idea Keep Editor Tracking Data with Distributed Collaboration Datasets in ArcGIS Enterprise Ideas

Keep Editor Tracking Data with Distributed Collaboration Datasets

MichaelSnook — Wed, 30 Oct 2024 14:47:24 GMT

We have an internal Portal instance that is using Branch Versioned feature classes that are shared out to a Distributed Collaboration on our ArcGIS Online Organizational account. This is set up so editors can log into AGO and edit features as needed for these various feature classes. These workspaces are synced automatically every hour. This seems to work fine but when the syncs happen, the editor tracking fields DO NOT retain the editor values from the external source (the actual editor). Instead it looks like it's from my own account on the inside -- I'm assuming the internal Portal account that is initiating the sync?

So:

When the initial sync is completed all features on the AGO side have me as the editor and creator at the time the sync occurred
Features that were edited by users on the AGO side show their correct tracking information in the AGO feature class
When the features are synced back, the user that controls the sync is now the editor/creator of those features

Is there something I'm missing here? I need the original editor information to be synced back and forth correctly.

Re: Keep Editor Tracking Data with Distributed Collaboration Datasets

D_Atkins — Wed, 30 Oct 2024 14:10:14 GMT

Assuming you're using any scripting, you could create an additional "Edited_By" field, copy the database's "Edited_User" field over to the new field.

There's also Disable Editor Tracking (Data Management)—ArcGIS Pro | Documentation, with a few additional caveats.

Re: Keep Editor Tracking Data with Distributed Collaboration Datasets

MichaelSnook — Wed, 30 Oct 2024 14:48:53 GMT

I thought about that but that leads to a headache of managing redundant fields. Distributed collaboration should definitely be smart enough to handle this.

Re: Keep Editor Tracking Data with Distributed Collaboration Datasets

Ethan25 — Thu, 13 Feb 2025 13:46:09 GMT

Yes, this. I would like to see Collaboration handle editor tracking on the Portal side and not have to script/manage extra fields (removing data dependencies).

Re: Keep Editor Tracking Data with Distributed Collaboration Datasets

MariusEggen2 — Tue, 11 Mar 2025 11:40:50 GMT

If there only was a option on the synchronizeReplica to keep editor tracking when uploading to an enterprise. We have multiple users on a boat editing a offline replica that is synchronized at the end of the day with a system user and the system user gets set as the editor which is just plain wrong.

Re: Keep Editor Tracking Data with Distributed Collaboration Datasets

N8-CORR — Wed, 02 Jul 2025 13:28:37 GMT

Having this same problem. Overwriting the editor tracking fields is problematic for audits. Esri, please leave editor tracking fields alone with distributed collaboration.

Re: Keep Editor Tracking Data with Distributed Collaboration Datasets

ajohnson — Thu, 11 Sep 2025 17:26:33 GMT

Does anyone have any updates to this? My org used to use dist collab in 10.8 to pass feature layers back and forth with editor tracking to use in WAB and experienced no issues. We are now on 11.5 Enterprise and are experiencing this issue where all the editor tracking is overwritten when it returns to our portal from AGOL!!

Re: Keep Editor Tracking Data with Distributed Collaboration Datasets

ajohnson — Mon, 15 Sep 2025 21:59:53 GMT

@MichaelSnook What version of Enterprise portal were you on when you began to have this issue?