Quick links to procedures on this page:
You can draw connector lines, also known as "flow lines," in flowcharts and wiring diagrams to link shapes and demonstrate how different elements in the drawing are connected. After you attach a connector line to an object, it remains attached to the object even when you move it. You can also leave an end of a connector line unattached to any object, and you can add arrowheads to connector lines to demonstrate the flow direction. For information about drawing flowchart shapes, see Drawing predefined shapes.
There are several types of connector lines that you can draw. In addition to drawing straight lines, you can draw right-angle connector lines and automatically create right angles as you draw. You can choose between the Right-angle connector tool, which draws a right angle with a sharp corner, and the Rounded right-angle connector tool, which draws a rounded corner. You can also draw curved connector lines by using either the B-spline connector tool or the Bézier curve connector tool.
Examples of connector lines
Connector lines are attached to objects by anchor points. By default, each object has four anchor points, located on the top, bottom, left, and right sides of the object. Each anchor point appears as a small red diamond on the object. You can move an anchor point along the edge of an object, or you can move an anchor point to any area inside or outside the object. You can also add an anchor point to an object.
Anchor points appear as small red diamonds.
When you move an object in a drawing, the connector line will snap to the nearest available anchor point. When you add an anchor point to an object, it is not available as a snapping point for connector lines. However, you can set a property on the anchor point to make it available as a snapping point.
You can set an object to repel right-angle, round right-angle, and B-spline connector lines. If the object is in a connector line route, the connector line flows around it. If there is no route for the connector line to follow without intersecting the object, it flows through the object. Straight-line and Bézier-curve connector lines cannot flow around objects.
You can add halos to connector lines. A halo is a mask behind the connector line that makes the line easier to see when it is on top of another object. Usually, the halo is the same color as the page, although you can choose any color you like.
You can also convert connector lines to curves. When you convert a connector line to a curve, any attached text label changes to an artistic text object.
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Click the Right-angle connector tool  or the Right-angle round connector tool  . Click where you want to start the line and drag to where you want to end the line.
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Click the B-spline connector tool  or the Bézier curve connector tool  . Click where you want to start the line and drag to where you want to end the line. To change the shape of the line, reposition the control points as needed.
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After you snap a connector line to an anchor point on an object, the connector line always snaps to that anchor point, even if you move the object around in the drawing. To ensure that the line connects to the closest available anchor point when you move the object, release the mouse button to end the connector line inside the object when drawing the line.
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In the Anchor direction box, type one of the following values: |
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0 — directs the connector line to the right |
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90 — directs the connector line straight up |
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180 — directs the connector line to the left |
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270 — directs the connector line straight down |
You can change the direction only of right-angle and Bézier-curve connector lines.
By default, anchor points that you add to an object are not available as snap points for a connector line when the object is moved around in the drawing. To make an anchor point available as a snap point, select it with the Edit anchor tool, and click the Auto anchor button 
on the property bar.
By default, the position of the anchor point is calculated relative to the page. You can set the anchor point position relative to the object that it is attached to, which is useful if you want to set anchor points in the same relative position in multiple objects. To set the anchor point position relative to the object, select the anchor point with the Edit anchor tool 
. On the property bar, click the Relative to object button 
, and type the coordinates in the Anchor position box.
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Using the Pick tool  , select the object to which the connector line is attached. |
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Click Window  Property manager. |
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In the Property manager docker, click the Summary tab. |
You can also convert a curve or a shape, such as a rectangle or an ellipse, to a connector line by clicking Object Convert to connector.
As you move the connector line, the text label remains attached to it.
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Using the Pick tool , select the connector line. |
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Width — lets you specify the width of the halo on each side of the line |
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Color — lets you access a color palette to change the color of the halo, or use the color of the page |
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Opacity — lets you control the transparency of the halo and the visibility of objects underneath the halo by specifying a percentage value (with values less than 100 allowing visibility) |
To remove a halo from a line, select the line, click the Halo properties button 
, and disable the Halo options check box.
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