 translator: "Julius Brussee homage — caveman" translation_date: "2026-04-24" description: > Generate themed Mermaid flowchart diagrams from putior workflow data. Covers theme selection (9 themes including 4 colorblind-safe), output modes (console, file, clipboard, raw), interactive features (clickable nodes, source info), and embedding in README, Quarto, and R Markdown. Use after annotating source files and ready to produce a visual diagram, when regenerating a diagram after workflow changes, or when switching themes or output formats for different audiences. license: MIT allowed-tools: Read Write Edit Bash Grep Glob metadata: author: Philipp Thoss version: "1.0" domain: workflow-visualization complexity: basic language: R tags: putior, mermaid, diagram, theme, visualization, flowchart

Generate Workflow Diagram

Themed Mermaid flowchart from putior data → embed in docs.

Use When

• After annotating sources → produce visual
• Regenerate after workflow changes
• Switch themes/formats for audiences
• Embed in README, Quarto, R Markdown

In

• Required: workflow data from put(), put_auto(), or put_merge()
• Optional: theme (default "light"; light, dark, auto, minimal, github, viridis, magma, plasma, cividis)
• Optional: out target (console, file, clipboard, raw)
• Optional: interactive (show_source_info, enable_clicks)

Do

Step 1: Extract workflow data

library(putior)

# From manual annotations
workflow <- put("./src/")

# From manual annotations, excluding specific files
workflow <- put("./src/", exclude = c("build-workflow\\.Rquot;, "test_"))

# From auto-detection only
workflow <- put_auto("./src/")

# From merged (manual + auto)
workflow <- put_merge("./src/", merge_strategy = "supplement")

node_type → Mermaid shape:

node_type	Mermaid Shape	Use Case
"input"	Stadium ([...])	Data sources, configuration files
"output"	Subroutine [[...]]	Generated artifacts, reports
"process"	Rectangle [...]	Processing steps (default)
"decision"	Diamond {...}	Conditional logic, branching
"start" / "end"	Stadium ([...])	Entry/terminal nodes

Each → CSS class (class nodeId input;) for theme styling.

→ DF w/ ≥1 row: id, label + optional input, output, source_file, node_type.

If err: empty → no annotations/patterns. Run analyze-codebase-workflow or check syntax: put("./src/", validate = TRUE).

Step 2: Select theme + options

List all available themes:

get_diagram_themes()

Standard themes

• "light" — Default, bright colors
• "dark" — For dark mode environments
• "auto" — GitHub-adaptive with solid colors
• "minimal" — Grayscale, print-friendly
• "github" — Optimized for GitHub README files

Colorblind-safe themes (viridis family)

• "viridis" — Purple→Blue→Green→Yellow, general accessibility
• "magma" — Purple→Red→Yellow, high contrast for print
• "plasma" — Purple→Pink→Orange→Yellow, presentations
• "cividis" — Blue→Gray→Yellow, maximum accessibility (no red-green)

Extra params:

• direction: "TD" (top-down, default), "LR", "RL", "BT"
• show_artifacts: show artifact nodes (noisy for large, 16+ extra)
• show_workflow_boundaries: wrap source file nodes in subgraph
• source_info_style: source file display (subtitle)
• node_labels: label format

→ Theme names printed. Pick by context.

If err: unrecognized → falls back "light". Check spelling.

Step 3: Custom palette w/ put_theme() (opt)

# Create custom palette — unspecified types inherit from base theme
cyberpunk <- put_theme(
  base = "dark",
  input    = c(fill = "#1a1a2e", stroke = "#00ff88", color = "#00ff88"),
  process  = c(fill = "#16213e", stroke = "#44ddff", color = "#44ddff"),
  output   = c(fill = "#0f3460", stroke = "#ff3366", color = "#ff3366"),
  decision = c(fill = "#1a1a2e", stroke = "#ffaa33", color = "#ffaa33")
)

# Use the palette parameter (overrides theme when provided)
mermaid_content <- put_diagram(workflow, palette = cyberpunk, output = "raw")
writeLines(mermaid_content, "workflow.mmd")

Accepts: input, process, output, decision, artifact, start, end. Each takes c(fill = "#hex", stroke = "#hex", color = "#hex"). Unset → base theme.

