| Filename extensions | .gv |
|---|---|
| Internet media type | text/vnd.graphviz |
| Type of format | Graph description language |
| Open format? | Yes |
DOT is agraph description language, developed as a part of theGraphviz project. DOT graphs are typically stored asfiles with the.gv or.dotfilename extension —.gv is preferred, to avoid confusion with the.dot extension used by versions ofMicrosoft Word before 2007.[1]dot is also the name of the main program to process DOT files in the Graphviz package.
Various programs can process DOT files. Some, such asdot,neato,twopi,circo,fdp, andsfdp, can read a DOT file and render it in graphical form. Others, such asgvpr,gc,acyclic,ccomps,sccmap, andtred, read DOT files and perform calculations on the represented graph. Finally, others, such aslefty,dotty, andgrappa, provide an interactive interface. The GVedit tool combines a text editor and a non-interactive viewer. Most programs are part of the Graphviz package or use it internally.
DOT is historically an acronym for "DAG of tomorrow", as the successor to a DAG format and adag program which handled onlydirected acyclic graphs.[2]
At its simplest, DOT can be used to describe anundirected graph. An undirected graph shows simple relations between objects, such as reciprocal friendship between people. Thegraph keyword is used to begin a new graph, and nodes are described within curly braces. A double-hyphen (--) is used to show relations between the nodes.
// The graph name and the semicolons are optionalgraphgraphname{a--b--c;b--d;}
Similar to undirected graphs, DOT can describedirected graphs, such asflowcharts and dependencytrees. The syntax is the same as for undirected graphs, except thedigraph keyword is used to begin the graph, and an arrow (->) is used to show relationships between nodes.
digraphgraphname{a->b->c;b->d;}
Various attributes can be applied to graphs, nodes and edges in DOT files.[3] These attributes can control aspects such as color, shape, and line styles. For nodes and edges, one or moreattribute–value pairs are placed in square brackets[] after a statement and before the semicolon (which is optional). Graph attributes are specified as direct attribute–value pairs under the graph element, where multiple attributes are separated by a comma or using multiple sets of square brackets, while node attributes are placed after a statement containing only the name of the node, but not the relations between the dots.
graphgraphname{// This attribute applies to the graph itselfsize="1,1";// The label attribute can be used to change the label of a nodea[label="Foo"];// Here, the node shape is changed.b[shape=box];// These edges both have different line propertiesa--b--c[color=blue];b--d[style=dotted];// [style=invis] hides a node.}
HTML-like labels are supported, although initially Graphviz did not handle them.[4]
DOT supportsC andC++ style single line and multiple linecomments. In addition, it ignores lines with a number sign symbol# as their first character, like many interpreted languages.
.svg)
The DOT language defines a graph, but does not provide facilities for rendering the graph. There are several programs that can be used to render, view, and manipulate graphs in the DOT language:
dot – CLI tool for conversion between.dot and other formats