Preparing Riverside sample data for Publishing

Only data stored in an SDE database, can be published to ArcGIS Server and all layers contain global id's. The database must also be versioned.

To learn more about SDE refer to the following link.

What is ArcSDE

To learn more about versioning refer to the following link.

Understanding versioning

You can import any existing shapefiles, personal geodatabase or file geodatabase layers into SDE for publishing to ArcGIS Server. For more information on importing refer to the following link.

An Overview of importing datasets

The data and screenshots used in this exercise are from the Riverside sample data supplied with ArcPad. To demonstrate publication, the contents of the Riverside personal geodatabase have been imported into an SDE geodatabase, and a version created from it.

The following steps show you one way of importing the Riverside personal geodatabase layers into an existing SDE database, for use in this exercise. There are other methods also, please use the method you are comfortable with.

Steps:

1. Open ArcCatalog.

2. If you do not already have a connection, choose to add a database connection (expand database connections, and double click on Add Spatial Database Connection), as shown below.

3. When you click on 'Add Spatial Database connection, the following screen appears. On this page enter your server details, and click OK.

   Note:

   Your spatial database connection properties are used in your published ArcPad files. When using a direct connection to your server, ensure that you include a Server name when you define the spatial database connection properties.

4. Your database connection will now be listed under Database Connections in ArcCatalog. Now, you will create a new feature dataset to store your feature classes.
5. Right mouse click on the newly created database connection, in this example the new connection is (billyboy), and choose to create a new feature dataset, as shown below.

6. Name the feature dataset as RiversideLandBase, as shown below.

7. When you hit 'Next' the following screen appears.

8. On this screen, choose to import the coordinate system from the Riverside personal geodatabase (this will ensure that the correct coordinate system is chosen). To do this Click import and the following dialog will appear.

9. In this dialog, browse to the Riverside sample data installed with ArcPad, as shown above. Double click on Riverside.mdb and choose one of the layers that are stored in the LandBase feature dataset and click 'Add'.
10. The coordinate system will now be listed in the name edit box as shown below. Click next.

11. On the next screen you can choose the vertical coordinate system. For this exercise, accept the default value <none> for the coordinate system used for z coordinates, as shown below.

12. Click 'Next' and the following screen appears.

    

13. For this exercise, accept the default tolerance value as shown above. Click Finish. Your feature dataset is now created.
14. Now you are ready to import feature layers into the feature data set. In ArcCatalog, right mouse click on the newly created feature dataset RiversideLandBase. Choose the option of ‘Import’ then choose ‘Feature Class (single)’ as shown below.

    

15. The Feature Class to Feature Class ArcToolbox tool appears, as shown below.

16. Use the browse button, to browse to the ArcPad Riverside sample personal geodatabase. Open the LandBase feature dataset and select the Building layer. Click ' Add', as shown below.

    

17. The selected layer will be listed in the Input Features edit box. Next type the name ‘Building’ in the Output Feature Class. Note that the output name needs to be unique to the geodatabase (not just the feature dataset). If your geodatabase already has a layer called ‘Building’, enter a different name here. Click Ok. See the screen shot below:

18. Once the conversion is completed, the following dialog will be displayed. Close the dialog.

19. Repeat steps 14 to 18 to import all of the LandBase feature classes.
20. Repeat steps 5 to 13 to create a new feature data set called 'RiversideUtilities'. In this feature data set import all of the Utilities feature classes from the ArcPad Riverside sample personal geodatabase.
21. Before the SDE database can be used in an ArcPad Publication it must be ‘versioned’. You must register each feature data set as versioned. In ArcCatalog, right mouse click on the feature dataset. Select ‘Register As Versioned' as shown below.

22. The following dialog box appears. Do not check this option. The Feature Class must be versioned without the option to move edits to base. Click ok.

23. After registering each feature data set, you are ready to use your SDE geodatabase.
24. It is a requirement that Global IDs must exist for SDE layers, when you are running the ArcPad wizard in Server mode. To add Global IDs, open ArcCatalog and double click on the database connection you just made, this will open the dataset you just created, as shown below.

    Note:

    Ensure ArcMap is closed when you are adding Global IDs in ArcCatalog.

25. Now right click on the dataset you created and click on the option 'Add Global IDs'. In this example the database connection is billyboy and the dataset is RiversideLandBase. See the screenshot below.

26. A requirement of the 'Author Project for ArcGIS Server' tool in ArcMap is a Map Document. The simplest way to prepare a Map Document with your SDE layers is to start with the sample Riverside.mxd supplied with ArcPad. Change each layer's data source, and save the Map Document. Open the sample Riverside.mxd in ArcMap.
27. Open the layer properties dialog for the Poles layer, and click ‘Set Data Source' as shown below.

28. Browse to your newly created Riverside versioned SDE geodatabase and select the poles layer, as shown below. Click 'Add'.

29. You can now see that the data source for the layer is now an SDE feature class, as shown below. Click OK.

30. Repeat steps 26 to 28 for each of the layers in the map document.
31. Save the map Document as RiversideSDE.mxd to the location of publication, which is your server. This is the map document you will use in the following exercises to create an ArcPad Publication.

    For instance, in this tutorial the mxd is saved on the server 'Webboy', as shown in the screenshot below.

    Note:

    It is recommended to create a folder for MXD and APO files on your server to save the files respectively. For quick access save the map document on the server. If you choose to save the MXD on your local drive, ensure it is accessible across your network.