🚀 Getting Started
Welcome to North Highland BPMN Modeler! This guide will help you use Git-based version control for your process models.
Initial Setup (One-time)
-
1
Connect to GitHub
Click the "Connect GitHub" button in the top-right corner and authorize the application.
-
2
Select Your Repository
Choose which GitHub repository will store your BPMN and DMN models.
-
3
Configure File Paths
Set the folder paths for BPMN files (e.g., /processes) and DMN files (e.g., /decisions).
💡 Pro Tip
Your repository settings are saved automatically. You'll only need to do this setup once per browser.
📋 Daily Workflow
Opening & Editing Models
-
1
Select Your Branch
Use the branch dropdown in the Git toolbar to pick your working branch, or click "+" to create a new feature branch.
-
2
Open a Model
Click on any file in the left sidebar to load it from GitHub. BPMN and DMN files from your configured paths will appear here.
-
3
Make Your Changes
Use the visual modeler to edit your process. The status will change to "Modified" when you have unsaved changes.
Saving & Committing
-
4
Commit Your Changes
Click the "Commit" button in the Git toolbar, enter a descriptive commit message, and save directly to your branch.
-
5
Create a Pull Request
When ready for review, click "Create PR" to open a pull request from your branch to main.
📝 Commit Message Tips
Write clear, descriptive commit messages that explain what changed and why. For example: "Add manager approval step to invoice process" or "Fix timeout issue in payment gateway task".
🌿 Branching Strategy
We recommend using feature branches to keep your main branch stable and enable code review through pull requests.
Branch Structure
main (protected - production ready)
└── feature/new-approval-flow
└── feature/update-onboarding
└── fix/timeout-issue
Typical Flow
-
1
Create a Feature Branch
Click "+" next to the branch selector and name your branch (e.g., "feature/update-invoice-process").
-
2
Make Changes & Commit
Work on your changes and commit them to your feature branch as you go.
-
3
Create Pull Request
When ready, create a PR to merge your branch into main for review.
-
4
Review & Merge
Team members review the PR. Once approved, merge it to main.
⚠️ Important
Avoid committing directly to the main branch. Always use feature branches and pull requests to enable proper review and maintain a clean history.
⌨️ Keyboard Shortcuts
Speed up your workflow with these keyboard shortcuts.
File Operations
Ctrl+N New file
Ctrl+O Open file
Ctrl+S Save file
Ctrl+K Command palette
Editing
Ctrl+Z Undo
Ctrl+Y Redo
Ctrl+C Copy
Ctrl+V Paste
Del Delete element
Canvas Navigation
Scroll Zoom in/out
Space+Drag Pan canvas
Ctrl+0 Reset zoom
Ctrl+1 Fit to screen
UI Panels
Ctrl+\\ Toggle properties
? Open this help
'%3E|%3C/text%3E%3C!-- BPMN Modeler --%3E%3Ctext x='268' y='24' font-family='Arial,sans-serif' font-size='18' font-weight='400' fill='white'%3EBPMN Modeler%3C/text%3E%3C/g%3E%3C/svg%3E)