topic Re: imageparameters.layerDefs does not work with 10.5 in ArcGIS JavaScript Maps SDK Questions

imageparameters.layerDefs does not work with 10.5

DuarteCarreira — Tue, 10 Jan 2017 18:14:28 GMT

It seems REST API in 10.5 deprecated simple sintax on layerDefs:

Simple syntax is not supported as an expected value for layerDefs parameter starting 10.5.

This is pretty hidden in the documentation by the way...

As a side effect, it seems imageparameter.layerDefinitions no longer works since it still translates requests to the simple sintax:

ImageParameters | API Reference | ArcGIS API for JavaScript 3.19

In our server we get an error when debugging http requests on the browser's console:

{"error":{"code":400,"message":"Invalid 'layerDefs' is specified","details":[]}}

Our code is pretty simple and worked last week against a 10.3 server.

Can anyone reproduce and confirm this?

EDIT: Just to add that the simplest sample from esri does not work against a 10.5 server:

Layer definitions on a dynamic map service | ArcGIS API for JavaScript 3.19

It seems a bug to me... I wish I'm proven wrong...

Thanks.

Re: imageparameters.layerDefs does not work with 10.5

DonKang — Sun, 12 Dec 2021 02:25:22 GMT

I am having similar issues. It has taken me all day with 4 different ESRI Tech support to figure out.

As mentioned in the attached, layerDefs using simple syntax is no longer supported starting 10.5.
Meaning, it only works with Json Syntax. Currently, I am working to migrate 10.3 Server to 10.5. Using 10.5 service my application do not work and turns out to be due to this reason.

I am trying to figure out how to convert following to JSON syntax.

var layerDefinitions = [];
layerDefinitions[0] = "POPULATION > 5000000";
layerDefinitions[5] = "AREA > 100000";
dynamicMapServiceLayer.setLayerDefinitions(layerDefinitions);

Re: imageparameters.layerDefs does not work with 10.5

DuarteCarreira — Wed, 11 Jan 2017 09:44:49 GMT

Hi Don, good to know I'm not alone, though being a bug is alarming...

It seems to me every js app that needs to turn on/off change querydefs of layers will not work with a 10.5 server. That's a huge oversight if you ask me...

You can convert your example to json but it will only work using a direct request to the rest api, not using the js api.

Your example would be:

{0:"POPULATION > 5000000", 5:"AREA > 100000"}

You can see what's going on by copying the request in the browser's console. The request will end with a parameter like f=image. If you change this last parameter to f=html you will see a page where you can change all parameters including the querydefs.

This however it does not solve the problem: js api 3.9 does not comply with 10.5 server requiring a json string in querydefs. It's the js api responsibility to turn your programming into correct rest requests.

The only way out I see is to roll back 10.5 to 10.4, and wait for a compliant release of js api.

Rolling back has to be done manually: you have to write down every service configuration, every server configuration, and then recreate everything by hand. Unless you made a backup of your last configuration before upgrading to 10.5.

Anyway, a huge oversight from esri, and a huge loss of time and amount of problems for us.

If you hear anything positive from esri please let me know.

EDIT: it just now occurred to me it could be a bug with 10.5 server, accepting the wrong syntax in the layerdefs parameter, and not with the js api... also, I seem to remember an old solution where there was a way in the js api to edit the request before it was sent, correcting whatever was needed to make it work.

Re: imageparameters.layerDefs does not work with 10.5

DonKang — Wed, 11 Jan 2017 15:51:14 GMT

Thanks for your info.
Luckily my production environment is still in 10.3. I was in the process setting up a new production server with 10.5.
And yes this is a major issue. My app simply would not function if layer Definition issue is not fixed.

I've contacted ESRI support with your posting.
I will let you know if I hear anything from ESRI.

thanks

Don

Re: imageparameters.layerDefs does not work with 10.5

DonKang — Thu, 12 Jan 2017 15:35:38 GMT

Bug it is!

And this from ESRI Tech Support.

I tested on this issue, since the setLayerDefinitions requires an array of string, so even you provided a json object, it will still convert it to array object, which is a conflict with 10.5 service, so just like being discussed in the geonet thread, it is a bug, and currently the workaround might be keep using 10.3 service until we fixed this issue, so I submitted a bug regarding this issue: [BUG-000102051:setLayerDefinitions() function against dynamicmapservicelayer doesn't work for 10.5 services since the simple syntax is not valid for 10.5 anymore.

thanks

Don

Re: imageparameters.layerDefs does not work with 10.5

DuarteCarreira — Thu, 12 Jan 2017 21:30:48 GMT

Don, thanks very much for posting this.

though the "workaround" is really more a "do not use".

i am always amazed thinking how this kind of bugs keep getting through QC to releases. Exportmap is just the most used and fundamental request to the server... And the time it takes to solve... usually more than 12 months. If anything like this would happen, say with iis, I would expect a patch within days... but I think this time it´s really a huge bug that will really kill 10.5... so maybe a new js API release/patch might just appear quickly.

anyway, back to the past release...

