Network Information Management

EDraw offers more than network diagramming; it's also a way to manage vital network information. Using custom properties; (custom property: Information about shapes in your drawings. Some network diagram shapes come with custom properties already defined. You can edit or delete existing custom properties or create new ones.), each shape can store information about the network device it represents. For example, a PC shape can store the PC's IP address.

The shapes that are included in the network diagram templates have many custom property fields, including part number, product description, and network name. Managing your network information is as simple as entering your data into the custom properties.

How to Manage the Network Information

1. Right-click a shape, and then click Properties on the shortcut menu.
2. In the Custom Properties window, select a custom property, and then enter the data for the shape.

   To move to the next property in the list, press the ENTER key.

Link your network diagrams together

It's easy to add hyperlinks to the shapes and pages in your diagrams. The hyperlinks can go to:

• Another page in the same EDraw drawing.
• A page or shape in another EDraw drawing.
• A document other than a EDraw drawing.
• A Web site.

For network design and documentation, linking a shape or page in one EDraw drawing to a shape or page in another EDraw drawing is an ideal way to reduce complexity.

For network design and documentation, linking a shape or page in one EDraw drawing to a shape or page in another EDraw drawing is an ideal way to reduce complexity.

1. Make sure that both the file you're linking from and the file you're linking to have been saved.
2. If you're creating a link to a specific shape, make a note of the shape id and the name of the page that the shape is on.
   • To find a shape id, click the shape to select it, and then the shape id will appear on the statute bar at bottom of the window.
   • To find the page name, locate the tab for the page at the bottom of the drawing window.
3. Select the shape to add a hyperlink.
4. On the Insert menu, click Hyperlinks.
5. In the Address box, click Browse, and navigate to the file you want, and then click Open.

   If you don't see the file you want, try changing the Files of type list.

6. To link to a specific page or a specific shape on a page, or to choose a zoom level, click Browse next to Sub-address.
   • Do any of the following:
     • To link to a specific page, select the page name in the Page box.
     • To link to a specific shape, first select the page name on which the shape appears in the Page box, and then type the id of the shape in the Shape box.
     • To specify a zoom level, type a percentage in the Zoom box, or click the arrow to select a zoom level.

       Note  You can use the zoom level to show more or less detail of the drawing. Use a low number to show more detail of a smaller area of the drawing or a high number to show less detail of a larger area of the drawing.

   • Click OK.
7. In the Description box, type a name for the link. This text will appear when the pointer rests over the link in the drawing.
8. To create a Web link, type the web address in Address box.
9. To add another hyperlink to the page or selected shape, click New, and then repeat steps 5 through 8.
10. Click OK.