CLI

inkline render [flags] <file.d2>   # render to SVG
inkline expand [flags] <file.d2>   # print the plain D2 inkline generates
inkline list                       # list diagram types and design systems
inkline help                       # the header format and the flags
inkline version                    # print the version

Flags and the filename can come in any order.

inkline checks a flag’s value the same way it checks the header. An unknown theme or design system is an error.

Examples

inkline render examples/architecture.d2
inkline render examples/state.d2 --theme dark -o state-dark.svg
inkline render examples/flowchart.d2 --design-system plain
inkline expand examples/swimlanes.d2 | less

Use inkline expand to debug a diagram. It prints the design system’s prelude, your source after shorthand expansion, and the role overlay. It prints them in the order D2 reads them.

Errors

An error in your file names the file and the line, such as orders.d2:12: unknown shape "cilinder". The line is the one in your file, even when inkline has rewritten the source.

An error that starts with expanded D2: comes from the text inkline generated. Its line number refers to the output of inkline expand.

Imports

D2 imports work as they do in D2. A path is relative to the importing file and can point to a parent directory, such as ...@../shared/actors. Give roles to imported connections in the importing file. A connection that sets its own class in an imported file keeps that class and does not get a role.

Output

inkline writes SVG only. Each diagram is self-contained. inkline measures fonts at render time and inlines icons as data URIs, so a rendered file needs no other files.

D2 compiles, lays out and renders in the same process through its Go packages. You do not need to install a d2 executable or match its version.