> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://docs.infraglide.com/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://docs.infraglide.com/visual-canvas-and-pipeline-designer/connectors.md).

# Connectors & Dependency Mapping

**Connectors** (edges) are visual links between canvas nodes. They help you express relationships that influence validation and Terraform dependency wiring when you Preview or Deploy.

***

### Overview

![alt text](/files/68p3eRHDHWok8JT0fYsY)

***

### Creating a Connection

1. Hover over a node — small **connection handles** appear on the node edges.
2. Drag from a handle to a compatible target node.
3. InfraGlide validates the edge before adding it.
4. Valid edges appear as **deletable arrows** on the canvas.
5. Duplicate edges (either direction) are blocked.
6. Invalid pairs show an **Invalid connection** toast and are not added.

Edges are saved on the pipeline as connection relationship definitions.

#### Deleting an Edge

* Click an edge to select it — a delete (✕) button appears on the edge.

![alt text](/files/zeIlmk1VP1neMasJsKZ1)

* Or select the edge and press **Delete** / **Backspace** (InfraGlide's custom delete handler; default key actions are configured to prevent accidental deletions).

***

### Validation Rules

Client-side checks include:

* **Provider-specific invalid resource pairs** — certain resource combinations are blocked (e.g. connecting incompatible resource types).

![alt text](/files/o1waiAQMIXBJkVsRIF6G)

* **Deployment phase ordering** — resources that must not depend "backwards" across phases are rejected.

These rules reduce impossible topologies before Terraform runs. They do not replace cloud-provider runtime errors.

***

### How Edges Affect Terraform

Connectors participate in dependency modeling in two complementary ways:

#### 1. Connection Inheritance (Primary Attribute Wiring)

Declared connection inheritance rules in cloud UI schemas can use edges (and/or nesting) to copy references such as network IDs into target resource fields. Trigger types:

| Rule trigger | When it applies                |
| ------------ | ------------------------------ |
| edge         | Visual connector between nodes |
| nesting      | Parent container relationship  |
| both         | Either edge or nesting         |
| implicit     | Engine-inferred cases          |

At code generation time, the engine applies these rules to wire dynamic resource references and explicit dependencies.

#### 2. Edge → Dependency Conversion

During execution, connectors are converted into dependency relationships so Terraform deploys resources in the correct sequence. When no specific rule matches, InfraGlide applies dependency ordering so Terraform respects the visual graph.

***

### Azure VPN / Local Network Edge Sync

Connecting certain Azure resources (e.g. VPN Gateway and Local Network Gateway) triggers **extra edge metadata sync** — the forms of connected resources are updated automatically. After connecting such resources, review their configuration forms.

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### Practical Guidance

* Connect application tiers to their network and data dependencies intentionally.
* Draw edges to express explicit relationships between resources.
* Avoid redundant edges between resources that are already nested inside the same container.
* After rewiring edges, **Save**, then **Preview** to confirm the generated plan looks correct.
* Use **Preview** output to verify that resource dependencies and field references are generated as expected.

***

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### See also

* [Inheritance & Dynamic Grouping](/visual-canvas-and-pipeline-designer/dynamic-inheritance.md)
* [Container Nodes & Resource Grouping](/visual-canvas-and-pipeline-designer/container-nodes.md)
* [Real-Time Terraform Code Generation](/terraform-iac-engine/code-generation.md)


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