Edit scene layer workflows

Depending on whether you are working with ArcGIS Enterprise or ArcGIS Online, you may have different workflow scenarios for editing scene layers.

Edit the geometry and attributes of a web scene layer

You can edit scene layers with associated feature layers the same way you edit feature layers. Any feature edits are first stored in the feature layer. After the scene layer is rebuilt, the changes are persisted in the scene layer as well. While editing, the modified features are drawing from the associated feature layer. Depending on the scene layer type and where the scene layer was published, you have different editing options.

The appropriate web layer to edit is based on the active portal, data option, and data type as a user with editing permissions.

Active portal and data option	ArcGIS Enterprise Reference registered data	ArcGIS Enterprise Copy all data	ArcGIS Online
File geodatabase point layer	Cannot be edited.	Attributes can be edited through the web scene layer. Geometry can be edited through the associated feature layer.	Attributes can be edited through the web scene layer. Geometry can be edited through the associated feature layer. Any changes will be included when rebuilding the scene layer.
Enterprise geodatabase point layer	Can be edited through the web scene layer.	Attributes can be edited through the web scene layer. Geometry can be edited through the associated feature layer.	Attributes can be edited through the web scene layer. Geometry can be edited through the associated feature layer. Any changes will be included when rebuilding the scene layer.
File geodatabase multipatch layer	Cannot be edited.	Can be edited through the web scene layer.	Can be edited through the web scene layer.
Enterprise geodatabase multipatch layer	Can be edited through the web scene layer.	Can be edited through the web scene layer.	Can be edited through the web scene layer.
File geodatabase 3D object feature layer	Cannot be edited.	Can be edited through the web scene layer.	Can be edited through the web scene layer.
Enterprise geodatabase 3D object feature layer	Can be edited through the web scene layer.	Can be edited through the web scene layer.	Can be edited through the web scene layer.
Revit building layer	Cannot be edited.	Can be edited through the web scene layer.	Can be edited through the web scene layer.
File geodatabase building layer	Cannot be edited.	Can be edited through the web scene layer.	Can be edited through the web scene layer.
Enterprise geodatabase building layer	Can be edited through the web scene layer.	Can be edited through the web scene layer.	Can be edited through the web scene layer.

Recommendations for editing scene layers

While editing features, the modified features will be drawing from the associated feature layer. This can have a negative impact on performance while you are editing. It has no impact on any other users that may simply view the data.

It is recommended to not edit more than 500 features at a time. If you have to make larger updates, modify all attributes and rebuild the scene service cache right away using Attribute update.

Edit the attributes of a building scene layer

A building scene layer includes multiple category layers in different disciplines. Each category layer is a 3D object scene layer with the features for a specific category. You edit the building scene layer the same way you edit the 3D object scene layer. In case you want to edit the attributes for an asset, you can edit the individual category layers.

1. On the Portal tab, in the Catalog pane, add the web scene layer to be edited in one of the following ways:
   • Right-click a web scene that contains the web scene layer and click Add And Open .
   • Right-click the web scene layer and either click Add To Current Map , or point to Add To New and click either Global Scene or Local Scene .
2. Edit the attributes of the web scene layer in one of the following ways:
   • Select one or more features and update the required attribute values in the attribute window. For more information, see Edit feature attributes.
   • Use the web scene layer as an input to any geoprocessing tool that modifies the input data's attributes, such as Calculate field.

   The edits are stored with the associated feature layer and are not visible to all users.

3. Rebuild the web scene layer to make the edits visible to all users.

   Because only the attributes have been updated, you can use the attribute update option. For more information, see Rebuild a web scene layer.

Edit the attributes of a point web scene layer example

To update the heights of trees in a point web scene layer, you will update the attributes of the field used to define the point heights.

1. On the Portal tab, in the Catalog pane, add the web scene layer to be edited in one of the following ways:
   • Right-click a web scene that contains the web scene layer and click Add And Open .
   • Right-click the web scene layer and either click Add To Current Map , or point to Add To New and click either Global Scene or Local Scene .
2. Right-click the web scene layer in the Contents pane and click Attribute Table .
3. Open the Calculate Field geoprocessing tool.
4. Right-click the field that was used to define the heights of the trees and click Calculate Field .
5. Enter an expression, for example, !HEIGHT! + .5 to add .5 meters to the existing height value for each tree.
6. Click Run .

   The edits are stored with the associated feature layer and are not visible to all users.

7. Rebuild the web scene layer to make the edits visible to all users.

   For more information, see Rebuild the web scene layer.

Edit the geometry of a web scene layer

Edit geometry using the web scene layer whenever possible.

1. On the Portal tab, in the Catalog pane, add the web layer to be edited in one of the following ways:
   • Right-click a web scene that contains the web layer and click Add And Open .
   • Right-click the web layer and either click Add To Current Map , or point to Add To New and click either Global Scene or Local Scene .
2. Update, delete, or add new geometry using the editing tools.

   For more information, see Editing in ArcGIS AllSource.

   The edits are stored with the associated feature layer and are not visible to all users.

3. Rebuild the web scene layer to make the edits visible to all users.

   For more information, see Rebuild the web scene layer.

Edit the geometry of a 3D object web scene layer example

To add a new house to a web scene layer of a housing development, you will copy the geometry from a local dataset and paste it into the web scene layer.

