Install Modeler

Syside Modeler installs from the VS Code Marketplace or the Open-VSX Marketplace, and needs one thing Syside Editor does not: a Modeler license. Only the optional Tom Sawyer SysMLv2 Viewer asks for more, a Java 21 runtime the extension offers to install for you. For the command line tool, see Install Modeler CLI instead.

Minimum requirements

  • System requirements:

    • Windows 10+ x64 or arm64 (for older versions, install Windows UCRT)

  • System requirements:

    • macOS Big Sur (11.0+, arm64)

    • macOS High Sierra (10.13+, x64)

  • System requirements:

    • Linux x64 distribution with GNU C Library glibc >= 2.31

    Note

    Some Linux distributions like Alpine and Chimera do not include glibc and may not support running applications that require it.

    How to check your glibc version

    1. Using gcc:

      $(cat $(gcc -print-file-name=libc.so) | grep -P '/[^\s]+/libc\.so\.[\w]+' -o)

      You should see output similar to: GNU C Library (GNU libc) stable release version 2.40

    2. Using Python:

      python -c "import platform; print(platform.platform())"

      You should see output similar to (glibc should be printed at the end): Linux-6.13.7-3-cachyos-x86_64-with-glibc2.41

  • Network connectivity:

    • Internet connection is required for installation, updates and usage

Note

Syside Modeler periodically validates the license and collects usage data. See What data we collect for exactly what is sent and what can be turned off.

Syside Modeler can be used offline for short periods of time, but a fully network-isolated solution requires an offline license available on the Business plan.

Install extension

Warning

Syside Modeler shares some features with Syside Editor. To avoid conflicts, please uninstall or disable Syside Editor before using Syside Modeler.

For network-isolated or air-gapped environments, see Offline installation page.

  1. Open your editor (Visual Studio Code, Cursor, VSCodium, or other compatible editor)

  2. Open Extensions view (click Extensions in left sidebar or press Ctrl/Cmd-Shift-X)

  3. In the search bar, type Syside Modeler

  4. Click Install on Syside Modeler by Sensmetry (identifier sensmetry.syside-modeler)

Syside Modeler is available on both VS Code Marketplace and Open-VSX Marketplace.

  1. Download Syside Modeler extension (may take a few seconds to start). The download form asks for your license key.

  1. Open Visual Studio Code or your preferred VSCodium-based editor

  2. Open VSIX installation window:

    1. via Extensions view:

      1. Click Extensions in left sidebar or press Ctrl/Cmd-Shift-X

      2. Drag and drop the downloaded syside-modeler-*.vsix file to the Extensions panel (alternatively, click … and Install from VSIX…)

    2. via Command Palette:

      1. Open the Command Palette Ctrl/Cmd-Shift-P

      2. Type Extensions: Install from VSIX…

      3. Select downloaded syside-modeler-*.vsix file and click Install

Warning

Extensions installed from VSIX files do not receive automatic updates. To update Syside Modeler, see Update Modeler section.

Releases from 0.11.0 onwards attach the extension to the GitLab releases page, one .vsix per platform, next to a SHA256SUMS file to check a download against. The offline-compatible .vsix, which bundles the extension’s dependencies, is not published there yet; get it from the download form on the Offline installation page instead.

  1. Open the GitLab releases page and download the .vsix for your platform, named syside-modeler-*-x86_64-windows.vsix for Windows on x86_64

    Pre-releases are listed alongside stable releases and marked as such.

  1. Open Visual Studio Code or your preferred VSCodium-based editor

  2. Open VSIX installation window:

    1. via Extensions view:

      1. Click Extensions in left sidebar or press Ctrl/Cmd-Shift-X

      2. Drag and drop the downloaded syside-modeler-*.vsix file to the Extensions panel (alternatively, click … and Install from VSIX…)

    2. via Command Palette:

      1. Open the Command Palette Ctrl/Cmd-Shift-P

      2. Type Extensions: Install from VSIX…

      3. Select downloaded syside-modeler-*.vsix file and click Install

Warning

Extensions installed from VSIX files do not receive automatic updates. To update Syside Modeler, see Update Modeler section.

Activate license

When first trying to use Syside Modeler you will be prompted to provide the license key. If you do not have a license key yet, you can obtain one on Sensmetry.com. To trigger the prompt manually, follow these steps:

  1. Open any *.sysml SysML file

    • You should get a prompt next to Command Palette asking to enter Syside License Key.

    Syside Modeler license dialog

  2. Enter Syside License Key and press Enter

    • If license activation succeeds, a confirmation message will appear:

    Syside Modeler license success

    • If license activation fails, an error message appears. Verify your license key and try again.

    If the issue persists, check Troubleshooting section for potential solutions.

  3. If you get a popup asking to install Syside Tools, click Install Syside Tools

    • If you did not get or dismissed the prompt, you can install Syside tools manually:

      1. Open the Command Palette Ctrl/Cmd-Shift-P

      2. Type Syside Modeler: Install Syside Tools

If you plan to use Modeler CLI or Automator outside your editor, you can add your license key to your Operating System’s secret storage:

  1. Open the Command Palette Ctrl/Cmd-Shift-P

  2. Type Syside Modeler: Add Syside license key to keyring

Verify installation

Once Syside Modeler is installed and activated, follow these steps to quickly verify it is working as expected.

  1. Create a new SysML file named example.sysml with the following content:

    package 'Part Tree Example' {
   part def Electrical;

   part Automobile {
      part 'Drive Train' {
         part Battery : Electrical;
         part Motor : Electrical;
      }

      part Chassis {
         part Suspension : Mechanical;
         part Body : Mechanical;
      }
   }
}

  2. Open example.sysml file in your editor

    • You should see highlighted syntax, and two errors marked in the editor and listed in the Problems panel (Ctrl/Cmd+Shift+M). This is because Mechanical part definition is missing.

    Error - Missing part definition

  3. Correct the error by updating the example.sysml file:

    package 'Part Tree Example' {
   part def Electrical;
   part def Mechanical;

   part Automobile {
      part 'Drive Train' {
         part Battery : Electrical;
         part Motor : Electrical;
      }

      part Chassis {
         part Suspension : Mechanical;
         part Body : Mechanical;
      }
   }
}

    The errors should disappear.

  1. Save the file (Ctrl/Cmd+S). The visualization engine reads the saved file, so unsaved changes will not appear in the diagram.

  2. Visualize the model:

    1. Click on Syside logo (top right) and select Visualize current file

    2. Alternatively, use keyboard shortcut Ctrl/Cmd+Shift+V

    The other ways to open a diagram are covered in Open a diagram.

Tip

If Java is not yet installed, Modeler will prompt you to install it. Follow the on-screen instructions, then repeat Step 5.

Once loaded, you should see a diagram similar to this:

Visualization of the model given in the Setting up your project section

Update Modeler

By default, your editor updates extensions automatically. You only need to reload the extension after the update completes.

If you are not receiving automatic updates:

  1. Open Extensions view (click Extensions in left sidebar or press Ctrl/Cmd-Shift-X)

  2. Find Syside Modeler in the list

  3. Verify the Auto Update checkbox is enabled

Extensions installed from VSIX files do not receive automatic updates.

To update, download the latest version and repeat the Install extension steps above.

Tip

Your license activation and settings will be preserved during the update.

What’s next?

Now that Syside Modeler is installed and working, continue to learn more:

  • Continue to Write your model for what Modeler does for the text as you type

  • Learn SysML v2 with Advent of SysML v2, a free 25-lesson course with videos, blog posts, and hands-on exercises