Network Diagram
The Network Diagram is a visual planning tool in Fusion Online that allows you to create, view, and edit the task network for a project. It’s especially useful for building and reviewing logic, linking tasks, managing backlog tasks, and working with endpoints in a visual way.
Accessing the Network Diagram
To open a diagram:
From any view, click the project name badge.
Go to the Diagrams tab.
Click the diagram name, or use the action menu (⋮) to select Edit.
Key concepts
The Network Diagram shows your project's tasks, links, and endpoints.
It can be used to build new task networks or analyze existing ones.
Tasks created in the diagram start as backlog tasks until linked to an endpoint.
You can make changes to a diagram in the Network Diagram view without publishing them. A draft is automatically created as soon as you begin making changes—this includes moving nodes, updating diagram options, or creating, updating, or deleting tasks and links.
Drafts are private and visible only to you. They are saved automatically, so you can close your browser at any time without losing progress.
If you open a diagram that already has a draft, it will open in draft mode. When a draft exists, Discard and Publish buttons appear at the bottom center of the diagram.
Diagrams with unpublished changes display a Draft badge at the top of the diagram and next to the diagram name in the list.
If a diagram is deleted (by you or another user), any associated drafts are deleted as well.
Multiple users can work independently on their own drafts of the same diagram; draft changes remain private until published.
Diagram features
Diagram information
Located in the top-left corner of the screen.
Click the project name badge to open Project Details.
Click the diagram name link to open it in separate browser tab as a full-page view.
Click the link icon to copy a shareable link to the diagram.
Edits tracker
Displays the number of changes made in the current draft. Click the number to view a summary of changes.
Discard / Publish
Discard to remove all unsaved changes.
Publish to apply and save all changes. Publishing makes your updates visible to all users, both in the diagram and throughout the project—this includes any task, link, or other network changes made in the draft.
A summary of changes will appear upon publishing or discarding.
Filtering the diagram
Filtering lets you focus on specific tasks or parts of the network while working in the diagram.
There are now two kinds of filters available:
Data filters — filter based on task data stored in the project.
View filters — filter based on relationships and visual properties in the diagram.
Data and view filters can be used together.
Data filters
Click + Add filters to apply filters using standard task fields such as Assignee, Task Group, or Resource.
Data filters are applied on the published task data—meaning they work with the version of the project that’s currently saved in the database. Tasks that are added or modified in a draft remain visible even if they don’t match the data filters, so you can continue editing them.
Example: If you apply an Assignee filter to show only tasks assigned to Alex and then unassign one of those tasks while editing, it will stay visible in your draft even though it no longer matches the filter. The change won’t affect filtering until you publish the diagram.
You can remove individual filters using the X next to each filter, or click Clear all to remove all data filters.
When a data filter is applied, the counter on the filter button shows the number of visible tasks versus the total tasks in the project
—for example, 34/56 tasks.
View filters
View filters let you quickly isolate specific paths or areas of the network without changing the underlying data. They’re applied in the diagram itself and update instantly.
Selection-based filters
These filters depend on one or more selected tasks:
Backward – shows the selected tasks and all their predecessors, all the way back to the start of the network.
Forward – shows the selected tasks and all their successors, all the way to the end of the network.
Neighbors – shows only the immediate predecessors and successors of the selected tasks.
Connect Tasks – enabled only when two or more tasks are selected; displays all tasks that connect the selected ones.
These filters are controlled by the Filter Type option, which determines how relationships are calculated:
Paths – uses direct task links.
Impact – filters based on the Impact Chain, which is the longest chain, including both task and resource dependencies, connected to the selected task.
Variability – filters based on Variability Chain, which is the chain of tasks, including both task and resource dependencies, that has the highest variability considering the difference between the Low Risk Durations and the Focus Durations.
Non-selection filters
These filters are independent of your current selection:
Endpoints – shows only the endpoint tasks in the network.
Critical Chain – shows tasks on the project’s critical chain.
Filter by color – shows only tasks with a specific color.
Filter Scope
The Filter Scope determines how each new view filter affects the current view:
Replace – shows only the tasks that match the filter (hides all others).
