# Find and replace in diagram code

Search and replace inside diagram source is the fastest way to do the edit people most often do by hand: renaming something that appears in fifteen places.

Column select is the other tool worth knowing, for editing the same position across many lines.

![image-20260907-090226.png](https://help.gocapable.com/images/3b1204e4-ed68-48d4-bb9a-cf29aa34a011.webp)

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## What this is for

* Renaming a node, service or entity throughout a diagram.
* Editing the same field across many lines.
* Finding where something is defined in a long source.

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## How it works

![The diagram text editor showing numbered lines of Mermaid flowchart code with several matches highlighted, and a find and replace bar along the bottom.](https://help.gocapable.com/images/5083d3f2-9fba-4e86-a906-83729f30e4e2.webp)

The bar opens under the code with match case, regular expression and whole word options, and replaces one match or all of them.

| **Action**    | **How**                                                    |
| ------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------- |
| Find          | Ctrl+F opens the search panel.                             |
| Replace       | Ctrl+H, or the replace field in the search panel.          |
| Replace all   | Applies to the whole source at once.                       |
| Column select | Hold Alt and drag to select the same columns across lines. |
| Multi-cursor  | Alt+click to place several cursors.                        |

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## A few things that catch people out

* Replace all is not undone selectively. Check the count before confirming a large replace.
* Column select is how you add the same suffix to twenty lines in one gesture.
* The preview updates after the replace, so an error is immediately visible.

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## Related

[Diagram code templatesA working starting point per language.](https://help.gocapable.com/diagrams/diagram-code-templates.html)

[Import diagram source from a fileBringing in source you already have.](https://help.gocapable.com/diagrams/import-diagram-source-from-a-file.html)

[Text editorBack to the editor overview.](https://help.gocapable.com/diagrams/text-editor.html)

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_The source is right there. Read it._