Create Map Server Cache (Server)

Summary

Creates the tiling scheme and preparatory folders for a map or image service cache. After running this tool, use the Manage Map Server Cache Tiles tool to add tiles to the cache.

Usage

• This tool only works with ArcGIS Server map or image services.

• This tool only works with map and image layers in ArcGIS Enterprise and map and image services in ArcGIS Server.

• Raster data publishes best using the JPEG or MIXED image format. When using the JPEG or MIXED format with vector maps, use a high-compression quality value (such as 90) to reduce blurring of lines and text. Vector data can also be published using the PNG format.

• The cache image format cannot be changed once the cache is generated. The cache must first be deleted before switching to a different format.

Parameters

Dialog

Label	Explanation	Data Type
Input Service	The map or image layer to be cached. You can drag a map or image layer from the Catalog window to supply this parameter.	Image Service; Map Server
Service Cache Directory	The parent directory for the cache. This must be a registered ArcGIS Server cache directory.	String
Tiling Scheme	Specifies how the tiling scheme will be defined. You can define a new tiling scheme with this tool or browse to a predefined tiling scheme file (.xml). A predefined scheme can be created by running the Generate Map Server Cache Tiling Scheme tool. New—The tiling scheme will be defined using other parameters in this tool to define scale levels, image format, storage format, and so on. This is the default. Predefined—The tiling scheme will be defined using an .xml file. You can create a tiling scheme file using the Generate Map Server Cache Tiling Scheme tool.	String
Scales Type	Specifies how the tiles will be scaled. Standard—The scales will be automatically generated based on the number specified in the Number of Scales (num_of_scales in Python) parameter. It will use levels that increase or decrease by half from 1:1,000,000 and will start with a level closest to the extent of the source map document. For example, if the source map document has an extent of 1:121,000,000 and three scale levels are defined, the map service will create a cache with scale levels at 1:128,000,000; 1:64,000,000; and 1:32,000,000. This is the default. Custom—The cache designer will determine the scales.	String
Number of Scales	The number of scale levels to create in the cache. This option is disabled if you create a custom list of scales.	Long
Dots(Pixels) Per Inch	The dots per inch (DPI) of the intended output device. If a DPI is chosen that does not match the resolution of the output device, the scale of the map tile will appear incorrect. The default value is 96.	Long
Tile Size (in pixels)	Specifies the width and height of the cache tiles in pixels. For the best balance between performance and manageability, avoid deviating from standard widths of 256 by 256 or 512 by 512. 128 by 128—128 by 128 pixels. 256 by 256—256 by 256 pixels. This is the default. 512 by 512—512 by 512 pixels. 1024 by 1024—1024 by 1024 pixels.	String
Predefined Tiling Scheme (Optional)	The path to a predefined tiling scheme file (usually named conf.xml).	File
Tiling origin in map units (Optional)	The origin (upper left corner) of the tiling scheme in the coordinates of the spatial reference of the source map document. The extent of the source map document must be within (but does not need to coincide with) this region.	Point
Scales (Optional)	The scale levels available for the cache. These are not represented as fractions. Instead, use 500 to represent a scale of 1:500, for example.	Value Table
Cache Tile Format (Optional)	Specifies the cache tile format. PNG—A PNG format with varying bit depths. The bit depths are optimized according to the color variation and transparency values in a tile. This is the default. PNG8—A lossless, 8-bit color, image format that uses an indexed color palette and an alpha table. Each pixel stores a value (0–255) that is used to look up the color in the color palette and the transparency in the alpha table. 8-bit PNG images are similar to GIF images, and most web browsers support transparent backgrounds in PNG images. PNG24—A lossless, three-channel image format that supports large color variations (16 million colors) and has limited support for transparency. Each pixel contains three 8-bit color channels, and the file header contains the single color that represents the transparent background. Versions of Internet Explorer earlier than version 7 do not support this type of transparency. Caches using PNG24 are significantly larger than those using PNG8 or JPEG and will use more disk space and require greater bandwidth to serve clients. PNG32—A lossless, four-channel image format that supports large color variations (16 million colors) and transparency. Each pixel contains three 8-bit color channels and one 8-bit alpha channel that represents the level of transparency for each pixel. While the PNG32 format allows for partially transparent pixels in the range from 0 to 255, the ArcGIS Server cache generation tool only writes fully transparent (0) or fully opaque (255) values in the transparency channel. Caches using PNG32 are significantly larger than the other supported formats and will use more disk space and require greater bandwidth to serve clients. JPEG—A lossy, three-channel image format that supports large color variations (16 million colors) but does not support transparency. Each pixel contains three 8-bit color channels. Caches using JPEG provide control over output quality and size. Mixed—The PNG32 format will be created anywhere that transparency is detected (that is, anywhere that the data frame background is visible). The JPEG format will be created for the remaining tiles. This keeps the average file size down while providing a clean overlay on top of other caches.	String
Tile Compression Quality (Optional)	The JPEG compression quality (1–100). The default value is 75 for the JPEG tile format and 0 for other formats. Compression is supported only for the JPEG format. Choosing a higher value will result in a larger file size with a higher-quality image. Choosing a lower value will result in a smaller file size with a lower-quality image.	Long
Storage Format (Optional)	Specifies the storage format of tiles. Compact—Tiles will be grouped into large files called bundles. This storage format is efficient in terms of storage and mobility. This is the default. Exploded—Each tile will be stored as a separate file.	String

Derived Output

Label	Explanation	Data Type
Output Map Service URL	The output map service URL.	String

Python

arcpy.server.CreateMapServerCache(input_service, service_cache_directory, tiling_scheme_type, scales_type, num_of_scales, dots_per_inch, tile_size, {predefined_tiling_scheme}, {tile_origin}, {scales}, {cache_tile_format}, {tile_compression_quality}, {storage_format})

Name	Explanation	Data Type
input_service	The map or image layer to be cached.	Image Service; Map Server
service_cache_directory	The parent directory for the cache. This must be a registered ArcGIS Server cache directory.	String
tiling_scheme_type	Specifies how the tiling scheme will be defined. You can define a new tiling scheme with this tool or browse to a predefined tiling scheme file (.xml). A predefined scheme can be created by running the Generate Map Server Cache Tiling Scheme tool. NEW—The tiling scheme will be defined using other parameters in this tool to define scale levels, image format, storage format, and so on. This is the default. PREDEFINED—The tiling scheme will be defined using an .xml file. You can create a tiling scheme file using the Generate Map Server Cache Tiling Scheme tool.	String
scales_type	Specifies how the tiles will be scaled. STANDARD—The scales will be automatically generated based on the number specified in the Number of Scales (num_of_scales in Python) parameter. It will use levels that increase or decrease by half from 1:1,000,000 and will start with a level closest to the extent of the source map document. For example, if the source map document has an extent of 1:121,000,000 and three scale levels are defined, the map service will create a cache with scale levels at 1:128,000,000; 1:64,000,000; and 1:32,000,000. This is the default. CUSTOM—The cache designer will determine the scales.	String
num_of_scales	The number of scale levels to create in the cache. This option is disabled if you create a custom list of scales.	Long
dots_per_inch	The dots per inch (DPI) of the intended output device. If a DPI is chosen that does not match the resolution of the output device, the scale of the map tile will appear incorrect. The default value is 96.	Long
tile_size	Specifies the width and height of the cache tiles in pixels. For the best balance between performance and manageability, avoid deviating from standard widths of 256 by 256 or 512 by 512. 128 x 128—128 by 128 pixels. 256 x 256—256 by 256 pixels. This is the default. 512 x 512—512 by 512 pixels. 1024 x 1024—1024 by 1024 pixels.	String
predefined_tiling_scheme (Optional)	The path to a predefined tiling scheme file (usually named conf.xml).	File
tile_origin (Optional)	The origin (upper left corner) of the tiling scheme in the coordinates of the spatial reference of the source map document. The extent of the source map document must be within (but does not need to coincide with) this region.	Point
scales [scales,...] (Optional)	The scale levels available for the cache. These are not represented as fractions. Instead, use 500 to represent a scale of 1:500, for example.	Value Table
cache_tile_format (Optional)	Specifies the cache tile format. PNG—A PNG format with varying bit depths. The bit depths are optimized according to the color variation and transparency values in a tile. This is the default. PNG8—A lossless, 8-bit color, image format that uses an indexed color palette and an alpha table. Each pixel stores a value (0–255) that is used to look up the color in the color palette and the transparency in the alpha table. 8-bit PNG images are similar to GIF images, and most web browsers support transparent backgrounds in PNG images. PNG24—A lossless, three-channel image format that supports large color variations (16 million colors) and has limited support for transparency. Each pixel contains three 8-bit color channels, and the file header contains the single color that represents the transparent background. Versions of Internet Explorer earlier than version 7 do not support this type of transparency. Caches using PNG24 are significantly larger than those using PNG8 or JPEG and will use more disk space and require greater bandwidth to serve clients. PNG32—A lossless, four-channel image format that supports large color variations (16 million colors) and transparency. Each pixel contains three 8-bit color channels and one 8-bit alpha channel that represents the level of transparency for each pixel. While the PNG32 format allows for partially transparent pixels in the range from 0 to 255, the ArcGIS Server cache generation tool only writes fully transparent (0) or fully opaque (255) values in the transparency channel. Caches using PNG32 are significantly larger than the other supported formats and will use more disk space and require greater bandwidth to serve clients. JPEG—A lossy, three-channel image format that supports large color variations (16 million colors) but does not support transparency. Each pixel contains three 8-bit color channels. Caches using JPEG provide control over output quality and size. MIXED—The PNG32 format will be created anywhere that transparency is detected (that is, anywhere that the data frame background is visible). The JPEG format will be created for the remaining tiles. This keeps the average file size down while providing a clean overlay on top of other caches.	String
tile_compression_quality (Optional)	The JPEG compression quality (1–100). The default value is 75 for the JPEG tile format and 0 for other formats. Compression is supported only for the JPEG format. Choosing a higher value will result in a larger file size with a higher-quality image. Choosing a lower value will result in a smaller file size with a lower-quality image.	Long
storage_format (Optional)	Specifies the storage format of tiles. COMPACT—Tiles will be grouped into large files called bundles. This storage format is efficient in terms of storage and mobility. This is the default. EXPLODED—Each tile will be stored as a separate file.	String

Derived Output

Name	Explanation	Data Type
out_service_url	The output map service URL.	String

Code sample

CreateMapServerCache example 1 (stand-alone script)

The following example creates the tiling scheme and preparatory folders for a map service cache using the STANDARD scale type. After executing this script, execute the Manage Map Server Cache Tiles tool to add tiles to the cache.

# Name: CreateMapServerCache.py
# Description: The following stand-alone script demonstrates how to create map
#               using standard tiling schema
# Requirements: os, sys, time & traceback modules


# Any line that begins with a pound sign is a comment and will not be executed
# Empty quotes take the default value.
# To accept arguments from the command line replace values of variables to
#                                                           "sys.argv[]"

# Import system modules
import arcpy
from arcpy import env
import os, sys, time, datetime, traceback, string

# Set environment settings
env.workspace = "C:/data"

# List of input variables for map service properties
connectionFile = r"C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Roaming\ESRI\Desktop10.1\ArcCatalog"
server = "arcgis on MyServer_6080 (publisher)"
serviceName = "Rainfall.MapServer"
inputService = connectionFile + "\\" + server + "\\" + serviceName
serviceCacheDirectory = "C:\\arcgisserver\\arcgiscache\\"
tilingSchemeType = "NEW"
scalesType = "STANDARD"
numOfScales = "4"
scales = ""
dotsPerInch = "96"
tileOrigin = ""
scales = ""
tileSize = "256 x 256"
cacheTileFormat = "PNG32"
tileCompressionQuality = ""
storageFormat = "COMPACT"
predefinedTilingScheme = ""


currentTime = datetime.datetime.now()
arg1 = currentTime.strftime("%H-%M")
arg2 = currentTime.strftime("%Y-%m-%d %H:%M")
file = 'C:/data/report_%s.txt' % arg1

# print results of the script to a report
report = open(file,'w')

try:
    starttime = time.clock()
    result = arcpy.CreateMapServerCache_server(inputService,
                                               serviceCacheDirectory,
                                               tilingSchemeType, scalesType,
                                               numOfScales, dotsPerInch,
                                               tileSize, predefinedTilingScheme,
                                               tileOrigin, scales,
                                               cacheTileFormat,
                                               tileCompressionQuality,
                                               storageFormat)

    finishtime = time.clock()
    elapsedtime = finishtime - starttime

    # print messages to a file
    while result.status < 4:
        time.sleep(0.2)
    resultValue = result.getMessages()
    report.write ("completed " + str(resultValue))

    print("Created cache schema with 4 scales & default properties for" + \
        serviceName + " in " + str(elapsedtime) + " sec \n on " + arg2)

except Exception as e:
    # If an error occurred, print line number and error message
    tb = sys.exc_info()[2]
    report.write("Failed at step 1 \n" "Line %i" % tb.tb_lineno)
    report.write(str(e))

print("Executed creation of Map server Cache schema ")
report.close()

CreateMapServerCache example 2 (stand-alone script)

The following example creates the tiling scheme and preparatory folders for a map service cache using CUSTOM scales. After executing this script, execute the Manage Map Server Cache Tiles tool to add tiles to the cache.

# Name: CreateMapServerCache.py
# Description: The following stand-alone script demonstrates how to create map
#              using Custom scales & jpg image format.
# Requirements: os, sys, time & traceback modules


# Any line that begins with a pound sign is a comment and will not be executed
# Empty quotes take the default value.
# To accept arguments from the command line replace values of variables to
#                                                           "sys.argv[]"

# Import system modules
import arcpy
from arcpy import env
import os, sys, time, string, datetime, traceback

# Set environment settings
env.workspace = "C:/data"

# List of input variables for map service properties
connectionFile = r"C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Roaming\ESRI\Desktop10.1\ArcCatalog"
server = "arcgis on MyServer_6080 (publisher)"
serviceName = "Rainfall.MapServer"
inputService = connectionFile + "\\" + server + "\\" + serviceName
serviceCacheDirectory = "C:\\arcgisserver\\arcgiscache"
tilingSchemeType = "NEW"
scalesType = "CUSTOM"
numOfScales = "4"
dotsPerInch = "96"
tileSize = "256 x 256"
predefinedTilingScheme = ""
tileOrigin = ""
scales = "600265;350200;225400;44000"
cacheTileFormat = "JPEG"
tileCompressionQuality = "75"
storageFormat = "COMPACT"


currentTime = datetime.datetime.now()
arg1 = currentTime.strftime("%H-%M")
arg2 = currentTime.strftime("%Y-%m-%d %H:%M")
file = 'C:/data/report_%s.txt' % arg1

# print results of the script to a report
report = open(file,'w')

try:
    starttime = time.clock()
    result = arcpy.CreateMapServerCache_server(inputService,
                                               serviceCacheDirectory,
                                               tilingSchemeType, scalesType,
                                               numOfScales, dotsPerInch,
                                               tileSize, predefinedTilingScheme,
                                               tileOrigin, scales,
                                               cacheTileFormat,
                                               tileCompressionQuality,
                                               storageFormat)
    finishtime = time.clock()
    elapsedtime = finishtime - starttime

    #print messages to a file
    while result.status < 4:
        time.sleep(0.2)
    resultValue = result.getMessages()
    report.write ("completed " + str(resultValue))

    print("Created cache schema with custom scales successfully for " + \
        serviceName + " in " + str(elapsedtime) + " sec \n on " + arg2)

except Exception as e:
    # If an error occurred, print line number and error message
    tb = sys.exc_info()[2]
    report.write("Failed at step 1 \n" "Line %i" % tb.tb_lineno)
    report.write(str(e))

print("Executed creation of map server Cache schema using custom scales")

report.close()

CreateMapServerCache example 3 (stand-alone script)

The following example creates the tiling scheme and preparatory folders for a map service cache using a PREDEFINED tiling scheme. After executing this script, execute the Manage Map Server Cache Tiles tool to add tiles to the cache.

# Name: CreateMapServerCache.py
# Description: The following stand-alone script demonstrates how to create map
#               using existing predefined schema
# Requirements: os, sys, time & traceback modules

# Any line that begins with a pound sign is a comment and will not be executed
# Empty quotes take the default value.
# To accept arguments from the command line replace values of variables to
#                                                           "sys.argv[]"

# Import system modules
import arcpy
from arcpy import env
import os, sys, time, datetime, traceback, string

# Set environment settings
env.workspace = "C:/data"

# List of input variables for map service properties
connectionFile = r"C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Roaming\ESRI\Desktop10.1\ArcCatalog"
server = "arcgis on MyServer_6080 (publisher)"
serviceName = "Rainfall.MapServer"
inputService = connectionFile + "\\" + server + "\\" + serviceName
serviceCacheDirectory = "C:\\arcgisserver\\directories\\arcgiscache"
tilingSchemeType = "PREDEFINED"
scalesType = ""
tileOrigin = ""
scalesType = ""
numOfScales = ""
scales = ""
dotsPerInch = "96"
tileSize = "256 x 256"
cacheTileFormat = "MIXED"
tileCompressionQuality = "75"
storageFormat = "COMPACT"
predefinedTilingScheme = "C:/data/TilingSchemes/ArcGIS_Online_Bing_Maps_Google_Maps.xml"


currentTime = datetime.datetime.now()
arg1 = currentTime.strftime("%H-%M")
arg2 = currentTime.strftime("%Y-%m-%d %H:%M")
file = 'C:/data/report_%s.txt' % arg1

# print results of the script to a report
report = open(file,'w')

try:
    starttime = time.clock()
    result = arcpy.CreateMapServerCache_server (inputService,
                                                serviceCacheDirectory,
                                                tilingSchemeType, scalesType,
                                                numOfScales, dotsPerInch,
                                                tileSize, predefinedTilingScheme,
                                                tileOrigin, scales,
                                                cacheTileFormat,
                                                tileCompressionQuality,
                                                storageFormat)

    finishtime = time.clock()
    elapsedtime = finishtime - starttime

    #print messages to a file
    while result.status < 4:
        time.sleep(0.2)
    resultValue = result.getMessages()
    report.write ("completed " + str(resultValue))

    print("Created cache schema using predefined tiling schema for " + \
        serviceName + " in " + str(elapsedtime) + " sec \n on " + arg2)

except Exception as e:
    # If an error occurred, print line number and error message
    tb = sys.exc_info()[2]
    report.write("Failed at step 1 \n" "Line %i" % tb.tb_lineno)
    report.write(str(e))

print("Executed creation of map server Cache schema using tiling scheme")
report.close()

Environments

This tool does not use any geoprocessing environments.

Licensing information

• Basic: Yes
• Standard: Yes
• Advanced: Yes