Register a workgroup geodatabase with ArcGIS Server

As an ArcGIS Server administrator or publisher, you can register data sources for ArcGIS Server web services.

To register a workgroup geodatabase with ArcGIS Server, the ArcGIS Server site must be licensed for workgroup.

The following is a summary of the steps you must take to register a workgroup geodatabase with an ArcGIS Server (workgroup) site:

• Install the Microsoft SQL Server client on all client machines that are remote from the SQL Server Express instance.
• Add the ArcGIS Server account to the database server.
• Grant at least read-only privileges on the data to be published to the ArcGIS Server account.
• Create a database connection file (.sde) that accesses the workgroup geodatabase.
• Import the .sde file to register the geodatabase with the ArcGIS Server workgroup site.

The following sections provide more information on how to prepare ArcGIS clients to connect to a workgroup geodatabase and register it with an ArcGIS Server (workgroup) site.

Note:

You must use ArcMap to add the ArcGIS Server account to the database server and grant it permissions to the data; however, you cannot publish from ArcMap. Create maps and publish from ArcGIS Pro.

Install the ODBC driver for SQL Server

When you use ArcGIS Enterprise workgroup or ArcGIS Server workgroup, ArcGIS Server and the SQL Server Express instance must be installed on the same machine. You do not need to install the SQL Server client on the machine where ArcGIS Server is installed, because the files that are needed to connect are installed with the SQL Server Express instance. However, if the ArcGIS Server site contains multiple machines, you must install the Microsoft ODBC driver for SQL Server on the other machines in the site.

You can create and administer workgroup geodatabases only in ArcMap 10.8.1 or earlier. You must install the ODBC driver for SQL Server on the ArcMap machine.

You must use ArcGIS Pro to publish data from a workgroup geodatabase to a workgroup ArcGIS Server 11 or later site. Install the ODBC driver for SQL Server on the ArcGIS Pro machine.

You can obtain and install the ODBC driver from the Microsoft Download Center or My Esri. Check the ArcGIS system requirements for SQL Server to confirm which version of the ODBC driver is supported for the SQL Server Express and ArcGIS software release you use.

Add the ArcGIS Server account to the database server

Workgroup geodatabases use operating system authenticated connections exclusively. When operating system authentication is specified for the database connection, ArcGIS Server connects to the data using the ArcGIS Server account.

Add the ArcGIS Server account to the database server.

1. Sign in to the client using a login that is a database server administrator and start ArcMap or ArcCatalog.
2. Double-click the database server in the Catalog tree to connect to it.
3. Right-click the database server and click Permissions to open the database servers Permissions dialog box.
4. Add the ArcGIS Server account to the database server.
   1. Click Add user.
   2. Specify the location, local or domain, of your ArcGIS Server account.
   3. Type the name of your ArcGIS Server account and click Check Names to verify that the login name is valid.
   4. Click OK to close the Select User or Group dialog box.

      The login is added to the Database Server Users list.

   5. Click OK to apply your changes and close the Permissions dialog box.

By default, the ArcGIS Server account is added as a user in all geodatabases on the database server; however, no specific privileges are granted to this user in the geodatabases.

Next, you must grant the ArcGIS Server account access to the data that you want to publish to ArcGIS Server.

Grant the ArcGIS Server account access to the data

You must grant the ArcGIS Server account access to the data in the geodatabase. If you will not publish editable feature services from the geodatabase, you only need to grant the ArcGIS Server user read-only privileges to the geodatabase. If you will publish editable feature services, grant read and write privileges on the data to the ArcGIS Server account. If you will register the geodatabase as the managed database for the workgroup ArcGIS Server site, you must additionally grant write permissions to the ArcGIS Server account on the geodatabase.

1. Under the Database Servers node in the Catalog tree, double-click the workgroup geodatabase you want to register with the server to connect to it.
2. Open the geodatabase Permissions dialog box.

   Right-click the geodatabase, point to Administration, and click Permissions.

3. Choose the ArcGIS Server user from the Database Server Users list and assign it permissions to the geodatabase.
   • If the workgroup geodatabase will be a registered database, click Read Only to grant read-only permissions to the ArcGIS Server account on all data in the geodatabase.
   • If the workgroup geodatabase will be a managed database, click Read/Write to allow the ArcGIS Server account to create datasets in the geodatabase.
4. Click OK to save changes and close the Permissions dialog box.
If you will publish editable feature services from a registered database, grant the ArcGIS Server account read and write privileges on the specific datasets to be edited. Only data owners can alter privileges on their datasets; therefore, if necessary, have the data owner perform the following steps:
5. Right-click one of the datasets to be edited, point to Manage, and click Privileges.
6. Choose the ArcGIS Server account from the Database Server Users list, click Read/Write, and click OK to close the dialog box.
7. Repeat the previous two steps for each dataset that will be edited through a feature service.

Create a database connection file

To register a workgroup geodatabase with an ArcGIS Server site, you must reference a database connection (.sde file), not a database server connection (.gds file).

The easiest way to do this is to right-click the geodatabase under the database server in the Catalog tree and click Save Connection. A connection is created under Database Connections in the Catalog tree.

Alternatively, you can create a database connection in ArcGIS Pro that accesses the workgroup geodatabase.

Once the file is created, import it when you register the geodatabase.

Register the workgroup geodatabase

You can register the workgroup geodatabase as a database or a managed database. This can be done from ArcGIS Server Manager.