Tag Archives: ArcGIS Server
2008 UC Featured Workshop: Securing your ArcGIS Server Site (Java and .NET)
The technical workshop Securing your ArcGIS Server Site will discuss best
practices for security and will review ArcGIS Server security enhancements in
9.3. Both server administrators and developers can benefit from this session.
Separate sessions are offered for Java and .NET.
Shreyas Shinde (ArcGIS Server Java Developer) and Jay Theodore (Java Web ADF
Development Lead) will present the Java security session. According to Shreyas,
the session is for “administrators interested in setting up a secured GIS site,
JavaScript application developers who could be working with secured services,
[and] developers who are interested in extending the security functionality.”
Bryan Baker (ArcGIS Server .NET Product Engineer) and Sud Menon (ArcGIS Server
Development Lead) will present a similar session for .NET. Additionally, Bryan
plans on showing how to set up a reverse proxy with ArcGIS Server (a
recommended way of sharing your ArcGIS Server on the Internet) and
demonstrating how to pass a browser user’s identity to the GIS services. This
allows you to show or hide services in a Web application based on a user’s
login.
Securing your ArcGIS Server for the Java Platform Site
- Tuesday, August 5, 1:30 PM – 2:45 PM Room 8
Securing your ArcGIS Server for the Microsoft .NET Framework Site
- Tuesday, August 5, 3:15 PM – 4:30 PM Room 8
- Wednesday, August 6, 3:15 PM – 4:30 PM Room 8
Administrative privileges no longer required to log in to Manager at 9.3
Here’s a 9.3 improvement that’s not immediately visible, but may simplify the way you work with Manager in your GIS department. In ArcGIS Server for the Microsoft .NET Framework 9.2, you were required to have Administrator privileges on the Web server in order to log in to Manager. At 9.3 you no longer have to be an Administrator; you just need to be a member of the agsadmin group on the SOM machine.
Non-Administrators can view, create, stop, start, and delete services. As a non-Administrator, you can also work with the GIS server by modifying SOC machines, log file properties, server directories, and so on.
If you’ll be creating or editing Web applications within Manager, you’ll still need to log in as an Administrator at 9.3.
This change does not affect ArcGIS Server Manager for the Java Platform. Due to the difference in the way applications are deployed to the Web server, administrative privileges have never been required to log in to Java Manager.
The new face of EDN
If you’ve been looking for developer help on edn.esri.com recently, you’ll notice the site has been pared down to just a few links. The 9.3 Developer Help is now available through the various product Resource Centers, while the old EDN site is still available for legacy content. Jim Barry, who coordinates much of the work with the EDN site, contributed a post on the ArcObjects Development Blog explaining the change.
What's new in ArcGIS Server 9.3
ArcGIS 9.3 has been shipping for several weeks now. You can read about some of the enhancements to ArcGIS Server in the “Putting GIS on the Web” section of What’s new in ArcGIS 9.3. We’ll be talking about some of these enhancements on this blog in the coming weeks.
Here are a few examples of new things you can do that are explained in the What’s New document:
- Add printing capability to your Web applications and format map tips in Manager
- Build and deploy mobile projects directly from .NET Manager
- Build .NET Web ADF applications whose client and server-side components leverage ASP.NET AJAX
- Publish raster imagery directly to the server using the new image service
- Build map caches based on the boundary of a feature class and cache the rest on demand
- Administer security through Manager
- Publish OGC Web Feature Services (WFS) and Web Coverage Services (WCS)
- Make your server contents searchable on the Web with the new Services Directory application that works off REST
- Embed maps in your Web sites with JavaScript
- Create Google Maps API applications, Google Mapplets, and Microsoft Virtual Earth mashups that use your services
What is Dojo and why is it important to ArcGIS users?
Recently Alex Russell and
Neil Roberts from SitePen were here
in Redlands showing us some of the capabilities of
the Dojo toolkit and how it can greatly simplify your life if you’re a
JavaScript developer. We anticipate that a lot of you will be encountering Dojo
soon because the ArcGIS JavaScript API is built on top of it. This post gives
an overview of what Dojo is and what you need to know about it to be successful
when building ArcGIS JavaScript applications.
What is Dojo?
Dojo is a toolkit that helps you write more robust and performant JavaScript
code. JavaScript is a language that runs within the Web browser, and there are
various flavors of Web browser that interpret the JavaScript in slightly
different ways. Toolkits such as Dojo, YUI,
Prototype, and many others are designed
to abstract away the browser idiosyncrasies so that you don’t have to learn
them all and handle them in your code.
Additionally, there are often several ways to code the same thing using
JavaScript. Toolkits like Dojo provide functions you can use to do things in
easier or more efficient ways. Using libraries from a toolkit can reduce the
lines of code you write and make your JavaScript applications quicker and more
stable.
What does it mean that the ArcGIS JavaScript API is built on top of Dojo?