Re: imageparameters.layerDefs does not work with 10.5

JordanPorter — Sat, 14 Jan 2017 03:17:52 GMT

I am also having the issue. Anyone know of a resource guide for reverting back to 10.3 without a "backup" made?

Re: imageparameters.layerDefs does not work with 10.5

DuarteCarreira — Sun, 12 Dec 2021 16:42:07 GMT

Jordan, you'll have to write down all your configurations and recreate everything in 10.3. This includes server configs like datasources and security, and services.

I think there are scripts that export services configs to help out a bit. Search online...

I have found another workaround that is not very elegant but works, by adding a few lines to your web app:

dynamicMapServiceLayer.on('update-start',function(evt) {
  console.log("Original layerDefs:" + evt.target._params.layerDefs);
 
  if(evt.target._params.layerDefs.charAt(0) !='{') {
    //if not json syntax, convert
    evt.target._params.layerDefs = evt.target._params.layerDefs.split(':').join(':"').split(';').join('",') + '"';
    evt.target._params.layerDefs = '{' + evt.target._params.layerDefs + '}';
  }
 
  console.log("Corrected layerDefs:" + evt.target._params.layerDefs);
 });

Just replace dynamicMapServiceLayer with your variable name. Place this code right after creating your layer.

Esri could/should come up with something better, like an override for the little piece of code that's building the wrong layerDefs syntax.

Re: imageparameters.layerDefs does not work with 10.5

JordanPorter — Sun, 15 Jan 2017 17:05:14 GMT

This just saved me. After realizing the implications of downgraded ArcGIS server, that became a no-go.

Considering that we have dozen of apps, with several dynamic layers in each, manually defining the listener on each layer would be cumbersome. So I am utilizing this logic in a modular js file to include to loop through each dynamic service and apply the listener. Thanks for your help!

Re: imageparameters.layerDefs does not work with 10.5

DuarteCarreira — Mon, 16 Jan 2017 15:39:10 GMT

Jordan, I haven't tested the code properly and some scenarios I don't know what happens to layerDefs, like when it changes many times as the user operates the web app.

But if you get to create your module would you consider sharing?

Thanks.

Re: imageparameters.layerDefs does not work with 10.5

AlessioDi_Lorenzo1 — Mon, 23 Jan 2017 15:26:19 GMT

Hi,

thanks for the workaround.

Can you help me to figure out how to apply it to the definitions array in an identify task?

It seems a "start" event is not available for identify, so the invalid definition expression error still remain.

Re: imageparameters.layerDefs does not work with 10.5

DuarteCarreira — Mon, 23 Jan 2017 19:20:44 GMT

Hi there Lorenzo.

I really think esri has to increase this bug priority. This is going to bubble up in many, many applications. I am amazed geonet is not buzzing with people complaining about this.

I don't have a solution for the issue with identify request... it's the same thing but there's no specific event to that request.

I don't think request.setRequestPreCallback(callbackFunction) works with identify but I haven't tested that (it doesn't work with export request for sure).

What might work is to use dynamicLayers in identifyParameters instead. I know this works in export, so it must also work with identify. You can specify pretty much everything you want with dynamicLayers, like the definitionquery, symbology, etc. It's pretty complicated though, but there are samples out there.

Another option I thought of when searching for a solution to the initial problem was to use a proxy that just corrects the layerDefs parameter in every request that passes through it.

You can easily modify esri's proxy to do that, and use the proxied url instead of the direct mapservice url. I think this is the easiest way and also the broader solution because it will catch and correct every request you send its way.

But the only *perfect* solution has to come from esri. So my best advice is to get them on the phone.

Re: imageparameters.layerDefs does not work with 10.5

AlessioDi_Lorenzo1 — Tue, 24 Jan 2017 08:31:09 GMT

thank you Duarte,

maybe the less problematic way for me is to roll back to 10.4.1

Fortunately I just have to reinstall the web adaptors.

I expect ESRI fix this asap! Otherwise 10.5 will remain unuseful for anyone having a production environment with web applications running.

Re: imageparameters.layerDefs does not work with 10.5

GreggRoemhildt1 — Tue, 24 Jan 2017 19:07:27 GMT

Thanks for posting these workarounds and reports.

It doesn't seem so much as a bug as a planned breaking change that should have been updated in the js api prior to releasing 10.5...Seems like a scary lack of communication between the js team and the server team.

Re: imageparameters.layerDefs does not work with 10.5

DuarteCarreira — Tue, 24 Jan 2017 19:25:54 GMT

Gregg, yes it seems that way. What I feel most scary is the absence of awareness or communication from esri. If you look at the bug description it seems unaware of any critical level assessment. It's just one more bug to the pile.

Also, how can we shout out to someone from esri to this thread? Maybe using some name tags will work?

jskinner-esristaff‌

nicolaraluca‌

odoe‌

Re: imageparameters.layerDefs does not work with 10.5

JosephElfelt1 — Tue, 24 Jan 2017 19:28:13 GMT

Glad I found this thread since it indicates the problem I am having is not of my own making.

My unfortunate observation is that in the 10.41 REST API if you (1) use a layerDefs parameter ***with either JSON or non-JSON syntax*** and you (2) also use a dynamicLayers parameter, then your layerDefs parameter is ignored.

