Configure and manage attachments on hosted feature layers

Attachments allow you to associate documentation or photos to specific, relevant features or rows in a hosted feature layer or hosted table. For example, a city's code compliance officer can attach a photo of the code violation for a specific address point, or a building inspector can include a PDF of a permit for a building feature. Users who access the layer in apps such as Map Viewer can view the attachments along with the other attributes of the layer.

For a list of supported file types you can attach, see Edit tables.

Each hosted feature layer view inherits the attachment setting of the hosted feature layer from which it is created. By default, all view users can see the attachments inherited from the hosted feature layer. To control who has access to these attachments, you can hide the attachments in the hosted feature layer view.

Allow attachments

You can allow editors to attach images and other files to individual features or rows in a sublayer in a hosted feature layer or hosted table.

Note:

When you enable attachments, anyone who can access the editable hosted feature layer or hosted table can add supported attachment files to the layer. Take this into consideration when you share the item.

To allow users to attach files to features or rows in a hosted feature layer or table, complete the following steps:

1. Enable editing on the hosted feature layer or hosted table.

   If you do not enable editing, users cannot add attachments.

2. While still signed in to your ArcGIS Online account, open the item page of the hosted feature layer or hosted table.
3. Click the name of the sublayer in the Layers list or the name of the table in the Tables list on the Overview tab to open the sublayer's item page.
4. Turn on the Enable attachments toggle button.

Now, when others edit the layer, they can attach files to individual features.

Disable attachments

If you decide you no longer want files to be attached to the layer, you can disable the attachments setting.

Caution:

Disabling attachments removes all existing attachments from the layer and prevents users from adding more attachments.

To delete existing attachments and stop new attachments from being added to the sublayer, complete the following steps:

1. Sign in to your organization.

   You must be the layer owner or a member of the default administrator role or a custom role assigned the set of privileges to manage all content owned by organization members.

2. Open the item page for the hosted feature layer or hosted table.
3. Click the name of the sublayer in the Layers list or the name of the table in the Tables list on the Overview tab to open the sublayer's item page.
4. Turn off the Enable attachments toggle button.

Hide attachments in views

Hide attachments in hosted feature layer views if a subset of users need access to the feature attributes, but they do not require access to the attachments.

For example, if the attachment contains sensitive information that only a few organization members should access, share the hosted feature layer with a group that contains those few members. Create a hosted feature layer view from the layer, hide the attachments in the view, and share the view with a larger audience.

To hide attachments from consumers of the sublayers in a hosted feature layer view, complete the following steps:

1. Sign in to your organization.

   You must be the layer owner or a member of the default administrator role or a custom role assigned the set of privileges to manage all content owned by organization members.

2. Open the item page for the hosted feature layer view.
3. Locate the Layers list on the Overview tab and click the layer that has attachments you want to hide.
4. Turn off the Show attachments toggle button to prevent users of the hosted feature layer view from accessing the attachments on that layer.
5. Repeat steps 2 and 3 for each layer that has attachments you don't want users to access through the view.

If you decide view users do need access to the attachments for one or more of the sublayers in the view, repeat steps 1 through 3, but turn off the Show attachments toggle button on the sublayer's page.