- 11 minutes to read

Saved Maps (Saved Views) – Save, Share & Restore Custom Graph Reports

A Map in Nodinite Mapify, also called a Saved Map or Saved View, is a graph report you define once and open again whenever you need it. You decide which items to look for, with a filter of AND/OR conditions, and how much of the surrounding landscape to draw. Every time the Map opens, it runs that definition against the current Repository Model, so the answer is always up to date.

  • ✅ Answer landscape questions such as which critical Systems and Integrations have SLA level Gold? with one saved Map
  • ✅ New 7.12 Filter on Tags and on Custom Metadata, next to the Mapify fields
  • ✅ Every user with access opens the same Map, so the whole team starts from the same picture

Build a Map filtered on the Tag Contoso Critical and SLA level Gold, save it, and reopen it, animated walkthrough (7.12)
Animated walkthrough: a saved report on the landscape, built from a Tag and a Custom Metadata field together.

  1. Open Administration > Maps and click Add Map, then go to the Designer tab and open Filters.
  2. In the first clause, pick the field Tags, the operator =, and the value Contoso: Critical.
  3. Click Add new clause. The clauses are combined with AND.
  4. In the second clause, pick the Custom Metadata field SLA level, the operator =, and Gold from the field's own options.
  5. Untick Include Related and click Search. The graph shows the critical items with SLA level Gold.
  6. Name the Map on the General tab, here Contoso: critical Gold services, and click Save.
  7. Later, open the Map from the Maps list in Mapify. It runs its filter on today's data.

Note: Maps require a Mapify license. Contact Nodinite Sales to enable this feature.

Understanding Maps

A Map has two faces. On the Designer tab of the Map's add or edit page, you build the definition. On the read-only Map page, and wherever the Map is opened, Nodinite runs that definition and draws the result.

graph LR roFilter["fa:fa-filter Filter
AND/OR clauses on Mapify fields,
Tags, and Custom Metadata"] roScope["fa:fa-sitemap Scope
Items, Relations, Include Related,
Depth, Only With Relations"] roMap["fa:fa-bookmark Saved Map
name, filter, and scope"] roRun["fa:fa-play Open the Map
runs the filter on current data"] roGraph["fa:fa-diagram-project Graph
the matching items and
their relations"] roFilter --> roMap roScope --> roMap roMap --> roRun roRun --> roGraph style roFilter fill:#2678BD,color:#fff style roScope fill:#2678BD,color:#fff style roMap fill:#E47528,color:#fff style roRun fill:#3F827B,color:#fff style roGraph fill:#93d16d

In the Designer you set the filter and the scope (blue), and save them as a Map (orange). Opening the Map (teal) runs the definition against the current Repository Model and draws the graph (green).

What a Map saves

Part What it holds
Name and description Set on the General tab; the name is how users find the Map in the Maps list
Filter The clauses and brackets, combined with AND and OR, on the fields below
Items The item types that may match, such as Systems and Integrations
Relations The relation paths the graph follows
Scope options Include Deleted, Include Related, Only With Relations, Depth, and Allow back-traversal

A Map doesn't save node colors, layout, or zoom: the graph is laid out again each time it opens.

Who can do what

There are no personal or shared Maps: every Map is visible to every user with Access to Maps. What a user may do depends on the Mapify rights in their Roles:

Action Right needed Where
Open and view a Map Access Mapify > Maps, then the Map
Add or duplicate a Map Create Add Map under Mapify > Maps or Administration > Maps, or the + in a Mapify window (create a Map from this view)
Edit a Map, its filter included Modify The Map's edit page, General and Designer tabs, in either area
Delete, restore, or tag a Map Modify Repository > Maps
Filter on Custom Metadata fields The Custom Metadata permission, or Administrator The Designer tab

The Items menu offers only the item types the user may see.

Build the filter

The filter builder is on the Designer tab of the Map's add and edit pages, in both areas. The read-only Map page and the Show in Mapify window have no filter builder: they run the saved filter, or show the item they were opened from.

The Filters panel with two clauses, Tags equals Contoso Critical AND SLA level equals Gold, and a third clause with the field list open (7.12)
Each clause is a field, an operator, and a value; Add new clause and Add new bracket build the AND/OR groups.

Choose a field

Each clause starts with a field. The field list holds, sorted by name together:

  • The Mapify fields: Name, Description, Exact Match, Type, Created, Created By, Changed, Changed By, and New 7.12 Tags, all with the Mapify icon.
  • New 7.12 The active Custom Metadata fields that apply to at least one item type a Map can show, by their names, with the Custom Metadata icon. A field that is inactive, applies to no item type, or applies only to Maps is not listed.

Each row carries a small Id: badge.

The field list scrolled to its end, with Mapify fields such as Name, Tags, and Type, and the Custom Metadata fields Runbook Owner, SLA level, and System Owner (7.12)
Mapify fields and Custom Metadata fields in one list, each with its own icon.

Combine conditions with AND and OR

Group clauses with brackets, like in a Log View filter, to build logic such as:

(Type = Integration OR Type = System) AND (Tags = Contoso: Finance OR SLA level = Gold)

This groups the conditions around business meaning instead of one long filter line.

Pick the operator

The operators follow the field you picked:

Field kind Operators Value
Text: Name, Description, Tags, and the Custom Metadata types Text, Text Area, Markdown, Mermaid, and Link =, <>, Contains, Starts with, Ends with, Does not contain, Does not start with, Does not end with, In, Not In, Not Empty, Empty Text
Number (Custom Metadata) =, <>, <, <=, >, >=, In, Not In, Not Empty, Empty A number; anything else is refused
Select and Check Box (Custom Metadata) =, <>, In, Not In, Not Empty, Empty A dropdown of the field's options, several under In and Not In
Item Link, Image, and Shared File (Custom Metadata) =, <>, In, Not In, Not Empty, Empty An item picker; Image and Shared File need access to Articles
Created and Changed =, <>, <, <=, >, >=, Between, In, Not In A date

Table and Attachment fields aren't listed: you can't filter on them.

The operator list for a text field, with equals, not equals, In, Not In, and the other text operators
The operator list changes with the field you picked.

Filter on Tags and Custom Metadata

New 7.12

A Map can now answer business questions directly: which Systems and Integrations carry a Tag, and which have a given Custom Metadata value. Use one, or combine both as in the walkthrough at the top of this page.

Filter on a Tag

Filter a new Map on the Tag Contoso Finance, limited to Systems and Integrations, animated walkthrough (7.12)
Animated walkthrough: the Systems and Integrations that belong together because they share a Tag.

  1. On a new Map's Designer tab, open Filters.
  2. Pick the field Tags, the operator =, and type the Tag, here Contoso: Finance.
  3. Limit Items: untick All, then tick Integrations and Systems. A Tag can also be on Images and Articles, which would show up too.
  4. Untick Include Related, so the graph holds only items that carry the Tag.
  5. Click Search. The graph shows Contoso CRM, Contoso ERP, and INT001: Orders, and how they connect.

Filter on a Custom Metadata value

Filter a new Map on the Custom Metadata SLA level Gold, animated walkthrough (7.12)
Animated walkthrough: which Systems and Integrations have SLA level Gold, in a few clicks.

  1. On a new Map's Designer tab, open Filters, and open the field list. The Custom Metadata fields have their own icon.
  2. Type SLA and pick SLA level.
  3. A Select field offers its own options: pick Gold.
  4. Untick Include Related, so the graph holds only the Gold items.
  5. Click Search. The graph shows Contoso ERP and INT001: Orders.

Items stays at All here, because only Systems and Integrations carry SLA level. With Include Related ticked, the graph would add their Services, Contracts, and Articles.

Permissions and saved values

  • The field list includes the Custom Metadata fields only for an Administrator or a user with the Custom Metadata permission. Other users see the Mapify fields, Tags included.
  • A user without that permission who opens a Map with a Custom Metadata clause gets a message that says why, and the clause stays in the Map, shown as Custom Metadata #id.
  • A Select value is stored by its option, so renaming the option Gold keeps the Map working. An option that was deleted shows as #id.

Scope options

A Map does more than filter. It also decides how much of the surrounding graph is drawn.

Items

The Items menu with All and the Repository item types to tick
The Items menu: the item types that may match the filter.

Items define which Nodinite item types may match. The Repository group also lists Custom Metadatas, Articles, Tags, Component Types, C4 Diagram Sets, C4 Diagrams, Images, and Files.

