Cloud Architecture Diagram Generator
Quick Start: Choose cloud provider → Declare stencil icons → Group into VPC/region zones → Connect with arrow syntax → Wrap in ```plantuml fence.
⚠️ IMPORTANT: Always use ```plantuml or ```puml code fence. NEVER use ```text — it will NOT render as a diagram.
Critical Rules
- Every diagram starts with
@startuml and ends with @enduml
- Use
left to right direction for typical cloud architectures (data flows left→right)
- Use
mxgraph.* stencil syntax for cloud service icons
- Default colors are applied automatically — you do NOT need to specify
fillColor or strokeColor
- Use
rectangle "VPC" { ... } or package "Region" { ... } for cloud containers
- Use
cloud "Name" { ... } for cloud boundary shapes
- Directed flows use
-->, async/event-driven flows use ..> (dashed)
Full stencil reference: See stencils/README.md for 9500+ available icons.
Mxgraph Stencil Syntax
mxgraph.<provider>.<icon> "Label" as <alias>
Common Cloud Stencil Families
| Family |
Prefix |
Typical Icons |
| AWS |
mxgraph.aws4.* |
lambda_function, ec2, rds_instance, s3, api_gateway, cloudfront, dynamodb |
| Azure |
mxgraph.azure.* |
virtual_machine, azure_load_balancer, sql_database, azure_active_directory, storage |
| GCP |
mxgraph.gcp2.* |
compute_engine_2, cloud, process, repository, cloud_monitoring |
| Alibaba |
mxgraph.alibaba_cloud.* |
ecs_elastic_compute_service, slb_server_load_balancer_01, polardb, oss_object_storage_service |
| IBM |
mxgraph.ibm_cloud.* |
ibm-cloud--kubernetes-service, load-balancer--application, database--postgresql |
| Kubernetes |
mxgraph.kubernetes.* |
pod, svc, deploy, ing, sts, pvc, cm, secret |
| OpenStack |
mxgraph.openstack.* |
nova_server, neutron_router, cinder_volume, swift_container |
Connection Types
| Syntax |
Meaning |
Use Case |
A --> B |
Solid arrow |
Sync API call / data flow |
A ..> B |
Dashed arrow |
Async event / trigger / replication |
A -- B |
Solid line, no arrow |
Physical / bidirectional link |
A --> B : "label" |
Labeled connection |
Describe the data flow |
Quick Example
@startuml
left to right direction
mxgraph.aws4.users "Users" as users
mxgraph.aws4.cloudfront "CloudFront" as cf
mxgraph.aws4.application_load_balancer "ALB" as alb
rectangle "VPC" {
mxgraph.aws4.ec2 "EC2" as ec2
mxgraph.aws4.rds_instance "RDS" as rds
}
users --> cf
cf --> alb
alb --> ec2
ec2 --> rds
@enduml
Cloud Architecture Types
| Type |
Purpose |
Key Stencils |
Example |
| AWS |
Amazon Web Services |
mxgraph.aws4.* |
aws-basic.md |
| AWS Serverless |
Event-driven serverless |
mxgraph.aws4.* |
aws-serverless.md |
| Azure |
Microsoft Azure |
mxgraph.azure.* |
azure-hybrid-network.md |
| GCP |
Google Cloud Platform |
mxgraph.gcp2.* |
gcp-log-processing.md |
| Alibaba Cloud |
Alibaba Cloud |
mxgraph.alibaba_cloud.* |
alibaba-web-app.md |
| IBM Cloud |
IBM Cloud |
mxgraph.ibm_cloud.* |
ibm-kubernetes.md |
| Kubernetes |
Container orchestration |
mxgraph.kubernetes.* |
kubernetes-microservices.md |
| OpenStack |
Private cloud |
mxgraph.openstack.* |
openstack-basic.md |
1---2name: cloud-23description: Create cloud provider architecture diagrams using PlantUML syntax with official AWS, Azure, GCP, and Alibaba Cloud service icons. Best for multi-service cloud topologies and migration blueprints.4---5
6# Cloud Architecture Diagram Generator
7
8**Quick Start:** Choose cloud provider → Declare stencil icons → Group into VPC/region zones → Connect with arrow syntax → Wrap in ` ```plantuml ` fence.
9
10> ⚠️ **IMPORTANT:** Always use ` ```plantuml ` or ` ```puml ` code fence. NEVER use ` ```text ` — it will NOT render as a diagram.
