Get layer metadata | ArcGIS REST JS

Learn how to access a hosted feature layer and get its properties.

Prerequisites

An ArcGIS Location Platform, ArcGIS Online, or ArcGIS Enterprise account.

Steps

Create a feature layer

For this tutorial, you will use the Santa Monica Parcels dataset to create a private hosted feature layer in your portal.

In your web browser, go to the Santa Monica Parcels item.
Click the Download button to download the zip file locally. Do not unzip this file.
Import the shapefile into ArcGIS.
1. Sign in to your ArcGIS portal.
2. In the top navigation bar, click Content.
3. Click New item. To upload the Santa Monica Parcels shapefile, you can either:
  - Drag and drop the file.
  - Or, click Your device and navigate to the file path.
4. Select Add Santa Monica Parcels.zip to publish the file as a hosted feature layer.
5. In Fields, leave all fields at their default settings and click Next.
6. In Location settings, leave the default settings and click Next.
7. Set the following information in the item details pane:
  - Title: Santa Monica Parcels
  - Tags: Santa Monica Parcels.
  - Summary: Parcels in the Santa Monica Mountains.
8. Click Next to create the new feature layer and feature service.
9. In the feature service item page, make sure the Share setting is set to Owner.
10. Scroll down to the URL section and copy the URL into a safe location. You will use this in a later step. The URL will look something like:
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  1 https://services3.arcgis.com/GVgbJbqm8hXASVYi/arcgis/rest/services/Santa_Monica_Parcels/FeatureServer

Create a new app

Open a terminal and create a new folder for your project.
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```
1
2
mkdir get-layer-metadata
cd get-layer-metadata
```
Initialize a new Node.js project. This creates a package.json file.
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```
1
npm init
```
Install the required packages.
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```
1
npm install @esri/arcgis-rest-request @esri/arcgis-rest-feature-service --save
```
Tip
Set "type": "module" in your package.json so you can import the packages later in your JavaScript file. To see other installation options, such as using a CDN or import map, go to Install and set up.
Create a new JavaScript file named index.js.
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```
1
touch index.js
```

Get an access token

Create a new API key credential with the correct privileges to get an access token.

Go to the Create an API key tutorial and create an API key with the following privilege(s):
- Item access
  - Note: If you are using your own custom data layer for this tutorial, you need to grant the API key credentials access to the layer item. Learn more in Item access privileges.
Copy the API key access token to your clipboard when prompted.

Make a request

Open your index.js file and import the library.

index.js
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import { ApiKeyManager } from "@esri/arcgis-rest-request";
import { getService } from "@esri/arcgis-rest-feature-service";

Paste in your access token.

index.js
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import { ApiKeyManager } from "@esri/arcgis-rest-request";
import { getService } from "@esri/arcgis-rest-feature-service";

const accessToken = "YOUR_ACCESS_TOKEN";
const authentication = ApiKeyManager.fromKey(accessToken);

Make a request to your feature layer and print the results.

index.js
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import { ApiKeyManager } from "@esri/arcgis-rest-request";
import { getService } from "@esri/arcgis-rest-feature-service";

const accessToken = "YOUR_ACCESS_TOKEN";
const authentication = ApiKeyManager.fromKey(accessToken);

getService("https://services3.arcgis.com/GVgbJbqm8hXASVYi/arcgis/rest/services/Trailheads_Styled/FeatureServer/0", {
  authentication
}).then((response) => {
  console.log(JSON.stringify(response, null, 2));
});

Save the file, then run it from the terminal.
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```
1
node index.js
```

You should now see the results printed in your console.

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{
  "currentVersion": 11,
  "id": 0,
  "name": "Trailheads_Styled",
  "type": "Feature Layer",
  "serviceItemId": "2e4b3df6ba4b44969a3bc9827de746b3",
  "cacheMaxAge": 30,
  "displayField": "",
  "description": "",
  "copyrightText": "",
  "defaultVisibility": true,
  "editingInfo": {
    "lastEditDate": 1556814539714,
    "schemaLastEditDate": 1556814539714,
    "dataLastEditDate": 1556814539714
Expand

What's next?

Learn how to use additional location services in these tutorials:

Query a feature layer (SQL)

Access and query a hosted feature layer with a SQL where clause.

Search for an address

Search for a specific address or place and retrieve its coordinates.

Find a route and directions

Find a route and directions for an origin and destination.