→ Mermaid out w/ custom classDef. Shapes preserved from node_type, colors change. All use stroke-width:2px (not overridable via put_theme()).

If err: not putior_theme class → descriptive err. Pass put_theme() return, not raw list.

Fallback — manual classDef replacement (fine-grained per-type stroke widths):

mermaid_content <- put_diagram(workflow, theme = "dark", output = "raw")
lines <- strsplit(mermaid_content, "\n")[[1]]
lines <- lines[!grepl("^\\s*classDef ", lines)]
custom_defs <- c("  classDef input fill:#1a1a2e,stroke:#00ff88,stroke-width:3px,color:#00ff88")
mermaid_content <- paste(c(lines, custom_defs), collapse = "\n")

Step 4: Generate Mermaid

# Print to console (default)
cat(put_diagram(workflow, theme = "github"))

# Save to file
writeLines(put_diagram(workflow, theme = "github"), "docs/workflow.md")

# Get raw string for embedding
mermaid_code <- put_diagram(workflow, output = "raw", theme = "github")

# With source file info (shows which file each node comes from)
cat(put_diagram(workflow, theme = "github", show_source_info = TRUE))

# With clickable nodes (for VS Code, RStudio, or file:// protocol)
cat(put_diagram(workflow,
  theme = "github",
  enable_clicks = TRUE,
  click_protocol = "vscode"  # or "rstudio", "file"
))

# Full-featured
cat(put_diagram(workflow,
  theme = "viridis",
  show_source_info = TRUE,
  enable_clicks = TRUE,
  click_protocol = "vscode"
))

→ Valid Mermaid starting flowchart TD (or LR by direction). Nodes connected by arrows.

If err: flowchart TD no nodes → empty DF. Missing connections → check output filenames match input filenames across nodes.

Step 5: Embed in doc

GitHub README (```mermaid fence):

## Workflow

```mermaid
flowchart TD
  A["Extract Data"] --> B["Transform"]
  B --> C["Load"]
```

Quarto (native mermaid chunk via knit_child):

# Chunk 1: Generate code (visible, foldable)
workflow <- put("./src/")
mermaid_code <- put_diagram(workflow, output = "raw", theme = "github")

# Chunk 2: Output as native mermaid chunk (hidden)
#| output: asis
#| echo: false
mermaid_chunk <- paste0("```{mermaid}\n", mermaid_code, "\n```")
cat(knitr::knit_child(text = mermaid_chunk, quiet = TRUE))

R Markdown (mermaid.js CDN or DiagrammeR):

DiagrammeR::mermaid(put_diagram(workflow, output = "raw"))

→ Renders in target format. GitHub native mermaid fence render.

If err: GitHub no render → fence must be exactly ```mermaid (no extra attrs). Quarto → use knit_child() (direct var interpolation in {mermaid} not supported).

Check

• put_diagram() valid Mermaid (starts flowchart)
• All expected nodes appear
• Arrows between connected nodes
• Theme applied (check init block)
• Renders in target format

Traps

• Empty diagrams: put() no rows → check annotations + syntax.
• All nodes disconnected: output filenames must exactly match input (inc ext). data.csv ≠ Data.csv.
• Theme not visible on GitHub: limited theme support. "github" designed for GitHub. %%{init:...}%% may be ignored.
• Quarto var interpolation: {mermaid} no R vars. Use knit_child().
• Clickable not working: need renderer w/ Mermaid interaction. GitHub static no clicks. Use local Mermaid or putior Shiny sandbox.
• Self-referential meta-pipeline: scanning dir w/ build script → duplicate subgraph IDs + Mermaid errs. Use exclude:

  workflow <- put("./src/", exclude = c("build-workflow\\.Rquot;, "build-workflow\\.jsquot;))
  

• show_artifacts = TRUE noisy: large projects → 10-20+ artifact nodes. Use FALSE + rely on node_type for key in/out.

→

• annotate-source-files — prereq before gen
• analyze-codebase-workflow — auto-detect supplements manual
• setup-putior-ci — automate regen in CI/CD
• create-quarto-report — embed in Quarto
• build-pkgdown-site — embed in pkgdown