Read this article to familiarize yourself with Lucidscale. Learn how to create new models, add credentials and data sources to your data hub, and to walk through the functionality available in your model. When you’re ready, read our articles for step-by-step instructions to import and manage infrastructure data for AWS, Azure, and GCP.

To learn more about functionality available with a Lucidscale license, see our Lucidscale Plans article. To purchase a license, see the Upgrade your Lucid account article for instructions.

Watch: Welcome to Lucidscale

A Lucidscale model

A Lucidscale model is a collection of visualizations (called Views) applied to your imported data. You can auto-generate a model from your imported data and use built-in view templates or create your own customized views. A Lucidscale model is the equivalent of a Lucidchart Document and a Lucidspark Board.

Now, let’s look at the features and functionality available with a Lucidscale license.

Documents menu

Create a new model

Select +New.
Hover your cursor over Lucidscale.
Select AWS, Azure, or GCP.
Select an existing data source or add a new data source by clicking + Import (Account, Subscription, Project).
Complete the prompted steps to import your infrastructure data and render your resources in a Lucidscale model.

Open an existing model

Select the Documents dropdown.
- If you have a lot of documents, you can use the search feature to find a document.
Hover over the Lucidscale model tile and click Open.

Data Hub

The Data Hub is where you can add new and manage existing AWS Accounts, Azure Subscriptions, or GCP Projects, as well as Saved Credentials.

The_Data_Hub_where_you_can_add_new_and_manage_existing_AWS_accounts_azure_subscriptions_GCP_projects_and_saved_credentials.png

In the Imported Accounts (AWS), Imported Subscriptions (Azure), or Imported Projects (GCP) tab, you can:

View all saved data sources (Accounts, Subscriptions, Projects) that can be used to create Lucidscale models.
Import a new Account, Subscription, or Project as a data source.
Select the three-dot menu next to the data source to Delete or Update data from the cloud provider.
- Note: The Update data option is only supported for data sources associated/added with cloud provider credentials.
Select the three-dot menu to create a new model.

Learn more about how the Data Hub works with AWS, Azure, and GCP.

A credential is a secret (or set of secrets) used by Lucidscale on behalf of users to access their cloud infrastructure data. In the Saved Credentials tab, you can:

View all saved credentials.
Add a new credential.
Select the three-dot menu next to an account to Delete credential.
Select the three-dot menu to share credentials you have generated with other users on your account.

Learn more about Cloud Provider Credentials: Management, Usage, and Security.

Model overview

Once you have created a model, read the following to familiarize yourself with the Lucidscale workspace.

Note: Images are from an AWS model and will differ slightly by provider.

The header

From the header you can click:

The Lucidscale icon to return to the Documents page.
The title of the document to rename it.
The Star icon to add the document to your Starred Items.
The Model Options icon to access a variety of options, such as publishing and embedding, exporting a snapshot and printing, customizing your rendering settings by turning WebGL on or off, and navigation mode to switch between trackpad and mouse.
The model data menu in the upper-left of your open model to view attached data sources, see the date the model was last synced, open the data hub, and sync your model with updated data.
The binocular icon to access Feature Find, which can help you locate Lucidchart features within the workspace.
The Comments icon to comment on the document and discuss ideas with collaborators. For more information, refer to our Collaborate in Lucid article.
The Video icon to open the Loom integration and record a video. To learn more, refer to our Record video in Lucid article.
The Share icon to open the share dialog and invite collaborators or create a shareable link. To learn more, check out our Share with collaborators in Lucid article.
Your Profile image or initials in the upper right hand corner to update your profile photo, navigate to Account Settings, or log out.

The Formatting bar

Structure: Use the Structure control menu to control the overall hierarchy of your model. To learn more about how this works, refer to the Structure control instructions below this bullet point list.
Filters: You can create rules that filter entities in your model based on metadata associated with the resource. Learn more about working with Filters in AWS, Azure, and GCP.
Conditional formatting: You can create formatting rules that highlight resources in your model to improve visibility and navigation. Learn more about how to Use conditional formatting with resource metadata in Lucidscale.
Diagram with freeform shapes: This option exports your Lucidscale model to a new Lucidchart diagram on which you can do standard diagramming. You can’t access Lucidscale functionality in the Lucidchart diagram, but you can freely move shapes around the canvas and apply stylistic changes to them (like color and size).

Structure Control

Use the Structure control menu to control the overall hierarchy of your model.

Click + Add Group to add a new element.
Hover over a group and click the X to remove.
Reorder the hierarchy by selecting the arrows (not available for all groups)

Resources and Lines

Openthe panel to the upper-left of your model to work with Resources and Lines.

In the Resources menu, you can:

See all resources in the model.
Navigate to an entity in the model by selecting the Resource drop down and clicking the entity you want to view from the list.
Hide a Resource by selecting the eye icon.

You can see the ratio of hidden/existing items to the right of the Resource.

Learn more about working with Resources in AWS, Azure, and GCP.

In the Lines menu, you can:

Select the checkbox next to a line to render lines between entities.
See more options by selecting a line’s drop-down.
Edit line color, style, and type by selectingthe pencil icon next to a line.

Learn more about working with lines in AWS, Azure, and GCP.

Data and layout settings

Openthe panel to the upper-right of your model to see the metadata fields associated with your resources rendered and access layout settings for the diagram. What you see in this panel is dependent on what entities you have selected in the model.

In the data menu, you can:

Select an entity to view its metadata.
View an entity’s data Configuration.
- Click an entity’s drop-down to view more information.
View and add Custom Data.
View resources linked via metadata to a selected resource under "Related Resources".

Learn more about working with the data panel in AWS, Azure, and GCP.

In the layout settings menu, you can:

Adjust Entity Alignment.
Set Layout Style.
Configure Contained Items Layout. This includes:
- Sort Order
- Horizontal and vertical spacing of entities
- Setting Fixed Columns
Group Contained Items by Type by clicking the toggle.
- When this toggle is enabled, an Order Groups drop-down will appear with more alignment options.
Add or remove Text Fields.

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