Workflow schematics

Simple workflow schematics help outline the main functionality and steps of a pipeline.

Most workflow schematics are made with vector image editors, such as the open-source tool Inkscape or commercial suite Adobe Illustrator. Useful tools for collaborative prototyping include Google Drawings and LucidChart.

All examples and components provided below can be opened in these editors. Various parts can be borrowed and/or modified. Components are also available on bioicons, which have direct import extensions for Inkscape and draw.io.

Examples

See below for examples of nf-core workflow schematics that can be re-used and modified for your own pipeline.

Warning

Check for any attributions to be included within any derivative images, as defined by the corresponding license.

Select the schematic image to see the original.

Workflow Example nf-core Pipeline License/Publication Suggested attribution
nf-core/sarek nf-core/sarek From Garcia et al. (2020, F1000 Research) under a CC-BY 4.0 license.
nf-core/eager workflow simple nf-core/eager From Fellows Yates et al. (2021, PeerJ) under a CC-BY 4.0 license CC-BY 4.0. Design originally by Zandra Fagernäs
nf-core/eager workflow detailed nf-core/eager From Fellows Yates et al. (2021, PeerJ) under a MIT license
nf-core/dualrnaseq workflow nf-core/dualrnaseq By Regan Hayward under MIT license
nf-core/circrna workflow nf-core/circrna By Barry Digby under MIT license
“nf-core/mag workflow” nf-core/mag By Sabrina Krakau under MIT license CC-BY 4.0. Design originally by Zandra Fagernäs
nf-core/bactmap workflow nf-core/bactmap By Anthony Underwood under MIT license
nf-core/cutandrun workflow nf-core/cutandrun By Chris Cheshire under MIT license
nf-core/cutandrun workflow nf-core/sarek By Maxime U Garcia under MIT license
nf-core/rnaseq metro map grey nf-core/rnaseq By Sarah Guinchard under MIT license
nf-core/isoseq metro map nf-core/isoseq By Sébastien Guizard under MIT license

Components

Object Description Link Source
Metromap style pipeline workflow components Components for a metro-map style pipeline workflow SVG
PDF
DRAW.IO
James A. Fellows Yates, Maxime Garcia, Louis Le Nézet & nf-core; under a CC0 license (public domain)

Use draw.io

The web app draw.io helps you create, render and export different diagrams including metro-maps. For even more convenience, you can use the asset library nf-core xml item library. It contains all of the components from the components above. To open the nf-core component library:

  1. Download the library file
  2. Go to draw.io
  3. Click File → Open Library from → Device
  4. Select the downloaded the file

This will load the nf-core shapes into the sidebar without any CORS issues.

Tip

Components can also be accessed via bioicons.