Idea: single edge composed of multiple segments

[darwinhc]

Hi maintainers, thank you for your great job.

I’d like to ask whether there is (or could be) support for a single logical edge composed of multiple (n if possible) segments, where each segment can have its own:

• line style (solid, dashed, etc.)
• arrowheads
• label
• ...

All segments would still belong to one edge, behaving as a single object:

• moving either connected vertex would automatically realign all segments together

• selection, deletion, and interaction would treat it as one connection

This would allow more expressive connections while preserving the simplicity of working with a single edge. At the moment, the only workaround seems to be drawing multiple edges that visually touch each other, but they don’t behave well as a unit (alignment, movement, selection). Is there an existing mechanism or recommended extension point for this kind of behavior.

Thanks for your time and for the excellent work on the project.

[draw-io-triage-bot[bot]]

👋 Thank you for opening this issue!

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Summary: User is requesting a feature for single logical edges composed of multiple segments, where each segment can have different styling (line style, arrowheads, labels) while still behaving as one unified object for selection, movement, and deletion.

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📝 Additional Information Needed

To help us investigate this more effectively, could you please provide:

• Would you expect each segment to be configurable independently through the format panel, or would you prefer a single configuration interface for all segments?
• How should waypoints/bendpoints work with multi-segment edges - should each segment be able to have its own waypoints?
• Should there be a limit on the number of segments per edge, or unlimited segments?
• Would you want the ability to convert existing single edges to multi-segment edges, or would this only be available when creating new edges?

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_{🤖 This is an automated response to help with initial triage. A human maintainer will review this issue. If you've provided all the requested information, no further action is needed - we'll get back to you soon!}

[darwinhc]

I would expect this to be configurable starting from a normal edge. For example, the edge could have an option like “Segments +”, where enabling it would convert the edge into a two-segment edge. From there, additional segments could be added incrementally. Another possible approach could be allowing users to group two existing edges and convert them into a single logical edge composed of multiple segments. Once converted, the segments should behave naturally as one connection.

Regarding waypoints/bendpoints, I think they should behave the same way as they do for a regular edge. Connection points would only exist on the first and last segments. Intermediate segments would not introduce new connection logic; they would mainly exist as styling and metadata layers within the same edge.

I don’t think there should be a strict limit on the number of segments. Conceptually, this is still a single edge rendered as multiple connected segments with shared behavior, which doesn’t introduce significant processing complexity. While most use cases would likely involve only two segments, allowing more would give additional expressive flexibility for different types of diagrams.