Relations

The Relations menu with relation paths such as Integrations to Systems, Systems to Services, and Services to Domains, each with a checkbox (7.12)
The Relations menu: which relation paths the graph follows.

Relations define which links appear in the Map. If you clear a relation path, Mapify can skip intermediate items, so you may show A and Z while leaving out the items in between. In 7.12 the list also has relations to Articles, Component Types, Domains, and Tags. Each item type has its own … ↔ Tags path, such as Integrations ↔ Tags and Services ↔ Tags, unchecked by default.

The Relations menu of Add Map with Integrations, Systems, and Services each listing a relation to Custom Metadatas, Tags, Articles, and Component Types, the Tags paths unchecked (7.12)
The … ↔ Tags relation paths are unchecked by default.

Additional scope controls

  • Include Deleted – show deleted items when you investigate historical data or removed relationships.
  • Only With Relations – keep only items that have at least one relation, which removes a lot of noise from large landscapes.
  • Include Related – add related items, so the graph grows beyond the items that match the filter.
  • Depth – how far Mapify follows relations when Include Related is ticked.
  • Allow back-traversal – include child associations when the selected item is the starting point, which can unfold many more relations.
  • Search – refresh the graph after you change the filter or the scope.

A saved Map open in the Designer with its toolbar and graph
A Map in the Designer: the scope controls and toolbar above the graph.

Designer actions

The Designer has these buttons:

  • View Map – open the Map's read-only page.
  • Add Map – start a new Map.
  • Duplicate – clone the Map. The Map must have no unsaved changes before you can clone it.
  • Save – save the Map; Save and close at the bottom saves it and returns to the list.

Delete a Map from Repository > Maps.

Examples

Maps have no Domain, Owner, or Compliance fields of their own. Build those questions from Tags and Custom Metadata instead:

Question Build it like this
Which items are in scope for the SOX audit? Tags = SOX, or a Select Custom Metadata field Compliance = SOX
What does the Finance team own? A Custom Metadata field such as System Owner = Finance Team
Only Integrations and Services The Items menu, or Type In (Integration, Service)
What changed this quarter? Changed Between two dates
Everything around one System Exact Match on the System, with Include Related and a Depth

Example: a GDPR audit Map

  1. Filter on Tags = GDPR OR the Custom Metadata Compliance In (GDPR).
  2. Add a clause on the Custom Metadata System Owner Not Empty, or Empty to find the items nobody owns yet.
  3. Limit Items to Integrations, Services, and Systems, and click Search.
  4. Name the Map, for example Compliance – GDPR audit, and save it.

Every quarter, auditors open the Map from Mapify > Maps and see the current scope.

Best practices

  • Name Maps by purpose and period – such as Compliance – GDPR audit or Contoso: critical Gold services; everyone sees every Map, so clear names prevent duplicates.
  • Add a description – explain the purpose for colleagues who didn't create the Map.
  • Tag your Maps – Maps carry Tags too, which keeps a long Maps list sorted.
  • Prefer Select fields for filters – a Select or Check Box Custom Metadata field gives exact, typo-free matches.
  • Keep the graph focused – limit Items, Relations, and Depth, and untick Include Related when you only want the matches.
  • Review regularly – delete Maps nobody uses any more.

Frequently asked questions / Troubleshooting

Why don't I see the Custom Metadata fields in the field list?

They need the Custom Metadata permission, or the Administrator Role. Ask an administrator to grant it through your Roles.

A single field can also be missing on purpose: the list leaves out Custom Metadata that is inactive, or that applies to no item type a Map can show. Activate the field, or add the item types it applies to, on its Custom Metadata edit page. A Map saved earlier with a clause on such a field still shows that field.

A Map shows more than I expected

Include Related adds the related items of every match. Untick it to see only the matches, or lower the Depth.

A Map shows items I didn't ask for, such as Images and Articles

A Tag can be on any item type. Limit Items to the types you want.

The Map loads, but the results differ from last month

A Map runs against current data, so items added, changed, deleted, or retagged since then change the result. That is by design.

I can't change a Map

Editing needs Modify on Maps, and adding or duplicating needs Create. See Who can do what.

Next Steps