Domains merged with no domains

[SamCoggins1]

Hi

I have a geodatabase feature class that has domains. I have extracted a portion of this feature class and manipulated some of the data within and then appended the data back to the original source. When I append the data the numerical information in the attribute table for the appended portion is lost and replaced by null values.  

I have tried to export the portion I need to work on as a shape file and also as a feature class into the same geodatabase. I get the same issue in either case. I was wondering whether the issue with the null values is because the domain for the data fields is lost once I export? If I export the original data and the portion as a shapefile and then merge there isn't an issue. However, I need the domains used in the geodatabase.

Any help appreciated. Thanks

Sam

[JoeBorgione]

Hi

I have a geodatabase feature class that has domains. I have extracted a portion of this feature class and manipulated some of the data within and then appended the data back to the original source. When I append the data the numerical information in the attribute table for the appended portion is lost and replaced by null values.  

I have tried to export the portion I need to work on as a shape file and also as a feature class into the same geodatabase. I get the same issue in either case. I was wondering whether the issue with the null values is because the domain for the data fields is lost once I export? If I export the original data and the portion as a shapefile and then merge there isn't an issue. However, I need the domains used in the geodatabase.

Any help appreciated. Thanks

Sam

Domains are a property of the geodatabase, not the featureclass.  When you append the extracted data back into the original database, have you deleted the orginal features?  I ask only because if you have not, you'll end up with double entries.  I'm not a big fan of the append tool.  Must have had a bad experience at one time or another.  Try using the simple data loader.  I also have to ask, why not just perform your manipulations on the original features in the original geodatabase?

[MarcoBoeringa]

You most likely use a coded value domain with as its basis a short or long integer field in your geodatabase Feature Class. This means the database internally stores numeric values, instead of the text descriptions you pick while editing the attribute table.

If you want to add the shapefiles results back into the domain based Feature Class field, you will need to translate all of the descriptive text back into a new numeric integer field in your shapefile, before importing / appending to the existing geodatbase Feature Class.

E.g., if you have a field named "Landuse" with class "Forest", and this class originally used integer value "2" in the database, you need to create a new field with a "2" in your shapefile whereever the class "Forest" is used in the field "Landuse". Than map this field to the original field in the Feature Class upon importing / appending, and ArcGIS should recognize it as "Forest" and store it as such in the field with the coded value domain.

Also see this Help page:
A quick tour of attribute domains

EDIT:
Just realized I read to quickly, you do seem to be manipulating numeric values outside of ArcGIS, so they should be able to import. What software are you using to edit the exported data? Can it be that it changes the field type? You might check this by looking at the properties in ArcCatalog.

[SamCoggins1]

Domains are a property of the geodatabase, not the featureclass.  When you append the extracted data back into the original database, have you deleted the orginal features?  I ask only because if you have not, you'll end up with double entries.  I'm not a big fan of the append tool.  Must have had a bad experience at one time or another.  Try using the simple data loader.  I also have to ask, why not just perform your manipulations on the original features in the original geodatabase?

Hi

Thanks for the response. Yep, I've selected a bunch of points I want to work on, then removed them from the featureclass, with the intent of working on them and adding them back in. The only issue I've notice so far is that even if I extract the points to the same geodatabase the fields lose their domains, which I had assumed would remain. I tried the data loader as you suggested and got the same result as with the append tool. I noticed when I'm using the loader that it didn't recognise the values in the fields. In one step in the wizard it tells me which fields align with which and it had null values next to all the numeric fields. I'm going to try and assign the domains to the fields and then try the loader again and see if that works.

Thanks

Sam

[SamCoggins1]

EDIT:
Just realized I read to quickly, you do seem to be manipulating numeric values outside of ArcGIS, so they should be able to import. What software are you using to edit the exported data? Can it be that it changes the field type? You might check this by looking at the properties in ArcCatalog.

All ESRI products... ArcCatalog and ArcMap. I'm going to try and assign the domains to the fields in the extracted points. Otherwise I may try to export everything as a shapefile, then import into the geodatabase, then assign the domains. Fingers crossed.

[SamCoggins1]

Solved it with the data loader. I needed to assign the new features to original features in the data loader wizard. All done now! That was easy. Thanks for the help.

Sam