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Tutorials

Learn UML, ArchiMate, BPMN and ER modelling

Learn UML, ArchiMate, BPMN and ER modelling in order, one diagram type at a time - then get the model out of one tool and into another.

All six tracks are written: UML 2.5.1 in full, ArchiMate 4, BPMN 2.0, ER modelling, exports and interop, and modelling practice.

ArchiMate 4

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All layers, the full element set, and the viewpoint mechanism - from a first layered view to a motivation model that survives review.

  • Layers and aspects
  • Viewpoints
  • Relationship rules
  • Nesting and derived relations

UML 2.5.1

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All fourteen diagram kinds, one article each, every one with real diagrams rather than descriptions of diagrams.

  • Class diagrams
  • Sequence diagrams
  • Component and deployment
  • State and activity

C4 model

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Four levels of zoom, what belongs on each, and the honest answer to whether it competes with UML - it does not.

  • Context and containers
  • What a container is
  • Levels 3 and 4
  • C4 drawn in UML

ER modelling

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Crow's foot notation, and how an ER model relates to the UML class diagram sitting next to it.

  • Crow's foot basics
  • Keys and cardinality
  • Normalization in practice
  • ER to SQL DDL

BPMN 2.0

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The process notation business and IT are both supposed to read: events, gateways, pools, and the flows between them.

  • Events and boundary events
  • Gateways and branching
  • Pools, lanes and message flow
  • Descriptive to executable

Exports and interop

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Getting a model out of one tool and into another without losing what matters - and knowing what you lose when you do.

  • Sparx .qea round-trip
  • XMI 2.5.1
  • ArchiMate Exchange
  • Mermaid in a repo

Modelling practice

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The part no spec covers: how much to model, when to stop, and how to keep a model alive after the project that created it.

  • Scoping a model
  • Naming conventions
  • Reviews that work
  • Keeping a model current

Every lesson, in order

ArchiMate 4

  1. What is ArchiMate10 min read
  2. Layers and aspects9 min read
  3. Relationships11 min read
  4. Viewpoints8 min read
  5. ArchiMate with AI8 min read

UML 2.5.1

  1. What is UML?14 min read
  2. UML symbols8 min read
  3. Choosing a diagram9 min read
  4. Class diagrams11 min read
  5. Class diagram examples6 min read
  6. How to draw a class diagram7 min read
  7. Class diagram symbols11 min read
  8. Sequence diagrams15 min read
  9. Sequence diagram examples6 min read
  10. How to draw a sequence diagram7 min read
  11. Use case diagrams13 min read
  12. Use case examples8 min read
  13. Activity diagrams9 min read
  14. Activity examples8 min read
  15. State machine diagrams9 min read
  16. State machine examples8 min read
  17. Component diagrams13 min read
  18. Component examples9 min read
  19. Drawing a component diagram8 min read
  20. Component symbols7 min read
  21. Deployment diagrams7 min read
  22. Deployment examples8 min read
  23. Object diagrams6 min read
  24. Package diagrams6 min read
  25. Composite structure diagrams6 min read
  26. Communication diagrams6 min read
  27. Sequence vs communication7 min read
  28. Timing diagrams6 min read
  29. Interaction overview diagrams5 min read
  30. Profile diagrams6 min read
  31. UML with AI9 min read
  32. E-commerce example9 min read
  33. Banking example8 min read
  34. Microservices example8 min read
  35. AWS example8 min read

C4 model

  1. What is C4?7 min read
  2. Container diagram6 min read
  3. C4 vs UML6 min read

ER modelling

  1. ER diagrams9 min read
  2. Crow's foot notation8 min read
  3. Schema design11 min read

BPMN 2.0

  1. What is BPMN10 min read
  2. Events8 min read
  3. Gateways14 min read
  4. BPMN examples11 min read
  5. How to draw BPMN9 min read
  6. BPMN symbols9 min read
  7. BPMN vs activity diagram8 min read

Exports and interop

  1. UML to XMI6 min read
  2. Sparx .qea round trip6 min read
  3. UML to Mermaid5 min read

Modelling practice

  1. Which language to use9 min read
  2. Scoping a model6 min read
  3. Naming conventions5 min read
  4. Keeping a model current6 min read

Common questions

How long does it take to learn UML?
The notation itself is an afternoon: there are fourteen diagram types, but four of them carry almost all real work, and the six relationship arrows are shared across every one. What takes practice is deciding which diagram answers the question in front of you and what detail to stop at, and that comes from drawing real systems rather than from more reading.
In what order should I work through these tutorials?
Take one track and read it in order rather than sampling across four. Each track opens with the article that defines the language, then covers one diagram type per article in the order the specification builds them up, so a later article assumes the earlier ones. Starting in the middle works, but costs you a lookup of a term the first article defines.
Do I need to install anything to follow these tutorials?
No. Every diagram in every article is drawn on the page itself, so a whole track reads without an account and without a download. If you want to draw along, the editor runs in a browser and the free tier needs no card.
Are these modelling tutorials free?
Yes, all six tracks in full, with no account and no email address. The articles are this product's documentation of the notations it implements, which is why they are complete rather than an extract that stops at the interesting part.

Where to next

  • Blog

    Every article, searchable by notation, diagram kind and symbol.

  • Templates

    Editable starting diagrams, already legal, in four notations.

  • Examples

    Whole systems modelled end to end, with the reasoning shown.

  • Try the exports

    Draw something now and export it - no account, fifteen seconds.

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