Understanding AXF

[JamesCoast]

Hello and thanks for reading,

I've been reading and watching several videos about ArcPad, but I don't really understand what happens in the process of check-in and out data from the central geodatabase. I known that AXF is used by ArcPad while GDB is used by Desktop and Server, but is AXF an intelligent and ArcPad ready "replica" or extraction of the GDB?, When I check-out data from the GDB, this data is stored in the AXF file. When I finish my field work, I come with my updated AXF file and I do the check-in, the updated data goes from the AXF to the GDB?, I'm sorry for requesting this basic knowledge but I don't get it.

Thank you very much!

[TimHopper · Accepted solution]

Yes, you could think of the axf file as a replica of the geodatabase.

The axf file format is basically a SQL Server Compact Edition database.  It brings over all of the feature classes that you specify when you check out your data.

Inside of each feature class within the axf file is a field called AXF_STATUS.  This status field tells ArcMap which features have been added, modified, or deleted while in ArcPad.  During the check-in process, it looks at this status field to determine which changes need to be made to the geodatabase itself.

The values are as follows:

C = Created (1)
M = Modified (2)
D = Deleted (128)
G = Geography Modified (256)
R = Related Modified (65536)
P = Processed / Checked-in (16777216)
E = Error (2147483648)

After the check-in is completed, all of those status numbers get set to "Processed" and the changes made to the axf file will be reflected in the geodatabase.

Does this help clarify?

[JamesCoast]

Thank you very much Tim, I understand it now!

[SteveOpseth]

When I use the standard toolbar toolbutton "Delete" (the big red X), the AXF_STATUS code (in the layer's table) doesn't get changed to 128. I don't understand where the value is, in having that standard button, if I also have to write SQL code to alter the AXF_STATUS.

Steve