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Geoprocessing: Save custom default parameters

AlfredBaldenweck

I spent the week using Find Identical and Union over and over across several projects.

Both of them have settings that I always want to use, but are not the default setting.

For Find Identical, it's "Output only duplicated records".

Screenshot 2026-04-03 160403.png

For Union, it's "Attributes to Join --> All attributes except feature IDs"

Screenshot 2026-04-03 160509.png

Having used both of these tools something like 80 times each this week, I would really prefer to have the option to save certain parameter values as a user-specific default. I think this would be good for any choice value list or boolean parameter. For example, the option to save "Geodesic" as the method in the buffer tool

Screenshot 2026-04-03 160811.png

Or perhaps being able to set a default unit to use in the buffer tool.

This has been a pebble in my shoe for the last week. I recognize that not everyone has the same needs or preferences as I do, but I'm sure they'd like being able to save their own preferences.

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Geoprocessing

Status: Open

Comments

Bud

Good idea.

This idea is different, but related:

Import/export native GP tool parameters to file

Jesse Wickizer

When I need to frequently run the same tool (or sequence of tools) with mostly the same parameters each time, I use ModelBuilder to create a model with the tool(s) and pre-fill the parameters that don't change between successive runs, and hide parameters that I don't change and don't need to see. That way I only have to change the necessary parameters each time and the rest are already saved. Here's an example a custom model containing only the Find Identical tool with some of the parameters hidden and some pre-filled:

MargaretCrawford

Hi, you can override default parameter values using a Pro.settingsConfig file. I detailed some steps on how to do it in this blog:

https://www.esri.com/arcgis-blog/products/arcgis-pro/analytics/tool-parameter-overrides-in-arcgis-pro-3-3

AlfredBaldenweck

Hi @MargaretCrawford , thanks for the response.

I'm a member of an organization that uses the Pro.settingsConfig file to manage certain settings across all the members.

Is it possible for me to reliably edit that and still have it take effect?

1) Will it work?

2) Will it get overwritten the next time they alter our configuration?

If the answer to either of those questions is No, then I think there's still a need to be able to save things like this at a personal level through user.config/the Pro GUI.

MargaretCrawford

Hi @AlfredBaldenweck, to answer your questions...

I'm a member of an organization that uses the Pro.settingsConfig file to manage certain settings across all the members.
Is it possible for me to reliably edit that and still have it take effect?
1) Will it work?

Yes, and it will apply to the members that use it as well.

2) Will it get overwritten the next time they alter our configuration?

The values you set in this file apply across new or existing projects. And you have the option to lock parameter values so they cannot be changed by setting the isLocked property to true.

Additionally, you now have the option to alter default Environment settings using the Pro.settingsconfig file as well. If you are curious about this, you can read about it in this blog here: https://www.esri.com/arcgis-blog/products/arcgis-pro/analytics/standardize-environments-arcgis-pro

AlfredBaldenweck

Thanks for the response.

To clarify, I meant that if I personally edit the pro.settingsConfig file on my own machine to match the desired settings and then the organization changes a different setting and pushes that across the organization, do my edits to my settings get overwritten?

I am not an organizational admin, and I suspect the majority of users here are not, either. If our personalizations are at all at risk of being overwritten, I don't think pro.settingsConfig is an appropriate solution to this problem.

MargaretCrawford

Hi @AlfredBaldenweck, Thank you for clarifying your question.

Can you confirm whether your pro.settingsConfig file is stored locally on your machine or on a network share? If your organization’s admin updates and pushes a new version of this file at the organizational level, any personal customizations you’ve made to your local copy may be overwritten by the organization’s version. In this scenario, the organization’s settings would take precedence over individual changes. To retain your personal customizations, you would need access to the file and the ability to edit it without it being replaced by an admin update.

https://doc.esri.com/en/arcgis-pro/latest/get-started/application-setting-management.html#A78

AlfredBaldenweck

It is on a network share, we access Pro through a virtual desktop, generally.

Tht's what I was afraid of. I know that you've mentioned using the pro.settingsConfig file in a few different places recently, but I think a general problem with settings is that not every setting is available in both pro.settingsConfig AND in user.config.

I understand the purpose of pro.settingsConfig is to override user settings on an organization-level, and that makes sense. But we should have parity between the two config files so that users can reliably edit to their own preferences unless overridden by the admin.