Naming ServiceArea in .gdb and Model Builder

[DanielLapczuk]

Hi. When I want to make a Service Area Layer it will be stored with weird endings in the geodatabase. Especially when I start running a process in Model Builder the same Service Area is being stored under a different name which leads to some problems.

I will attach a screenshot from my .gdp. In Model Builder I name the Service Area Layer with a chosen name, let's say SA_BusStops but it will be stored under a different name.

Anybody any ideas how to fix this?

Thanks!

[DavidPike]

are you iterating outputs or is this just the tool ran several times?

Set your geoprocessing options to overwrite previous outputs if the latter?

[DanielLapczuk]

I am not iterating but ran the tool several times. Already the first service area has this werid acronym like ServiceArea1bfdgbdhf

The geoprocessing options are set to overwrite.

[MelindaMorang]

This behavior is as designed. The feature datasets and feature classes for network analysis layers use automatically-generated unique names. In previous releases, this was done using a numbering scheme, but this was changed later on to a string of alphanumeric characters.

When writing scripts or automating workflows in a different way, you should not try to access the network analysis layer’s sublayers directly by their data paths, as this is not a supported workflow and the naming convention is not static or guaranteed.

For ModelBuilder, if you need to access a sublayer of a network analysis layer, you can use the Select Data utility.

If you need to access the network analysis layer later, after the model has finished, you should use the Save To Layer File tool to save the layer itself to disk as a .lyrx file.

[DanielLapczuk]

Thank you Melinda. That was really helpful. 

I've noticed some further problems... Sometimes when I run my models, the service areas or location allocation get mixed up. For instance: I have a service area calculation for subways, for bike sharing and for train stations. After running the first service area process for subways, I run the service area calculation for bike sharing but it'll extracts the informations (polygons) for the subways. This is not happening always but regularly. In this case I have to run the process so often until it calculates the right transport mode. Have you heart about this problem? 

[MelindaMorang]

Hmm, that's interesting.  Several things come to mind, but without seeing your model or knowing how you're running it, it's hard to say which might be the problem.

How are you running the model?

1. Running it using the Run button on the Model Builder ribbon while the model is open
2. Running it like a tool from the Geoprocessing pane
3. Calling the model tool from a python script

Can you share your model?  I could take a look.

[DanielLapczuk]

I am running it using the Run button in the ribbon while the Model Builder is open or using the run button in the context menu of the tools in the model.

That'll be great if you take a look. What's the best way to share it with you? Attached you'll find a screenshot of the groups I am struggling with. 

[MelindaMorang · Accepted solution]

Wow, that looks...incredibly complicated.  That is probably too much for me to debug (tech support is not my primary job).  You may need to reach out to the actual Support people at Esri Support | ArcGIS Technical Support  or at the distributor for your country if you're not in the US.

Is the problem reproducible if you run the tool from the geoprocessing pane?  Sometimes models behave strangely when run from the ribbon button with the model open because it sometimes preserves a state from some previous run when you're not expecting it.

[DanielLapczuk]

Haha, yes. It looks pretty complicated.

Ok, thanks for the advice. I haven't tried it yet from the geoprocessing pane but I will try it now.

[DanielLapczuk]

I ran it now two times from the geoprocessing pane and it looks good. No errors and no mixed up outcomes.

Thank you!