markdown-graphviz-inline

What it is and what it does

markdown-graphviz-inline is a Markdown extension that embeds Graphviz diagram rendering directly into the Markdown processing pipeline. When you write a fenced code block tagged with `graphviz` and a Graphviz command (dot, neato, fdp, sfdp, twopi, or circo), the extension executes that command and replaces the block with an inline SVG or PNG image. This eliminates the need for external build steps or output directory configuration.

The package is designed to work out-of-the-box with Python Markdown–based static site generators like MkDocs, Pelican, and Nikola. It depends only on Markdown as a runtime library and requires that Graphviz command-line tools be installed on the system where the Markdown is processed. The extension supports both modern fenced-code-block syntax and legacy template-style notation.

Use it for:

• Render architecture diagrams, flowcharts, or entity-relationship diagrams directly in MkDocs documentation without post-processing.
• Generate graph visualizations in Pelican or Nikola blogs by writing Graphviz syntax inline in Markdown source.
• Create technical documentation with embedded SVG or PNG diagrams that are version-controlled as text in the Markdown source.
• Build knowledge-base or wiki sites where diagram definitions are stored alongside narrative text in Markdown files.

Worth the install?

AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page — verify before relying

A Markdown extension that converts inline Graphviz diagram definitions into embedded SVG or PNG images during document rendering.

Yes, if you use a Python Markdown–based static site generator and have Graphviz installed on your build system. The extension is lightweight, has no complex dependencies, and solves a real problem—embedding diagrams without external configuration. However, maintenance is dormant (last release 2025-01-27), so verify compatibility with your specific Markdown and generator versions before relying on it for production.

Install

markdown-graphviz-inline on PyPI

pip install markdown-graphviz-inline

uv add markdown-graphviz-inline

poetry add markdown-graphviz-inline

Installing markdown-graphviz-inline

Before you install

Low install friction; a pure-Python wheel with a single runtime dependency on Markdown. Maintenance is dormant—last release was 2025-01-27 with no activity since, though the repository remains active and unarchived.

License in practice

MIT license (permissive) places no restrictions on use, modification, or distribution in proprietary or open-source projects.

Quickstart

pip install markdown-graphviz-inline

In mkdocs.yml or equivalent:
markdown_extensions:
  - markdown_inline_graphviz

In your Markdown file:
```graphviz dot output.svg
digraph G {
  A -> B
}
```

Requires Graphviz command-line tools (dot, neato, fdp, sfdp, twopi, circo) to be installed on the system; the extension is a Markdown plugin only and does not bundle Graphviz itself.

Verify before relying

• Whether the package works reliably with modern Python versions beyond 3.6, given classifiers list only up to 3.6.
• Current state of compatibility with recent versions of Markdown and popular static site generators (MkDocs, Pelican, Nikola).
• Whether system Graphviz installation is reliably detected and whether error handling is robust when Graphviz is missing.

Package facts

Evidence: markdown_graphviz_inline-1.1.3-py3-none-any.whl

Tags

More Text Processing packages