You can use OGC API Features or OGC API Tiles (map tiles) services that are available on the web when using ArcGIS Pro. The OGC API service client support in ArcGIS allows you to access these services over the internet and add an OGC API Features or OGC API Tiles (map tiles) layer to your map.
The OGC API Features standard is a multipart specification that allows you to work with spatial data over the web. The ArcGIS Pro client supports Part 1 of the OGC API Features specification. For more information regarding the OGC API Features standard, see the OGC website at https://ogc.org/standard/ogcapi-features/.
The OGC API Tiles standard is a specification that allows you to work with geospatial information as tiles. Currently, the ArcGIS Pro client supports only the map tiles type of the OGC API Tiles specification. For more information regarding the OGC API Tiles standard, see the OGC website at https://www.ogc.org/standard/ogcapi-tiles/
View an OGC API Features or OGC API Map tiles layer in the Contents pane
After creating an OGC API server connection, an OGC API server connection is shown in the Servers folder in the Catalog pane. You can add an OGC API Features or OGC API Tiles service to a map by selecting the layer in the OGC API server connection and dragging it onto the map, or by right-clicking the layer and selecting Add To Current Map. When you add an OGC API Features or OGC API Map tiles layer to the map, the layer is added to the Contents pane and features are displayed on the map.
Work with an OGC API Features layer from the web
When an OGC API Features layer has been added to ArcGIS Pro, it behaves as a read-only feature layer. For example, you can open the attribute table to view the records in the layer, query features in the map, or change the symbology of the layer. Since the OGC API Features layer is not editable, you cannot make edits to the data or schema through ArcGIS Pro.
Add OGC API Layers dialog box
When you add an OGC API Features layer to the map using an OGC API Server connection or from an OGCFeatureServer item on the Portal tab of the Catalog pane, the Add OGC API Layer(s) dialog box appears. This dialog box allows you to limit the features opened in the map by specifying an extent or set the maximum number of features added to the map. The ability to limit the features added to the map may be helpful for performance in cases where the data sets are very large. Keep the following in mind:
- For layers added through the OGC API Server connection, by default, features in the layer will not be limited by an extent or maximum number returned. This means all features will be added.
- For layers added through the Portal tab, the maximum features returned value may be set to reflect the limit of the service by default. To remove the limitation you can delete the pre-populated value.
- To set the maximum number of features returned for the layer, you may specify a value in the Set the maximum features returned text box. If no value is set, all features will be returned. If an extent is also used to limit the features returned, the maximum features returned will be applied for the features returned within the extent that is set.
- To limit the features to an area of interest, check the Use Spatial Extent check box and provide an extent to use. You can chose to get the extent from the current visible extent, the extent of data in all layers, or the extent of a layer in the map, or enter a custom extent using the Selected extent form. When an extent is provided, ArcGIS Pro will send the extent values using a bbox parameter with every request to the server. ArcGIS Pro is dependent on the response from the server to return the correct features within the bbox sent so the service must support the bbox parameter as per the OGC API Features specification.
- If multiple layers are selected and added to the map at one time, the values set for this dialog box will be applied to all layers selected.
When an OGC API Features layer has been added to the map, the maximum features and extent values work independently of other layers open in the map. To edit these values after the layer has been added to the map, right-click the layer in the Contents pane, select Properties, click the OGC Features tab, modify the values as desired, and click OK.
OGC API Features layer properties
To get information about the layer, access the Layer Properties dialog box by right-clicking the OGC API Features layer in the Contents pane and clicking Properties. For example, you can view the data type, URL, layer name, and layer alias on the Source tab.
On the OGC Features tab, you can limit the number of features that are added to the map by setting a value for the maximum features returned. If a value was set when adding the layer to the map, you can modify it here. To remove the maximum features limitation, leave the Set the maximum features returned text box empty and click OK.
On the OGC Features tab, you can limit the number of features that are added to the map by providing an extent that will be used as a bounding box. To use this functionality, you can check the Spatial Extent check box and provide an extent using one of the Get extent from options or input your own values into the Selected extent form. When an extent is provided, ArcGIS Pro will send the extent values using a bbox parameter with every request to the server. ArcGIS Pro is dependent on the response from the server to return the correct features within the bbox sent so the service must support the bbox parameter as per the OGC API Features specification. If you have set the extent value when adding a layer to the map using the Add OGC API Layer(s) dialog box, you can view the values that were set and chose to modify them. If you no longer want to limit features by an extent, you can chose to uncheck the Spatial Extent check box and click OK. When the extent values are modified, ArcGIS Pro will send requests to the service.
Work with an OGC API Map tiles layer from the web
When an OGC API Map tiles layer has been added to ArcGIS Pro, it behaves as a map layer. You can view the pregenerated georeferenced map images or change the image format and tiling scheme of the layer.
OGC API Map tiles layer properties
To get information about the layer, access the Layer Properties dialog box by right-clicking the OGC API Map tiles layer in the Contents pane and clicking Properties. For example, you can view the data type, URL, layer name, and layer alias on the Source tab. On the OGC API Maptiles tab, you can switch the image format and tiling scheme.