Location services are an ArcGIS layer type. They transform text input, such as a street address, to a location on a map. ArcGIS for AutoCAD locator searches, by default, use the ArcGIS World Geocoding Service. A locator converts a search term—an address or a place-name, for example—into coordinates and places your drawing at the requested location on the map.
You can access a locator from the Locate button on the ArcGIS ribbon. Locator searches are performed in the coordinate system of the drawing. If no coordinate system is present, the result is displayed in WGS84 Web Mercator by default. It is recommended that you set the coordinate system of the drawing before performing geolocation searches.
ArcGIS for AutoCAD supports custom locator services along with the ArcGIS World Geocoding Service for locations on the earth. Custom locator services allow you to customize the results of the output to suit the types of items you are looking for.
For example, your GIS department can create a locator service that outputs the location of parcels in your city that allow you to search by owner name. You can then zoom your CAD drawing to a specific parcel location necessary to perform a design.
Note:
Location web services do not support datum transformation. If your chosen coordinate system for the drawing requires a datum transformation, the location returned by the locator will not apply the chosen datum transformation, which in turn can cause those locations to be less accurate or wrong.See also
To learn more, see the following resources: