addToDefinition Missing/404 on Hosted Feature Service - ArcGIS Enterprise 11.1

[tasubasu]

Hello everyone,

I am seeking clarification on the support for dynamic schema changes—specifically adding new layers to an existing service—within ArcGIS Enterprise 11.1.

We have a workflow that requires a "new layer per event" pattern, where we programmatically add sublayers to a Hosted Feature Service using the REST API addToDefinition operation.

The Current Situation:

• Success in ArcGIS Online: We have successfully tested and implemented this exact workflow in ArcGIS Online. The addToDefinition endpoint works as expected, and we can dynamically scale the service by adding new sublayers.

• Failure in ArcGIS Enterprise 11.1: When attempting the same logic against a Hosted Feature Service in Enterprise 11.1 (Relational Data Store), the /addToDefinition endpoint returns a 404 Not Found or simply ignores the operation, returning the root service description instead.

Technical Details:

• Environment: ArcGIS Enterprise 11.1 (Windows) using the ArcGIS Data Store.

• Service Configuration: "Sync" is disabled, and we are accessing the /admin version of the REST URL.

• Observation: The property "supportsAddToDefinition" is missing from the Service JSON in Enterprise, whereas it is present in our AGOL services.

Questions:

1. Is dynamic sublayer creation via addToDefinition supported in ArcGIS Enterprise 11.1 Hosted Feature Services?

2. If not supported, is this a fundamental platform limitation compared to ArcGIS Online, or is there a specific Server/Portal configuration required to enable it?

3. What is the recommended pattern in Enterprise for scenarios requiring dynamic “new layer per event” workflows if the REST API doesn't support on-the-fly layer creation?

We are trying to confirm whether this is a configuration issue on our side or an inherent limitation of the Enterprise architecture compared to the more flexible nature of ArcGIS Online.

Any clarification or links to official documentation regarding this specific parity difference would be greatly appreciated.

[GlenterpriseUK · Accepted solution]

Hi @tasubasu,

Please see the following Hosted Feature Service | ArcGIS REST APIs | Esri Developer

New at 12.0
The supportsAdminApi property has been added to the service-level to indicate support for the addToDefinition, updateDefinition, and deleteFromDefinition operations.

Regards,

Glen

[tasubasu]

Ahhh thank you! Sorry, I didn't see this. I got mixed up with possible structure rather than actual capability:
"Below are sample JSON responses that demonstrates the serviceAdminOperationsOptions and layerAdminOperationsOptions properties returned for a hosted feature service at ArcGIS Enterprise 11.1. These properties list the admin operations available for a given hosted feature service or layer. For example, the response below shows layers listed under addToDefinition. This means that the operation can be used to add layers to a service."