Change Field Name/Alias in ArcGIS Pro v3.2 not working

[JadedEarth]

I'm using ArcGIS Pro version 3.2.

There seems to be an issue when I rename a field in a feature class attribute table.  It will show that it's been changed/renamed as I'm working on it.  But when I remove it from the Map and then reload the feature class, the only change that was in effect was the Field Name but the Alias stays the same as the original alias.  

This messed up my class reclassifications several times.

Is this a bug?  Has anyone else experienced this?

[Robert_LeClair]

Hi @CaseyJustice - I'm using ArcGIS Pro 3.3.2 and ran a test to see if I could rename a field WITH attribute data in it AND have that newly renamed field "remembered" by ArcGIS Pro after I shut down the application and restarted a new project.  Not sure when (or if this is really a thing) but I was able to rename the field with attribute data, shut down, restart and it's there - the newly renamed field.  Since you're running ArcGIS Pro 3.1.1, can you test on some test data to see if you can or cannot do the same?  Please advise.

[wtfineberg]

I experience this issue in ArcGIS Pro 3.3.0, however it only seems to occur when changing the case of letters in a field. In other words, changing 'ESRI_Field' to 'esri_field' looks like it works, but if I close and re-open the Fields View it reverts to the original uppercase version. This bug affects me both in Fields View and when using the Alter Field Tool.

A successful workaround I found was to:

1. Open Fields View and locate the desired field (ex. 'ESRI_Field')
2. Change the field to something entirely different (ex. 'notarealfieldname')
3. Close and re-open Fields View
4. Change the field to the desired name (ex. 'esri_field')

The field name seems to stick when following this workaround.

[Robert_LeClair]

@wtfineberg - your workaround worked for me.  I do wonder if this is a BUG certainly.  May be worth contacting Esri Support Services to work with an analyst to see if it's already catalogued as a bug or not. If not, then create one with the analyst so it's fixed in a future update.

[dsinha]

Running into the same issue. Tried all the solutions suggested here but nothing works. Using 3.2.1.

[RickVillarreal]

Had to deal with the same issue this week. What a pain... In our specific case, we were never able to rename the field but came up with a workaround which is outlined further below.

What I personally noticed was an unnecessary lock that seemed to be keeping any edits from sticking, was coming from my machine 😕. 

After a bit of staring into space, it hit me... 🤔 Could my "Map" could be the culprit? 

In the end it took editing from Catalog with no map in the project.

Here's the work around we implemented.

1. Export a copy of the data to an FGDB (DO NOT SKIP THIS STEP!!!)
2. From Catalog, right click on the Original layer and select Data Design/Fields
3. Delete the field with the undesired name.
4. Add a new field with your desired name. (Make sure your field properties match the original field)
5. Join the Original feature class to the Export copy from step 1.
6. Field Calculate the new field with entries from the original copy in the Export.
7. Remove Join.
8. Verify and Save

NOTE: I attempted this work around before i realized the lock form my "Map" was causing an issue and deleting the original field was also not sticking after saving

In the end, for some unknown reason it continued to prevent the renaming, but editing in this manner  allowed me to delete the field and replace it with the desired Name.

Hope this helps someone!

[MichaelSallustio]

Good afternoon Rick and everyone,

I'm on version 3.4.3 and also running into this issue.  Rick's workaround worked for me but I need to publish this data layer (addresses) and as Rick mentioned, anytime I add it to a map the alias defaults to populating the field name.

I'm working with a vendor and their application will not connect with the data layer if there are values in the alias field.