You can share hosted feature layers and hosted feature layer views as either references or copies depending on how the host administrator has configured the distributed collaboration.
Note:
Hosted spatiotemporal feature layers are not supported and can’t be shared in distributed collaboration.
Note:
If you share both a hosted feature layer and the associated view by copying data, collaboration participants receive two hosted feature layers, one for each item shared. The view relationship between the two items is not preserved.
Share feature layers as references
When you share a feature layer as a reference, a layer item is created in the recipient’s organization, but the data is not copied. Instead, the layer item references the original feature layer or feature layer view. The original feature layer must be accessible from the recipient organization. For a member in the recipient organization to access a referenced layer, one of the following conditions must be met:
- The layer is shared with Everyone.
- If your layer is secured, members in the recipient organization must authenticate with your organization using an account that has at least Viewer-level access to the layer.
Feature layer settings, including editing, are configured by the sending organization. If you enable editing, distributed collaboration members can edit your feature layers if public data collection is allowed or if they authenticate with your organization using an account with the required privileges.
Share feature layers as copies
When you share a feature layer as a copy, the data is copied to the recipient’s organization. A new hosted feature layer is created and owned by the receiving organization, which is reflected in the item's service URL.
To send a feature layer as a copy, you must enable sync on the layer before sharing. If you publish the hosted feature layer from ArcGIS Pro or a file in ArcGIS Online, you can enable the sync capability as part of the publishing process. If sync is not enabled or supported, data from the original feature is not copied. To resolve this, you must unshare your feature layer, enable sync, then reshare your feature layer with the collaboration. If your administrator enabled the If unable to share as copies share as reference option when configuring the collaboration, feature layers with sync disabled will be shared by reference.
Caution:
When a hosted feature layer view is shared as a copy, the view's definition is used to determine what items are present in the participant's subsequent feature layer. If any changes are made to the view's definition after it is shared, these changes are not reflected in the receiving organization's layer even if sync has been enabled. For view definition edits to be received by collaboration participants, the view must be unshared from the collaboration and shared again to create a feature layer that has the correct view definition.
Note:
For collaborations in which items are sent as copies from ArcGIS Enterprise to ArcGIS Online, a size limit of 1 GB per feature layer applies. Feature layers that exceed this size limit are shared as a reference. If you need to increase the size limit to 5 GB, contact Esri Technical Support.
Feature layers shared as copies can be edited either solely by the sender (one-way) or by both the sender and the receiver (two-way).
One-way copies
If your collaboration is configured to share feature layers as one-way copies, only the owner of the original feature layer can edit the layer. The ArcGIS Enterprise organization chooses the interval at which the feature layer owner’s edits are synchronized for viewing.
Layers that support sharing edits one-way include the following:
- Hosted feature layers
- Hosted feature layer views
- Feature layers referencing branch versioned data
- Feature layers referencing non-versioned data with archiving data
- Feature layers referencing traditionally versioned data without the option to move edits to the base configuration
Two-way copies
If your collaboration is configured to share feature layers as two-way copies, members from both your organization and the receiving organization can concurrently edit shared feature layers with the latest change overriding preexisting edits. The types of edits supported include adding new features, editing features, or deleting existing features. Edits are synchronized at a scheduled interval defined by the guest organization. Schema changes are not synchronized.
Layers that support sharing edits two-ways include the following:
- Hosted feature layers
- Hosted feature layer views
- Feature layers referencing branch versioned data
- Feature layers referencing non-versioned data with archiving data
- Feature layers published by reference from a user managed data store
Note:
Feature layers running on traditionally versioned data do not support the bidirectional sync direction parameter and, therefore, can only be shared one-way.
The following are prerequisites for allowing edits to be shared two-ways:
- Members in the sending and receiving organizations must have send and receive access.
- The feature layer must have sync enabled.
- If you are collaborating with an ArcGIS Enterprise organization, members of the ArcGIS Enterprise organization must be using ArcGIS Enterprise 10.9 or later. Distributed collaboration groups created earlier than 10.9 will not support sharing as two-way copies.
If the feature layer does not meet all the above requirements but has sync enabled, the layer is shared as a one-way copy.
Note:
Distributed collaboration uses replication and global IDs to synchronize feature layer edits between participants when shared to a collaboration as copies. Preserving global IDs ensures that any data edits for existing features are sent as updates rather than as new features.
Properties of copied features
When you share a feature layer or feature layer view as a copy, the properties and behaviors described below apply.
Deletion management
In a distributed collaboration, the receiving organization can enable the Prevent this item from being accidentally deleted option on layers and views received as copies. If you remove a feature layer or view from a distributed collaboration group and the receiving organization has the Prevent this item from being accidentally deleted option enabled, sync stops working but the receiving organization maintains their copy of the layer. If you reshare the feature layer, sync is not restored. For example, if you unshare a feature layer, edit the layer, then reshare the layer, your edits are not synced to the layer in the receiving organization. To reinstate sync on the layer, the receiving organization must first disable the Prevent this item from being accidentally deleted option and delete the layer; you must then reshare the layer as a copy.
Note:
This is recommended for receiving organizations that want to prevent layers from being deleted if the sending organization leaves the collaboration or deletes the shared layers in the sending organization.
Schema changes
You can change the schema of a feature layer or view in a distributed collaboration; however, your edits are not applied when the collaboration is synced. The workspace sync includes only edits (insert, update, and delete operations) to layers or tables that are available at the time the feature layer was shared to the workspace. When there are schema differences, such as the addition or deletion of fields and layers, synchronization is applied to the matching parts of the schema. For example, if you add a new field, the field is not synchronized to the receiving organization's copy. To send schema changes to receiving organizations, you must unshare and reshare the layer to the distributed collaboration group.
Time settings
When you send feature layers and views as copies that have time settings enabled, time is not enabled on the copied feature layer in the receiving organization.