The ESRI developers who created the ArcGIS JavaScript API used Dojo to simplify
their development process (Why reinvent things that work?) and to ensure that
the applications you build behave the same in different browsers. For example,
the map zoom and panning animations use Dojo, as does the graphics layer.
Furthermore, the zoom level slider and info windows that you see in your
JavaScript API maps are Dojo widgets (dijits). The slider dijit is provided
with Dojo, and the info window is a custom dijit created by ESRI for the ArcGIS
JavaScript API.
How much Dojo do I need to know in order to use the ArcGIS JavaScript API?
The amount of Dojo you use when you work with the ArcGIS JavaScript API is up to
you, but at a minimum you’ll need to use several common functions:
-
dojo.require() – Similar to the <script> include tag on an HTML page. It
imports resources into your JavaScript page. -
dojo.addOnLoad() – Similar to <body onload=”">. It registers an
initializing block called after the page has finished loading and the dijits
have been initialized. -
dojo.connect() – Similar to the Element.addEventListener and
Element.attachEvent JavaScript functions. It registers a listener to listen to
specific events on an Object or element on the page and returns results from a
function. -
dojo.byId() – Similar to the document.getElementById(id) JavaScript function.
The function searches and returns the first HTML element with the argument ID.
When writing your ArcGIS JavaScript applications, you can take advantage of the
full Dojo toolkit, which includes buttons, grids, tree views, charts, and other
widgets. The toolkit is divided into three parts:
Core – Essential functions like those listed above
Dijit – Themeable widgets such as trees, menus, and buttons
DojoX- Extension projects in various stages of development, such as graphics,
grids, and charts
How do I get Dojo? Do I have to install it?
Dojo is included with the ArcGIS JavaScript API. When you include this script
tag referencing the ArcGIS JavaScript API, you get access to the full Dojo
tookit version 1.1.0:
<script type="text/javascript" src="http://serverapi.arcgisonline.com/jsapi/arcgis/?v=1"></script>
Many Dojo users download Dojo and host it themselves, or they reference the
publicly available Dojo hosted on the AOL Content Delivery Network (CDN). When
building ArcGIS JavaScript applications, there is no need to download or host
Dojo, and you should use the Dojo included with the ArcGIS JavaScript API.
How do I get help with Dojo?
The Dojo Web site, www.dojotoolkit.org
contains the official Dojo documentation. Documentation may be sparse,
especially for projects in DojoX. Various
books have recently become available that describe working with Dojo in
more detail than you’ll find on the web site. The
Dojo forums and the #dojo chat room on the
IRC server irc.freenode.net are other good ways to get help.
Do the ESRI Web ADFs use Dojo?
At 9.3, ESRI’s .NET Web Application Developer Framework (ADF) contains a
JavaScript library which should not be confused with the ArcGIS JavaScript API.
The .NET Web ADF JavaScript library is dependent on the ASP.NET AJAX JavaScript
Library and does not use Dojo.
The Java Web ADF also provides a JavaScript library, which was not written with
a toolkit and consequently does not use Dojo.
-Sterling Quinn
The ArcGIS JavaScript API is now available to the public
The new ArcGIS JavaScript API and its accompanying online SDK are now available
for public use. With the ArcGIS JavaScript API you can add GIS functionality to
your Web applications with JavaScript code that runs in the browser. The online
SDK includes help and samples for the API and is hosted within the ArcGIS
Server Resource Center web site.
Who can use the ArcGIS JavaScript API? Is there a cost?
Everyone can use the ArcGIS JavaScript API. There is no fee for using the ArcGIS
JavaScript API or deploying an application built with it.
How do I learn how to use the ArcGIS JavaScript API?
The best way to learn the API is to visit the ArcGIS JavaScript API home page.
If you’re brand new to JavaScript programming, there are walkthrough topics to
help you understand what JavaScript is and how to start working with it in
ArcGIS. If you have more experience developing with JavaScript, you might take
a look at the live samples. The samples cover a range of topics and each
contains a discussion of what is happening in the code. Finally, a detailed API
reference describes each class available in the API.
What services does the API work with?
The ArcGIS JavaScript API works with ArcGIS Server 9.3 services, which are
exposed through REST technology. If you haven’t received or deployed 9.3 yet,
you can still get started learning the API using several ESRI Sample Servers
that have been configured for this purpose. The API also consumes ArcGIS Online
services. This sample shows how you can add an ArcGIS Online layer to a
JavaScript application.
What else do I need to know?
Two ArcGIS JavaScript Extensions were also released at the same time as the
ArcGIS JavaScript API:
-
The ArcGIS JavaScript Extension for the Google Maps API allows you to work with
GIS services in a Google Maps and Mapplets environment. -
The ArcGIS JavaScript Extension for Virtual Earth allows you to work with GIS
services in Microsoft Virtual Earth.
We’ll be posting more information about these shortly. In the meantime, enjoying
exploring their online SDKs.