11
12## Critical Rules
13
14- Every diagram starts with `@startuml` and ends with `@enduml`
15- Use `left to right direction` for typical cloud architectures (data flows left→right)
16- Use `mxgraph.*` stencil syntax for cloud service icons
17- Default colors are applied automatically — you do NOT need to specify `fillColor` or `strokeColor`
18- Use `rectangle "VPC" { ... }` or `package "Region" { ... }` for cloud containers
19- Use `cloud "Name" { ... }` for cloud boundary shapes
20- Directed flows use `-->`, async/event-driven flows use `..>` (dashed)
21
22**Full stencil reference:** See [stencils/README.md](../uml/stencils/README.md) for 9500+ available icons.
23
24## Mxgraph Stencil Syntax
25
26```
27mxgraph.<provider>.<icon> "Label" as <alias>
28```
29
30### Common Cloud Stencil Families
31
32| Family | Prefix | Typical Icons |
33|--------|--------|---------------|
34| AWS | `mxgraph.aws4.*` | `lambda_function`, `ec2`, `rds_instance`, `s3`, `api_gateway`, `cloudfront`, `dynamodb` |
35| Azure | `mxgraph.azure.*` | `virtual_machine`, `azure_load_balancer`, `sql_database`, `azure_active_directory`, `storage` |
36| GCP | `mxgraph.gcp2.*` | `compute_engine_2`, `cloud`, `process`, `repository`, `cloud_monitoring` |
37| Alibaba | `mxgraph.alibaba_cloud.*` | `ecs_elastic_compute_service`, `slb_server_load_balancer_01`, `polardb`, `oss_object_storage_service` |
38| IBM | `mxgraph.ibm_cloud.*` | `ibm-cloud--kubernetes-service`, `load-balancer--application`, `database--postgresql` |
39| Kubernetes | `mxgraph.kubernetes.*` | `pod`, `svc`, `deploy`, `ing`, `sts`, `pvc`, `cm`, `secret` |
40| OpenStack | `mxgraph.openstack.*` | `nova_server`, `neutron_router`, `cinder_volume`, `swift_container` |
41
42### Connection Types
43
44| Syntax | Meaning | Use Case |
45|--------|---------|----------|
46| `A --> B` | Solid arrow | Sync API call / data flow |
47| `A ..> B` | Dashed arrow | Async event / trigger / replication |
48| `A -- B` | Solid line, no arrow | Physical / bidirectional link |
49| `A --> B : "label"` | Labeled connection | Describe the data flow |
50
51### Quick Example
52
53```plantuml
54@startuml
55left to right direction
56mxgraph.aws4.users "Users" as users
57mxgraph.aws4.cloudfront "CloudFront" as cf
58mxgraph.aws4.application_load_balancer "ALB" as alb
59
60rectangle "VPC" {
61 mxgraph.aws4.ec2 "EC2" as ec2
62 mxgraph.aws4.rds_instance "RDS" as rds
63}
64
65users --> cf
66cf --> alb
67alb --> ec2
68ec2 --> rds
69@enduml
70```
71
72## Cloud Architecture Types
73
74| Type | Purpose | Key Stencils | Example |
75|------|---------|--------------|---------|
76| AWS | Amazon Web Services | `mxgraph.aws4.*` | [aws-basic.md](examples/aws-basic.md) |
77| AWS Serverless | Event-driven serverless | `mxgraph.aws4.*` | [aws-serverless.md](examples/aws-serverless.md) |
78| Azure | Microsoft Azure | `mxgraph.azure.*` | [azure-hybrid-network.md](examples/azure-hybrid-network.md) |
79| GCP | Google Cloud Platform | `mxgraph.gcp2.*` | [gcp-log-processing.md](examples/gcp-log-processing.md) |
80| Alibaba Cloud | Alibaba Cloud | `mxgraph.alibaba_cloud.*` | [alibaba-web-app.md](examples/alibaba-web-app.md) |
81| IBM Cloud | IBM Cloud | `mxgraph.ibm_cloud.*` | [ibm-kubernetes.md](examples/ibm-kubernetes.md) |
82| Kubernetes | Container orchestration | `mxgraph.kubernetes.*` | [kubernetes-microservices.md](examples/kubernetes-microservices.md) |
83| OpenStack | Private cloud | `mxgraph.openstack.*` | [openstack-basic.md](examples/openstack-basic.md) |