I have developed a Google map viewer called Gmap4 that uses the ESRI REST API to display user-specified MapServer layers.

The following map links use layer 9 from
https://services.nationalmap.gov/arcgis/rest/services/govunits/MapServer and also use a layerDefs parameter to display an outline map of just the congressional districts just in Washington State. The basemap tiles are all white.

Since the layer I am displaying supports dynamic layers, I wish to change the styling of how the layer data appears on the map. If I take the exact same map and add a dynamicLayers parameter, then (1) the appearance of layer 9 is correctly changed according to my dynamicLayers parameter, but (2) all congressional districts for the USA now appear on the map. In other words, the layerDefs parameter requesting only data for Washington state is ignored. I tried using non-JSON syntax for layerDefs and got the same result.

https://mappingsupport.com/p/gmap4.php?ll=46.822190,-120.490967&z=6&t=Congressional_district&rest=https://services.nationalmap.gov/arcgis/rest/services/WFS/govunits/MapServer?name=Congressional_district&layers=9&transparent=true&layerDefs={"9":"STATE_NAME='Washington'"}&dynamicLayers=[{"source":{"type":"mapLayer","mapLayerId":9},"drawingInfo":{"renderer":{"type":"simple","symbol":{"type":"esriSFS","style":"esriSFSSolid","color":[255,0,0,255],"outline":{"type":"esriSLS","style":"esriSLSSolid","color":[0,255,0,255],"width":2}}}}}]

I suspect that I am SOL and will simply have to wait for the server admin to change to a different version of ArcGIS that hopefully does not have this bug.

Joseph

Re: imageparameters.layerDefs does not work with 10.5

GreggRoemhildt1 — Tue, 24 Jan 2017 19:36:34 GMT

Do you know what the bug number is? For potentially helpful tracking in the future?

Re: imageparameters.layerDefs does not work with 10.5

DonKang — Tue, 24 Jan 2017 19:40:40 GMT

BUG-000102051
You can find it my posting towards the top.

Re: imageparameters.layerDefs does not work with 10.5

JordanPorter — Sun, 12 Dec 2021 02:25:25 GMT

Its very simple, i just loop through all the dynamic layers in the map, and apply your "patch"

I load it in the header, and since i wanted to be able to just load it in any code ive written, it wont know when the layers will all be loaded, and i didnt want to have to add ANYTHING else to any of the apps. So the timeouts are just waiting and trying again, not pretty i know, but it allows me to not have to add any support code in the apps themselves.

I wanted something that would just loop through any dynamic layer, so this is what i've implemented. Though it's FAR from ideal, It's worked great so far.

function patch() {
    if (map) {
        if (map.loaded) {
            var patchDebug = true
            if (patchDebug) {
                console.debug("Applying 10.5 Patch")
            }
            jQuery.each(map.layerIds, function (index, value) {
                map.getLayer(value).on('update-start', function (evt) {
                    //console.log("Original layerDefs:" + evt.target._params.layerDefs);
                    try {
                        if (evt.target._params) {
                            if (evt.target._params.layerDefs) {
                                if (evt.target._params.layerDefs.charAt(0) != '{') {
                                    //if not json syntax, convert
                                    evt.target._params.layerDefs = evt.target._params.layerDefs.split(':').join(':"').split(';').join('",') + '"';
                                    evt.target._params.layerDefs = '{' + evt.target._params.layerDefs + '}';
                                }
                                if (patchDebug) {
                                    console.log("Patch Corrected " + evt.target.id + " defQ to: " + evt.target._params.layerDefs);
                                }

                            }
                        }
                    }
                    catch
                        (err) {
                        if (patchDebug) {
                            console.error(err)
                        }
                    }
                });
                map.getLayer(value).refresh()
            })
        }
        else {
            window.setTimeout(function () {
                patch()
            }, 1000)
        }
    } else {
        window.setTimeout(function () {
            patch()
        }, 1000)
    }
}
window.setTimeout(function () {
    patch()
}, 5000)

Re: imageparameters.layerDefs does not work with 10.5

DuarteCarreira — Wed, 25 Jan 2017 11:12:33 GMT

Joseph this is a different, unrelated problem, and I would suggest opening a new thread.

Anyway, you have to add a definitionExpression to your dynamicLayer 9. For instance:

https://mappingsupport.com/p/gmap4.php?ll=46.822190,-120.490967&z=6&t=Congressional_district&rest=https://services.nationalmap.gov/arcgis/rest/services/WFS/govunits/MapServer?name=Congressional_district&layers=9&transparent=true&layerDefs={"9":"STATE_NAME='Washington'"}&dynamicLayers=[{"source":{"type":"mapLayer","mapLayerId":9}, "definitionExpression": "STATE_NAME='Washington'","drawingInfo":{"renderer":{"type":"simple","symbol":{"type":"esriSFS","style":"esriSFSSolid","color":[255,0,0,255],"outline":{"type":"esriSLS","style":"esriSLSSolid","color":[0,255,0,255],"width":2}}}}}]

That works.