Why you should switch to a visualization tool inside Confluence and Jira

The Number #1 rated app

draw.io has a number of impressive feats, including:

• 99% of the Fortune 500 use our app;
• We have more installs and more users than any other Atlassian app;
• We are the #1 rated diagramming app on the Atlassian Marketplace for Confluence and Jira.

The underlying reason for this is that people know and trust our app: they know that their data is in safe hands, and expect a versatile tool that delivers, as well as high-quality support with their diagramming and visualization needs.

If you’re thinking about switching tools and are looking for a solution that can do it all, then read on! Below, we take a look at why so many users choose draw.io in Confluence and Jira over other diagramming tools that are not in the Atlassian ecosystem:

Visualize in your single source of truth

The primary reason that many companies use Confluence and Jira is not just because they are powerful knowledge and project management tools, but because they abide by high security standards. For organizations looking to ensure their data remains secure, and to maintain audit trails for compliance purposes, Confluence and Jira offer the perfect solution.

When using the draw.io app, your diagram data is stored as attachments within Confluence/Jira. This keeps all your diagrams secure, embedded within your single source of truth. It also saves you time and money in the long run by eliminating the pain point of having multiple apps to fulfill a purpose.

If you want to visualize within your Confluence/Jira space, and keep these visualizations within the Confluence documentation or Jira issue that they belong to, you can. Your colleagues will thank you too, as it cuts out the frustration of having to locate diagrams stored elsewhere on other platforms or webpages.

Choose to create a new diagram from scratch, or embed existing diagrams that you have created in other Confluence pages.

Choose to create a new diagram, or embed an existing one

If you embed an existing diagram in multiple Confluence pages and want to make changes, you will be taken to the original version of the diagram, and any changes will automatically apply to all the other embedded versions.

Clicking on the Go to containing page icon will open the Confluence page containing the original diagram in a new window

Secure diagramming

A big concern for users is ensuring their diagramming data is safe. For small and large enterprises alike, company data is precious. The risk of data mismanagement and security breaches increases the more tools you use. Therefore, the reassurance that their number one visualization tool is keeping their diagrams and whiteboards safe is why so many users choose draw.io.

We conform to the highest enterprise-grade security and privacy standards, so users can rest assured that their data is in safe hands. When you work on a draw.io diagram in Confluence/Jira, Data Center or Cloud, you have full control over your data, as this is stored as page attachments within the Confluence page or Jira issue that the diagram or whiteboard is embedded in.

Revision history

This is also a powerful feature for your audits. In addition to Confluence’s in-built page history, there is versioning in the draw.io app itself, enabling you to see exactly who made changes and when. You are then able to revert diagrams if someone has made unwanted changes to a diagram, without affecting the Confluence page the diagram is embedded in.

Revision history in draw.io

Access control

Another problem users face is controlling who they share diagrams with. Often, the platform they are using provides an “all-or-nothing” solution: either everyone has access, or no one does.

People want full control over their diagrams and the information that accompanies them. Especially on things like Confluence pages for example, which contain sensitive information that not everyone in the company requires access to.

Fortunately, with your draw.io diagrams stored on specific Confluence pages, you are able to control on a granular level who has access to which information. Choose who has editing access, or who only has viewing access, to the relevant Confluence pages and embedded diagrams – this can be done on an individual or team-wide level.

Control who has view/edit access to a specific Confluence page

Diagramming or whiteboarding? Why not both?

With draw.io, you don’t have to choose between diagramming or whiteboarding capabilities. When you use draw.io in Confluence/Jira, you have diagramming AND whiteboarding, all in one app. You have access to all the same features in both.

This suits teams across the board, from engineering and software development, right through to marketing and HR. Each individual in every team can use the editor that best suits them: the original diagram editor or our whiteboard editor, depending on their visualization needs and which interface they prefer.

The “classic” draw.io diagram editor

The whiteboard editor

Search for text within diagrams

Easily find your diagrams using Atlassian’s in-built Confluence Search function. Text you add to your diagrams is indexed and searchable, so you can use the Confluence search bar to locate diagrams using specific search terms.

Tip: use the advanced search and filter by Type > draw.io Diagrams to bring up diagram-related searches only.

Search for text in your diagrams using the Confluence search bar

Cloud-specific advantages

Data residency:

Atlassian has implemented data residency options for Confluence and Jira Cloud. This means that all of the primary data stored in your Confluence and/or Jira instance will reside on servers in your chosen region.

For more information, see our blogpost, Introducing Data Governance in our Standard draw.io plan for Confluence Cloud.

Lockdown data:

If you want to prevent all data traffic apart from that between your browser and your Atlassian Cloud server, you can use the Lockdown function in the draw.io configuration to do so.

Invite guests to Confluence:

Working with users outside of your organization? You can invite up to 5 guests per paying user to collaborate in Confluence.

For more information, see Invite guests to use draw.io with you in Confluence Cloud.

Collaborative editing:

Collaborate on diagrams with your colleagues synchronously. Any changes made by multiple teammates are saved automatically. “@-mention” your teammates on Confluence pages containing your diagrams, to add a comment and notify them.

Notify your teammates in Confluence pages using “@-mention”

Data Center-specific advantages

Everything behind your firewall:

If you opt for Data Center, your data is stored in a self-managed environment, behind your firewall. This gives you full control over everything like security controls, update releases, and infrastructure choices.

Control over updates:

You have control over what happens when, as you are responsible for manually installing any maintenance and version upgrades.

The one tool for every team

draw.io’s standing in the Atlassian Marketplace is very much built on the trust of its users. If you are looking for a solution for your company that:

• stores your diagrams and whiteboards within your single source of truth (Confluence or Jira), without needing to leave the platform you’re working in to access these;
• is a versatile tool that allows you to diagram, whiteboard, and visualize the way that you want;
• offers tight security, protecting your diagramming data while allowing you to collaborate with specific members in and outside of your organization;

then draw.io is the solution for you and your team!

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