Expand – adds matching tasks to the currently visible set.
Refine – applies the filter only to the currently visible tasks to narrow the view.
Clearing view filters
When a view filter is active, only a subset of the currently loaded tasks is displayed. To return to the full diagram view, click Display All. This restores all tasks that are currently included by your data filters (if any).
Task counts
When both Data and View filters are used together, two task counters appear:
The Data filter counter shows how many tasks are displayed versus the total number in the project (e.g.
34/56 tasks).The View filter counter shows how many tasks are visible after applying the view filter (e.g.
19/34 tasks).
Actions toolbar
The Actions toolbar becomes active when one or more tasks or sticky notes are selected in the diagram. Most actions here perform bulk updates on all selected tasks, allowing you to quickly edit common properties or relationships.
Selection
Select all – selects all visible tasks in the diagram. You can also use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + A (or Cmd + A on Mac).
Unselect – clears the current selection.
Bulk actions
Delete – removes the selected tasks and any links connected to them.
Resize – adjusts the node size for all selected tasks.
Color – assigns a color to all selected tasks.
Assignee – updates the assignee for all selected tasks.
Groups – updates the task groups for all selected tasks.
Managers – updates the task managers for all selected tasks.
Layout – repositions the selected nodes automatically.
Other actions
Add link – enabled only when exactly two tasks are selected. Creates or edits a link between those tasks.
Duplicate – creates duplicates of all selected tasks, including any links between them. Duplicated tasks are added to the diagram slightly offset from the originals.
Copy – copies the selected tasks (and links between them) to the clipboard.
Use Ctrl + C (or Cmd + C on Mac) as a shortcut.
You can then paste using Ctrl + V (or Cmd + V on Mac) into the same diagram or even into a different project’s diagram.
Collapsing the toolbars
You can collapse the Data, View, and Actions toolbars to create more space for viewing the diagram. Click the small arrow icon at the far right of the toolbar to toggle it open or closed.
Even when collapsed, the toolbars remain accessible—clicking on any of them will temporarily expand it as a popup so you can use its options without fully reopening it.
Each toolbar remembers its state, so if you collapse it, it will stay hidden until you expand it again.
Vertical toolbar
Full screen – Expands the diagram for more workspace (exit with Esc).
Fit view – Zooms to fit all visible tasks on screen.
Find – Locate tasks by Unique ID or partial name.
Add item – Drag a Task, Endpoint, or Sticky Note onto the canvas.
Tasks created here begin as backlog tasks.
You can also create new tasks by double-clicking anywhere in the canvas.
Sticky Notes are visual labels and are unique to the diagram.
Layout – Automatically arranges tasks; backlog tasks are placed at the bottom.
Options – Opens the diagram Options dialog.
Background – Customize the canvas background.
Link Style – Customize appearance of task links.
Node – Controls how much task information is shown inside each task node when you are zoomed in enough for details to be visible. Task nodes automatically adapt to the zoom level. When you’re zoomed out, nodes will show only the task key for clarity. As you zoom in, they switch to show the key and name. When you zoom in further, the display follows your selected Node option:
Standard – displays the full set of task details, including key, name, assignee, resources, duration, and state.
Key and name – shows only the task key and task name in a larger, easier-to-read font.
Key – displays only the task key, providing a clean, minimal view that’s easy to scan.
Node Key – Determines which identifier is shown in each task node.
Task Key – displays the full task key, which includes both the project abbreviation and the task UID (for example,
AR-12).Task UID – displays only the numeric portion of the task key, omitting the project abbreviation.
Undo / Redo – Use toolbar buttons or keyboard shortcuts (Ctrl + Z / Ctrl + Y).
Legend – Assign labels to task colors.
Canvas interaction
The canvas is the main workspace where you can view, add, and organize tasks in your network diagram.
Navigating the canvas
Zoom – Hold Ctrl and scroll your mouse wheel to zoom in or out. You can also use a pinch gesture on a trackpad to zoom. A zoom control with a slider and + / – buttons is available in the lower-right corner of the diagram for precise adjustments.
Pan – Click and drag the background to move around the canvas.