Installing on Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008: Which IIS components are required for the Web Applications install feature of ArcGIS Server for the Microsoft .Net Framework?
Chris Whitmore, an Installation Product Engineer at ESRI Redlands, provided this tip for installing ArcGIS Server 9.3 on Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008
ArcGIS Server Manager requires the IIS
components listed below. If these components are not installed, the ArcGIS
Server for the Microsoft .NET Framework installation process will inform you
that the Web Applications feature (includes ArcGIS Server Manager) will not be
available for installation. If you see this message, cancel the install, verify
the correct IIS components are installed and launch the ArcGIS Server
installation again. This information is also documented in the ArcGIS Server
for the Microsoft .NET Framework installation guide.
Steps to add Web Server (IIS) components on Windows Server 2008
- Click Start -> Administrative Tools -> Server Manager -> Roles.
- Click Add Role Services.
-
At the Select Role Services dialog, verify the Web Server (IIS) components
listed below are turned on.
Web Server (IIS)
- Web Server
- Common HTTP Features
- Static Content
- Application Development
- ASP.NET
- .NET Extensibility
- ISAPI Extensions
- ISAPI Filters
- Security
- Basic Authentication
- Windows Authentication
- Request Filtering
- Management Tools
- IIS Management Console
- IIS Management Scripts and Tools
- Management Service
- IIS 6 Management Compatibility
- IIS 6 Metabase Compatibility
The following image shows how Web Server (IIS) components should be configured after the components have been installed (the installation status for Role Services is available on the Server Manager -> Roles panel):
Steps to add IIS components on Windows Vista
- Open the Control Panel -> Programs -> Turn Windows features on or off (found under Programs and Features)
- Expand the Internet Information Services feature.
- Verify the IIS components listed below are turned on.
Internet Information Services
- Web Management Tools
- IIS 6 Management Compatibility
- IIS Metabase and IIS 6 configuration compatibility
- IIS Management Console
- IIS Management Scripts and Tools
- IIS Management Service
- World Wide Web Services
- Application Development Features
- .NET Extensibility
- ASP.NET
- ISAPI Extensions
- ISAPI Filters
- Common HTTP Features
- Static Content
- Security
- Basic Authentication
- Request Filtering
- Windows Authentication
The following image shows how the Windows Components dialog appears on Vista:
ArcGIS Server 9.3 Web Help is now available
The ArcGIS
Server 9.3 Web Help is now publicly available. The Web Help is the best
place to get up to date information about ArcGIS Server. After the product is
released, we continue to add information and correct the Help based on user
feedback, technical support incidents, and our own research. These updates are
pushed to the Web Help once a week.
The Help sections for
map caching,
geoprocessing services, and
security have been greatly expanded at 9.3. We’ve also added
tutorials about creating
image services,
WMS,
WFS,
WFS-T and
mobile editing projects.
Here are a few more topics that are new at 9.3 or describe new features:
What’s
new in ArcGIS Server 9.3
Moving
to ArcGIS Server 9.3
KML support in ArcGIS Server
Designing a map to overlay Google Maps or Microsoft Virtual Earth
Image
services
Geometry
services
Using Styled
Layer Descriptors (SLDs) with WMS services
WFS
services
WCS
services
Enabling error reports
Administering ArcGIS Server on Linux and Solaris
If you have corrections or suggestions for the Help please post them to this
thread at any time. Also, look for some future posts about enhancements to the
Developer Help.
-Sterling Quinn
2008 UC Featured Workshop: Getting Started with ArcGIS Server
The 2008 ESRI International User Conference is only six weeks away. This year’s conference offers dozens of ArcGIS Server-related technical workshops and demo theater presentations. Between now and the conference, we’ll be offering a sneak peek at some of these sessions.
Getting Started with ArcGIS Server is a high-level session designed to give an overview of what ArcGIS Server is and what you can do with it.
The presenters, Tom Brenneman and Canserina Kurnia have much experience authoring and teaching ArcGIS Server training courses for ESRI Educational Services. Tom comments:
“I think this session will help people make a mental connection between the tasks that they need to accomplish back in the office and the part of ArcGIS Server that is designed to accomplish that task. Once you know the technology that you can leverage to do your job, you can dig into that specific technology in other sessions.”
Getting Started with ArcGIS Server
- Tuesday, August 5, 8:30 AM – 9:45 AM
Room 6B - Wednesday, August 6, 3:15 PM – 4:30 PM
Room 6B
UC Tip: The first offering of this session was very popular last year, so you may want to arrive early or attend the second offering.
New podcast discusses ArcGIS Server geodata services
A new podcast, “Overview of Geodata Services in ArcGIS Server”, is available on the ESRI Instructional Series Podcasts site. In this podcast, Technical Analyst Derek Law describes how geodata services provide remote access to geodatabases. He explains what geodata services can do, how to create them, and how to make sure they run effectively.
Read the transcript [PDF]
Listen or download: MP3 [10:49 | 4.97 MB]
