Client and geodatabase compatibility—ArcGIS Pro

You can access geodatabases using ArcGIS client software, including the following:

ArcGIS Pro (supports connecting to file, mobile, and enterprise geodatabases)
ArcGIS Server services (support connecting to file and enterprise geodatabases)

For the most part, compatibility between ArcGIS clients and geodatabases is determined by what is stored in the geodatabase and, for enterprise geodatabases, the version of the database in which the geodatabase is stored.

ArcGIS clients

The following rules apply for client compatibility:

Always use supported ArcGIS client versions. Check the Esri support site to determine if you need to upgrade clients.
To connect from newer ArcGIS clients to an earlier release enterprise geodatabase, apply the latest patch to the geodatabase for its release if one exists.
ArcGIS clients include the API for that client.
When you use clients that connect to an ArcGIS Server service, such as ArcGIS Field Maps or ArcGIS Survey123, ArcGIS Server is actually the client to the geodatabase. For these cases, ensure that your ArcGIS Server and geodatabase versions are compatible.

Geodatabase versions

The geodatabase version is stored as a property of the geodatabase. The version does not entirely reflect the functionality available to you, because a lot of geodatabase functionality is implemented in the clients that access the geodatabase and not in the geodatabase itself.

For enterprise geodatabases, the geodatabase version reflects the ArcGIS client version used to create or upgrade the geodatabase. The geodatabase administrator can view the version in the dialog box. See Database properties for information.

If you use geodatabase replication, the child replica geodatabase must be the same geodatabase version as or a later version than the parent replica geodatabase.

The version for file geodatabases has not changed since 10.0. This file geodatabase version is supported with all currently supported versions of ArcGIS Pro and ArcGIS Server.

The version for mobile geodatabases has never changed since it was introduced in ArcGIS Pro 2.7. Mobile geodatabases are supported with all currently supported versions of ArcGIS Pro.

Database versions

You must store enterprise geodatabases in a database release that is supported for both the geodatabase and ArcGIS release you use. The database client you install on the ArcGIS client machine must also be supported for the ArcGIS release that you use. See the following pages for information about supported database and database client releases. Use the Other versions drop-down menu to access information for older software releases and other operating systems.

Datasets

Certain dataset types have versions that are separate from both the geodatabase version and the ArcGIS client version. These dataset types require separate upgrades and have their own compatibility rules. The following information relates to dataset compatibility:

Older ArcGIS clients can open, query, edit, and save data in newer release geodatabases, but they cannot open datasets that participate in newer functionality. You will encounter error messages when you try to access a new type of dataset from an older ArcGIS client, including the following:
The version of the Geodatabase client is incompatible with the dataset and cannot open it.
Failed to add data, unsupported data type.
You cannot use the following datasets in ArcGIS Pro 3.0 and earlier:
- Catalog datasets
  Catalog datasets cannot be used in ArcGIS Enterprise 11.0 and earlier.
- Trajectory datasets
  Trajectory datasets are not currently supported in web services.
Starting with ArcGIS Pro 3.2 and ArcGIS Enterprise 11.2, catalog datasets have a new internal version number. That has the following implications:
- The catalog datasets you create in ArcGIS Pro 3.2 and subsequent releases or the catalog datasets you create using the tools installed with ArcGIS Server 11.2 and subsequent releases cannot be used with earlier software releases.
- To use tools in ArcGIS Pro 3.6 or ArcGIS Server 12.0 to add items or add portal items to a catalog dataset you created in ArcGIS Pro 3.1 or ArcGIS Server 11.1, you must upgrade the catalog dataset.
- You cannot access upgraded catalog datasets in ArcGIS Pro 3.1 or earlier or ArcGIS Enterprise 11.1 or earlier.
11.2.0 is the minimum enterprise geodatabase version to support oriented imagery layers. You cannot use oriented imagery layers in ArcGIS Pro 3.1 and earlier or ArcGIS Enterprise 11.1 and earlier.
See Utility network compatibility for information about utility network and ArcGIS client compatibility.
See Trace network dataset administration for information about trace network and ArcGIS client compatibility.

Field data types

As new data types are added to the geodatabase, older clients often cannot access these data types.

The following information applies to field data types and their compatibility with ArcGIS clients and geodatabases:

ArcGIS Pro 3.1 and earlier clients cannot access geodatabase tables or feature classes that contain date fields that have been migrated to include milliseconds.
ArcGIS Pro 3.1 and earlier cannot access geodatabase tables or feature classes that contain fields of the following data types: date only, time only, timestamp offset, big integer, or 64-bit object IDs. To publish web layers that contain these data types, use ArcGIS Enterprise 11.3 or later.
11.2.0 is the minimum enterprise geodatabase version to support 64-bit object IDs, big integers, date only, time only, and timestamp with offset data types. Not all data types are supported in all database management systems. See the data type page for the database type you are using.
You cannot create, paste, or import tables or feature classes containing date only, time only, timestamp offset, big integer, or 64-bit object ID fields into a file geodatabase version earlier than 10.0.

When to upgrade a geodatabase

You do not have to keep your geodatabase and ArcGIS clients at the same release, but it is recommended that you do so. Geodatabases and client software are designed to work together, and if you let one get too many releases away from the other, you risk encountering problems or unexpected behavior.

This is especially true when you use a combination of client versions at your site. A newer client can create newer dataset types in the geodatabase that older clients cannot access. For enterprise geodatabases, waiting too long between geodatabase upgrades may mean you have to upgrade the underlying database more than once before you can upgrade the geodatabase.

You must upgrade your geodatabase if any of the following is true:

The client release you are using cannot connect to the geodatabase release you want to use. For enterprise geodatabases, the client release you use may not be able to connect to the database management system version you use, and you need to upgrade the database, database client, and the geodatabase to connect from a newer client.
You need functionality that is available only if you use a newer release of the geodatabase. Check each version of What's new in ArcGIS Pro for information about new functionality and dataset types in the geodatabase. Also check the compatibility rules in the section above. Be aware that when you create or upgrade certain types of datasets, such as a parcel fabric or a network dataset, older clients may not be able to access the dataset.
Your enterprise geodatabase contains branch versioned data, and you have not already upgraded the geodatabase to version 11.3.0 or applied any of the Branch Versioning General patches and upgraded.
You apply an ArcGIS patch that requires a geodatabase upgrade. ArcGIS Pro and ArcGIS Server patches sometimes require you to upgrade your enterprise geodatabase after applying the patch. Carefully read patch instructions to determine whether you are required to upgrade your geodatabases. Always run the upgrade procedure from the ArcGIS client to which you applied the patch.

For more information about geodatabase upgrades, see the upgrade topic for the type of geodatabase you are using:


File geodatabases	Upgrade a file geodatabase
Geodatabases in Db2	Upgrade a geodatabase in Db2
Geodatabases in Oracle	Upgrade a geodatabase in Oracle
Geodatabases in PostgreSQL	Upgrade a geodatabase in PostgreSQL
Geodatabases in SAP HANA	Upgrade a geodatabase in SAP HANA
Geodatabases in SQL Server	Upgrade a geodatabase in SQL Server