1. On the Portal tab, in the Catalog pane, add the web scene layer to be edited in one of the following ways:
   • Right-click a web scene that contains the web scene layer and click Add And Open .
   • Right-click the web scene layer and either click Add To Current Map , or point to Add To New and click either Global Scene or Local Scene .
3. Click Paste Special or press Ctrl+Alt+V.
4. Choose a feature type contained in the clipboard that you want to paste.
5. Click Layer and click the drop-down menu to choose the web scene layer.
6. Check Keep source attribute values to paste the attributes contained in the clipboard.
7. Rebuild the web scene layer to make the edits visible to all users.

   For more information, see Rebuild the web scene layer.

Edit the geometry of a building scene layer

A building scene layer includes multiple category layers in different disciplines. Each category layer is a 3D object scene layer. Often the geometry of building information is maintained in other software and copied into an existing feature dataset representing BIM information in ArcGIS.

To edit the geometry of a building scene layer that references registered data, follow these steps:

1. On the Analysis tab, click Tools .
2. In the Geoprocessing pane, search for BIM File To Geodatabase tool and open the tool.
3. For Input BIM File Workspace, specify the Revit file to add to the building scene layer.
4. For Output Geodatabase, specify the geodatabase used to share the building scene layer that references registered data.
5. For Dataset, specify the feature dataset used to share the building scene layer that references registered data.
6. Leave all other default parameters and click Run .
7. Rebuild the scene layer cache.

The web scene layer displays the added features.

To edit the geometry of a building scene layer that copies all data, follow these steps:

1. Add the feature class to a scene that you want to add to the building scene layer.
2. Click the Edit tab.
3. Select the features to be added to the building scene layer.
4. In the Clipboard group, click Copy .
5. Select the building scene layer category layer in the Contents pane that you want to copy the features to.
6. In the Clipboard group, click Paste .

The features are added to the building scene layer.

Edit the schema of a web scene layer

Schema changes are made to the web scene layer depending on how the web scene layer was shared to the portal. The following table lists whether the service needs to be stopped to perform a schema change such as adding or deleting a field. Stopping the service is not necessary when the Copy All option is used to share the scene layer.

ArcGIS Enterprise Reference registered data	ArcGIS Enterprise Copy all	ArcGIS Online Copy all
Service must be stopped.	Service does not need to be stopped.	Service does not need to be stopped.

Edit the schema of a web scene layer shared with reference registered data option

The following steps are for schema changes when the scene layer was shared with reference registered data. Stopping the services is necessary to ensure all locks are released in the geodatabase.

1. Start ArcGIS Server Manager and sign in.

   If you need help with this step, see Log in to Manager.

2. Click Services > Manage Services.

   The Manage Services module appears.

3. Find the scene layer that needs the schema change.
4. Click the Stop button.

   The service you selected in the module will stop. If the Stop button is unavailable, it means the service is currently stopped.

5. If the original ArcGIS AllSource project is still open from where the scene layer was published, close the project.
6. Open a new ArcGIS AllSource project and add the scene layer to a new scene.
7. In the Analysis tab, click Tools .
8. In the Geoprocessing pane, search for the Add Field tool and open the tool.
9. Specify the scene layer for Input Table.
10. Specify any name for Field Name
11. Click Run .

    The field is added to the scene layer.

12. Open ArcGIS Server Manager.
13. Click the Start button on the service that was stopped.

    The service you selected in the module starts. If the Start button is unavailable, it means the service has already been started and is currently running.

Troubleshooting editing scene layers

When you edit scene layers, you are working with associated feature layers. Typically, 3D object scene layers and the associated feature layer geometries and textures are very large. When editing a large number of features, you may encounter errors in server logs. If you encounter such errors in your server logs, you can increase the server default values to accommodate fetching large geometries and textures. For more information on time-outs and performance related improvements, see Tune and configure services.

Java heap space error

If you encounter the Error performing query operation Error handling service request :java.lang.OutOfMemoryError:Java heap space error, the solution is to increase the SOC maximum heap size.

1. Log in to the ArcGIS Server administrator directory using the URL format https://machine.domain.com:6443/arcgis/admin.
2. On the directory home page, click machines.
3. From the list of machines, click the first machine licensed with ArcGIS Image Server.
4. In Server Machine Properties, verify the value for SOC Maximum heap size. If it is set to 64 MB, click edit in Supported Operations List.
5. Update the SOC maximum heap size value from 64 to 128.
6. Click Save Edits.

   Note:

   This restarts the server.

7. Repeat the steps above for each machine in your deployment that is licensed with ArcGIS Image Server.

Wait timeout error

If you encounter the Error performing query operation wait time of the request to the service Hosted/myservervice.mapserver has expired error, the solution is to increase the wait timeout value on the service.

1. Log in to the ArcGIS Server administrator directory using the URL format https://machine.domain.com:6443/arcgis/admin.
2. On the directory home page, click services.
3. Click the hosted folder.
4. Click the scene layer's associated feature layer, for example, myserver (FeatureServer).
5. In the Supported Operations list, click edit to edit the service properties.
6. Update the maxWaitTime value from 60 seconds to a larger value such as 300.
7. Click Save Edits.

   Note:

   This restarts the service.