To protect feature layers from being edited at the application level, turn editing on and off by layer or use the Edit command to disable all editing tools and feature templates. To view editing permissions for layers in a map or scene, use the Status dialog box.
If you can't edit a feature layer, one or more of the following can be the cause:
- View and edit permissions at the data source are preventing you from editing the data.
Solution: Ask your system administrator to grant permissions to edit the data.
- Editing is disabled on the Edit tab in the Manage Edits group.
Solution: Click Enable editing
to enable the editing tools and feature templates. - Editing is disabled by layer in the Contents pane.
Solution: Click the List By Editing tab
and check the layer to enable editing.
Automatic edit sessions
ArcGIS Pro automatically starts an edit session when you modify existing data or create data. You can edit any data source that is granted view and edit privileges. Saving or discarding your edits automatically stops the edit session. Any subsequent edits you make resumes the edit session until you save or discard your edits.
By default, there are no buttons to start or stop an edit session. However, you can protect against unintentionally performing edits by disabling editing for the application or for individual layers in a map or scene.
Enable and disable editing from the Edit tab
Disable editing from the Edit tab when you need to disable all editing tools and feature templates at the application level. By default, this setting is hidden.
To show this button, see Enable and disable editing.
Turn editing off by layer
Turn off editing by layer when you need to write-protect individual layers while editing other layers using editing tools and feature templates. These settings apply to the current map or scene and do not change permissions granted at the data source.
To learn more, see Specify which layers can be edited.
View layer permissions
You can view data source permissions at any time on the Edit Status dialog box for all layers in the current map or scene. These statuses are also reported as icons in the Contents pane on the List By Editing tab.
To learn more, see View layer permissions for editing.