Tag Archives: geodatabase
Connecting – To Be or Not To Be with ArcSDE [10.1]
Are you working to put together a migration plan for the transition to ArcSDE 10.1? There are some new changes for connecting and disconnecting users with ArcSDE 10.1!
Good to Know
One of the more significant changes with ArcSDE 10.1 is that the default means of connecting to the geodatabases is via Direct Connections. And gone is the script, i.e. sde:sqlserver:servername, replaced by simply providing the instance name where the RDBMS resides.
Getting to Know Esri Support: Shan C.
An interview with ArcSDE Enterprise Geodatabase analyst Shan C. 
To continue our “Getting to Know Esri Support” series, we’ve recapped our talk with Shan Chen regarding his experiences with GIS. We hope you enjoy this blog and getting to know some of the members of the Esri Support Services team! Continue reading
The Evolution of the ArcSDE Geodatabase Upgrade Process at 10.0
When using ArcSDE geodatabases, you may have noticed a change within the 10.0 release in how the upgrade process is now handled. Instead of using the Post Installation Wizard and selecting Repository Setup, as in previous releases, there is a new upgrade process. Upgrading your geodatabase is now performed within ArcCatalog using the new Upgrade Geodatabase (Data Management) tool.
The Upgrade Geodatabase (Data Management) Tool can be accessed in ArcCatalog via the Database Properties of a database connection under the General tab > Upgrade Status or within the Upgrade Geodatabase geoprocessing tool referencing an existing connection. For ArcSDE geodatabases, a direct connection to the geodatabase is necessary to run the upgrade.
Post Installation Wizard at 10.0:
The Post Installation Wizard in 10.0 can be used for the following:
- Defining Database and SDE DBA User – Creating new ArcSDE enterprise geodatabases
- Repository Setup – Populate system repository tables (for new geodatabases only)
- Authorize ArcSDE – Perform Software Authorization of the geodatabase
- Create ArcSDE Service – If using application server service (when not using direct connections)
More changes are on the horizon to incorporate Post Installation functionality into the client tools for the 10.1 release, so stay tuned!
The Catalog window: Falling in love all over again
Hello, this is Cassandra again, bringing you a blog post about my favorite thing about ArcGIS Desktop 10 – the Catalog window. In a nutshell, the Catalog window provides a tree view of file folders and geodatabases, just like in ArcCatalog, but directly within ArcMap. Need to add to add a feature class, but can’t quite remember where it is? Browse for it with ease in the Catalog window. Need to perform some geoprocessing and geodatabase organization but don’t want to shut down out of ArcMap? Do it in the Catalog window. Getting frustrated with schema locks on your geodatabases? Just stay in ArcMap and do your processes in the Catalog window.
The most common question concerning the Catalog window I’ve seen is ‘Where’s the preview tab?’. This question is easily understandable, especially since the Catalog button on the ArcMap Standard toolbar now opens the Catalog window, not ArcCatalog.
There is neither a Preview nor metadata tab directly available in the Catalog window. However, you can preview the data, view the metadata and more by right-clicking on the item and then select Item Description. The Item Description dialog box gives you access to view, print, edit, validate, export and import the metadata on the Description tab, as well as previewing the geography and table of the item on the Preview tab.
The Catalog Window includes a choice of three views as well. You can cycle through them by clicking the ‘Show Next View’ button.
For more information on the Catalog window, see the following help topic: What is the Catalog window?
Please leave any comments or questions that you may have under the Comments section below. NOTE: You must be logged in to your Esri Global Account to leave comments.
- Cassandra L., Desktop Support Analyst, Esri Support Services
ArcSDE 10 Geodatabase upgrade issue on Linux Machines
The following issue has been found when customers attempt to upgrade a geodatabase from an older version to 10, specifically on the Linux Platform:
NIM058774 – ArcSDE geodatabase upgrade for Oracle fails if the geoprocessing upgrade script is executed from a Linux platform.
Please see Knowledge Base article 37974 for further details and workarounds.
Esri is working on a fix for this issue and will be working to make the required Linux files available for download soon.
Mike H., Program Manager
User Advocacy Group, Esri Support Services
IMPORTANT: ArcGIS 10 Geodatabase issue with synchronizing replicas
For updated information and a link to download a patch for this issue, please see the UPDATE: Patch available for ArcGIS 10 Geodatabase issue with synchronizing replicas blog post.
Customers who plan to use ArcGIS 10 with geodatabase replication need to be aware of an issue that causes synchronization to fail. Full details are available in Knowledge base article 37896.
Esri is working on a fix that should be available soon. For updates on status, you can use bug number NIM058231 — Upgrading geodatabases with replicas to version 10 causes synchronization process to fail.
We will keep you posted via this blog as updates become available.
Mike H., Program Manager
User Advocacy Group, Esri Support Services
Words (by Reservation Only)
Are there reserved words for File Geodatabases?
Here at Esri Support Services, we often field questions related to reserved words within databases. While these are usually determined by third-party sources, such as the host RDBMS on which a database resides, Esri’s File Geodatabase is the exception, is proprietary, and contains its own reserved words. The following are the reserved words: ADD, ALTER, AND, AS, ASC, BETWEEN, BY, COLUMN, CREATE, DATE, DELETE, DESC, DROP, EXISTS, FOR, FROM, IN, INSERT, INTO, IS, LIKE, NOT, NULL, OR, ORDER, SELECT, SET, TABLE, UPDATE, VALUES and WHERE.
With the above list of reserved words in mind, please remember that all geodatabases are compatible and that importing or exporting data into another ArcSDE or Personal Geodatabase enforces reserved words found within each disparate RDBMS. It is worthwhile to be aware of these limitations when developing a data model.
Does ArcSDE have reserved words?
We are often asked whether or not there are ArcSDE reserved words that you should be aware of when creating a data model or feature class.
While all geodatabase field names must be SQL compliant and only allow an underscore (_) as a special character (No other special characters are permitted), it is important to note that ArcSDE does not have reserved words. These are determined by the host RDBMS on which ArcSDE resides. This also holds true for Personal Geodatabases, as they are built off of Microsoft Access.
Although not reserved words, the following is a list of words that are fully qualified within an ArcSDE geodatabase: FID, AREA, LEN, POINTS, NUMOFPTS, ENTITY, EMINX, EMINY, EMAXX, EMAXY, EMINZ, EMAXZ, MIN_MEASURE, MAX_MEASURE.
For a complete list of reserved words within each of the supported RDBMS’, please follow the links below:
- DB2 Reserved Words
- Informix Reserved Words
- Postgresql 8.3 Reserved Words
- Oracle Reserved Words
- SQL Server Reserved Words
- Microsoft Access (Personal Geodatabase) Reserved Words
Please post any questions or comments that you may have in the ‘Comments’ section below. NOTE: You must be logged into your Esri Global Account to post comments.
- Jon D., Geodata Support Analyst, Esri Support Services