Fit view – Click the Fit view button (on the left toolbar) to automatically center and scale the entire diagram to fit within the visible area.
Selecting and creating tasks
Select a task – Click once to select a single task.
Multi-select tasks –
Hold Ctrl and click multiple tasks, or
Press Shift and drag to draw a box around tasks to select them.
Move tasks – Drag selected tasks to reposition them.
Create a task – Double-click an empty area of the canvas to create a new backlog task.
Right-click menu
Right-click (or two-finger tap on a trackpad) on empty space in the canvas to open a quick-access menu with the following options:
Add a task – Creates a new backlog task at the click location.
Add an endpoint – Creates a new endpoint task at the click location.
Add a sticky note – Creates a new sticky note at the click location.
This provides an easy way to add items exactly where you want them in the diagram without using the toolbar.
Actions on selected tasks
When a task is selected, several editing options become available around the task node, along with an action menu that provides additional commands.
Task action menu
Click the three-dot menu in the upper corner of the selected task to open the action menu. The menu includes the following options:
Open full details – Opens the full Task Details view in a separate browser tab. Changes made there are saved directly to the project (outside of the current draft).
Copy – Copies the selected task to the clipboard. You can paste it into this or another diagram using Ctrl + V (or Cmd + V on Mac). Ctrl + C is the shortcut for this action.
Duplicate – Creates a duplicate of the selected task in the same diagram. Ctrl + D is the shortcut for this action.
Convert to endpoint / Convert to backlog task – This option toggles depending on the current status of the task. If the task is not an endpoint, it can only be converted if it’s a backlog task with no successors.
Delete – Deletes the task from the current draft. You can also press the Backspace key as a shortcut.
Quick-access icons
Additional controls appear around the selected task node:
Edit – Click the pencil icon or double-click the task to open the Task Panel for in-place editing.
Link – Click the plus icon to add a link to another task.
Resize – Click the diagonal arrow icon to change node size (small, medium, or large).
Color – Click the color icon to assign a color for visual grouping or filtering.
Working with links
Tasks can be linked to define dependencies:
Drag to create a link – Hover over a task and drag from a gray connector circle to a successor task to create a finish-to-start link.
Link connectors appear when you hover over a task Use the Add Link button – Click the + icon on a selected task to link it to a predecessor or successor.
View or edit a link – Click on a link line to view link details. Use the popup to:
Edit link properties (e.g., type, lag)
Delete the link
You can also delete a selected link by pressing the backspace key.
Task panel
When you click the edit (pencil) icon or double-click a task, the task panel opens on the right side of the screen.
This panel allows you to view and update key task information, including:
Task name
Duration (focus and low-risk)
Assignee
Resources
Task state
Mini map
Located in the bottom-right corner:
Shows a small version of the canvas.
Drag the highlighted area to pan quickly.
Use the +/- buttons or zoom slider to control zoom.
Backlog and endpoint behavior
A task is considered a backlog task until it is part of a chain that ultimately connects to an endpoint. It does not have to be directly linked to the endpoint—any task that connects (through one or more successors) to a network that eventually feeds into an endpoint is treated as part of that network.
If a task or chain of tasks becomes disconnected so that it no longer leads to any endpoint, all of those tasks automatically become backlog tasks again.
You can change the backlog status and whether or not a task is an endpoint directly in the diagram:
By linking or unlinking tasks: A task becomes part of the network (and not a backlog task) when it’s connected—directly or indirectly—to an endpoint. If you disconnect a task or a chain of tasks so they no longer lead to an endpoint, they automatically become backlog tasks.
By converting task type: You can also manually convert a task to or from an endpoint directly in the diagram:
From the action menu that appears when a task is selected.
From the Task Panel, which opens when you double-click a task.
Saving and collaboration
Draft changes are auto-saved.
If someone else makes changes to the project while you’re in the diagram, you’ll be notified. Fusion will sync your draft accordingly.
Limitations
Up to 2,000 tasks can be displayed at once. If you exceed this limit, only the first 2,000 tasks (by UID) will appear.
Use filters to reduce visible tasks when needed.
See also
Build the network – Step-by-step guide to building your project structure
Create a new project – Starting a new project in Fusion
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