Import data | Documentation

To create an imagery layer in an image service for your data, you upload raster files into portalArcGIS portal, also known as a portal, is a website with applications and tools that can be used to create, manage, access, and share geospatial content and data. It supports security and authentication, developer credentials, content and data service management, user and group management, and site administration. A portal can be hosted in Esri's infrastructure or your own infrastructure.Learn more. To do so, you use data management toolsData management tools are ArcGIS software applications and functionality in portal and ArcGIS Pro that can be used by developers to create, manage, and edit content and data such as web maps, hosted layers, and data services for their applications.Learn more or Client APIsA Client API is a web, native, or scripting Application Programming Interface (including all ArcGIS, open source, and third-party APIs) that has mapping capabilities and can be used to access ArcGIS location services.Learn more to import your raster data. You first select the capabilities you want your image service to support. Configure the raster properties. You can then upload a single or multiple raster dataset types. After it is imported, you can manage the service settings with a hosted imagery layer (item)A hosted imagery layer is a hosted layer (item) in a portal that is used to access and manage the properties and settings of an image service.Learn more in your portal.

How to import data

The general steps to import your data are:

Sign into a data management toolData management tools are ArcGIS software applications and functionality in portal and ArcGIS Pro that can be used by developers to create, manage, and edit content and data such as web maps, hosted layers, and data services for their applications.Learn more with your ArcGIS accountAn ArcGIS account is an identity with a user type and set of privileges that can access specific ArcGIS products, tools, APIs, services, and resources. The main account types that can be used for development are an ArcGIS Location Platform account, ArcGIS Online account, and ArcGIS Enterprise account. ArcGIS Location Platform and ArcGIS Online accounts are also associated with a subscription.Learn more:
- Go to ArcGIS.com or ArcGIS Enterprise portal (ArcGIS Enterprise) and sign in to your portal.
Click on New Item > Imagery layer.
Select the type of layer you want to create.
- Hosted imagery layer: A new item in your portal to manage the item properties and service settings.
- Image service: A new image service for the data.
Set the layer configuration.
- One Image: Uses a single, processed image to create one layer.
- One Mosaicked Image: Mosaics multiple images into a single dataset to create one layer.
- Multiple Imagery Layers: Creates one layer for each input image.
Choose the raster type and configure the image properties.
Select the rasters to upload.
Set the item Title, Tags, and Summary.

Best practices

To ensure the best performance, after creating image services you should always go to your portalArcGIS portal, also known as a portal, is a website with applications and tools that can be used to create, manage, access, and share geospatial content and data. It supports security and authentication, developer credentials, content and data service management, user and group management, and site administration. A portal can be hosted in Esri's infrastructure or your own infrastructure.Learn more and configure the hosted layerA hosted layer is an item in a portal that contains the properties and settings for a hosted data service or a layer in a hosted data service.Learn more (item) settings. This includes defining the item properties, setting the sharing level, and managing the service settings.

Services

Feature service

Add, update, delete, and query feature data.

Vector tile service

Store and access vector tile data.

Map tile service

Store and access map tile data.

Image service

Store and access imagery and raster data.

API support

Use data management toolsData management tools are ArcGIS software applications and functionality in portal and ArcGIS Pro that can be used by developers to create, manage, and edit content and data such as web maps, hosted layers, and data services for their applications.Learn more or Client APIsA Client API is a web, native, or scripting Application Programming Interface (including all ArcGIS, open source, and third-party APIs) that has mapping capabilities and can be used to access ArcGIS location services.Learn more to create, manage, and access data servicesData services, also known as hosted data services, are services created dynamically to store and provide access to your data in ArcGIS. Examples are feature services, vector tile services, map tile services, image services, and scene services.Learn more. The table below outlines the level of support for each API.

	Create	Manage	Access
ArcGIS Maps SDK for JavaScript		¹
ArcGIS Maps SDK for Kotlin		¹
ArcGIS Maps SDK for Swift		¹
ArcGIS Maps SDK for Flutter		¹
ArcGIS Maps SDK for Java		¹
ArcGIS Maps SDK for .NET		¹
ArcGIS Maps SDK for Qt		¹
ArcGIS API for Python
ArcGIS REST JS
Leaflet		²
MapLibre GL JS		²	³
OpenLayers		²	³
CesiumJS		²	³

Full supportPartial supportNo support

1. Use portal class and direct REST API requests
2. Access via ArcGIS REST JS
3. Requires manually setting styles for renderers

Tools

Portal

Create, manage, and access content and data services for applications.

Map Viewer

Create, explore, and share web maps for 2D applications.

ArcGIS Pro

Create, style, and explore maps and scenes.