ArcGIS should allow the ability to permanently reorder fields in a table

[NewingtonConnecticut]

After creating a feature class, it would be convenient to go back after data input, and make changes to the field ordering (position).

[DavidWheelock]

Oh, Robert, are you in for a shock.  ESRI has deprecated support for the Personal Geodatabase.  ArcGIS Pro CANNOT even read a PGD.    It can read shapefiles, which are older, but not the PGD.  ESRI is forcing you to migrate if you want to move forward with their future platform.

I like MS Access for a number of reasons and this is a problem with me because I'm heavily invested in PGD's, although I do have the Enterprise GDB.  I'm working with the Enterprise GDB more and more, now.

[DavidWheelock]

I don't think so.  You could always reorder the appearance of fields in ArcMap, just like now, but that doesn't change the order of the fields in the underlying data table.

[MicahBabinski]

This can be done with shapefiles using the ogr2ogr tool from GDAL/OGR. If combined with the Alter Field GP tool in a custom script this could produce the desired result within a file or enteprise geodatabase. It's a bit tricky to implement and would probably be susceptible to attrition. All the more reason to upvote this idea!

I suppose one hesitation may be that some organizations' programs may interact with fields via an index value, not a column name.

[AmyKlug]

When making layers for services you want to use in Web AppBuilder widgets make sure your fields have the names and order you want them. You don't want to have to do it in WAB, trust me!!!!!

[RobertBorchert]

David zero shock at all.  We have been discussing ESRI Railroading us towards their vision since the day we read about FileGeodatabases.

ESRI really needs to get a solid look at reality in many areas of their business.  I work in Electric Utilities for Distribution Cooperatives.  In the real world a small coop of 3500 meters cannot afford ArcGIS Server Etc...And ESRI will not let our company serve up GIS Services for our member cooperatives.  We have our company GIS on SDE and we do have Server for ourselves.

We have talked to our regional manager at a number of events and ESRI really is kind of bullish.

I am not worried about ESRI support.  Some of their people are brilliant others I feel I have to educate them.  As long as we can continue to use Personal Geodatabases for small projects we will.

[TedChapin]

You can do it if you use SQL Server.  There a setting in SSMS Tools, Options, Designers called "Prevent saving changes that require table re-creation". It's checked on by default.  If you check it off, you can safely drag and reposition fields in the table designer.  I can vouch for unversioned enterprise gdb feature classes and tables in SQL Server.

[FrankVeldhuis1]

We use versioned data in Oracle. Sometimes the data participates in a topology or a geometric network. Since arcsde writes the sql that is sent to the database, why can't esri change the order of the fields in the sql query?

[Anonymous User]

I agree! I work for a consulting engineering firm and we work for Electric Cooperatives.

[MicahWilliamson]

I suppose we should specify the type of geodatabase you want to reorder. As has been stated, Enterprise Geodatabases do allow this. And as far as the rant on Personal GDBs... ... I really can't believe people continue to use them. Microsoft themselves have even depreciated them. Discontinued features and modified functionality in Access 2013 So I'm assuming we want this functionality on a File geodatabase, which I agree.

[MelissaJarman]

This is good information to have, but I just wanted to add some info about the precautions of doing this type of modification:

Change Column Order in a Table

https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa337556.aspx

Using SQL Server Management Studio – Right click on table > Design

*Must have Designers option unchecked

Using Transact-SQL - This task cannot be performed using Transact-SQL statements.

Caution

“Changing the column order of a table may affect code and applications that depend on the specific order of columns. These include queries, views, stored procedures, user-defined functions, and client applications. Carefully consider any changes you want to make to column order before making it. Best practice is to specify the order in which the columns are returned at the application and query level. You should not rely on the use of SELECT * to return all columns in an expected order based on the order in which they are defined in the table. Always specify the columns by name in your queries and applications in the order in which you would like them to appear.”