Remarks

A connector is a line that attaches two other shapes at points called connection sites. If you rearrange shapes that are connected, the geometry of the connector will be automatically adjusted so that the shapes remain connected.

Connection sites are generally numbered according to the rules presented in the following table.

Shape type Connection site numbering scheme
AutoShapes, WordArt, pictures, and OLE objects The connection sites are numbered starting at the top and proceeding counterclockwise.
Freeforms The connection sites are the vertices, and they correspond to the vertex numbers.

Use the ConnectorFormat property to return a ConnectorFormat object. Use the and methods to attach the ends of the connector to other shapes in the document. Use the method to automatically find the shortest path between the two shapes connected by the connector. Use the property to see whether a shape is a connector.

Note
You assign a size and a position when you add a connector to the Shapes collection, but the size and position are automatically adjusted when you attach the beginning and end of the connector to other shapes in the collection. Therefore, if you intend to attach a connector to other shapes, the initial size and position you specify are irrelevant. Likewise, you specify which connection sites on a shape to attach the connector to when you attach the connector, but using the RerouteConnections method after the connector is attached may change which connection sites the connector attaches to, making your original choice of connection sites irrelevant.

Example

To figure out which number corresponds to which connection site on a complex shape, you can experiment with the shape while the macro recorder is turned on and then examine the recorded code; or you can create a shape, select it, and then run the following example. This code will number each connection site and attach a connector to it.

Visual Basic for Applications
Set mainshape = ActiveWindow.Selection.ShapeRange(1) With mainshape bx = .Left + .Width + 50 by = .Top + .Height + 50 End With With ActiveSheet For j = 1 To mainshape.ConnectionSiteCount With .Shapes.AddConnector(msoConnectorStraight, _ bx, by, bx + 50, by + 50) .ConnectorFormat.EndConnect mainshape, j .ConnectorFormat.Type = msoConnectorElbow .Line.ForeColor.RGB = RGB(255, 0, 0) l = .Left t = .Top End With With .Shapes.AddTextbox(msoTextOrientationHorizontal, _ l, t, 36, 14) .Fill.Visible = False .Line.Visible = False .TextFrame.Characters.Text = j End With Next j End With

The following example adds two rectangles to myDocument and connects them with a curved connector.

Visual Basic for Applications
Set myDocument = Worksheets(1) Set s = myDocument.Shapes Set firstRect = s.AddShape(msoShapeRectangle, 100, 50, 200, 100) Set secondRect = s.AddShape(msoShapeRectangle, 300, 300, 200, 100) Setc c = s.AddConnector(msoConnectorCurve, 0, 0, 0, 0) With c.ConnectorFormat .BeginConnect ConnectedShape:=firstRect, ConnectionSite:=1 .EndConnect ConnectedShape:=secondRect, ConnectionSite:=1 c.RerouteConnections End With
Connector Format Object ConnectorFormat ConnectorFormat Object

See also: