Metadata, Catalogs, and Search Blog

We are pleased to announce that we have released version 4.0.0 of both Geoportal Server Catalog and Harvester applications!

Find out what's new on our product wiki!

Get ready for the 2026 Esri User Conference, an exciting week filled with GIS learning and peer connections.

With hundreds of presentations and events on the UC agenda, we’ve created more focused agendas for Open Platform. These sessions and activities will help your organization learn about ArcGIS’s open, interoperable, and secure architecture.

The Open Platform custom agenda will help you find your way to all of the sessions and activities relating to Esri’s Open Vision.

The following more targeted agendas will help you learn about specific topics of interest.
The GIS Data Formats and Specifications custom agenda

The GIS Metadata, Catalogs & Search custom agenda

The Data Interoperability and ETL Patterns custom agenda

The OGC Web Services custom agenda

The Geospatial Ecosystems & SDI custom agenda

Be sure to register for the Geospatial Data Ecosystems and SDI Special Interest Group (SIG) where you’ll discuss with geospatial data ecosystems from various perspectives with peers and Esri staff, and the  Community Engagement Special Interest Group (SIG), where you’ll learn how to use ArcGIS Hub to increase collaboration.

We are excited to see you at UC!

Announcing Esri Geoportal Server Catalog 3.1.0! We’re excited to share that Esri Geoportal Server (Catalog) 3.1.0 is now available!

Learn how MassDOT Aeronautics built a centralized data hub powered by ArcGIS that makes high-resolution drone imagery more accessible. Read the article

Have you searched far and wide for data, only to realize that when you find what you need, you open the attribute table or data table and discover that you have no clue about the attribute fields and the information they contain?  The data is difficult to comprehend, making it nearly impossible to use, let alone trust. Metadata, particularly attribute field metadata, is crucial. This information is important because it allows someone reviewing your data to more effectively assess its suitability. It directly influences the user experience in ArcGIS. Check out Transform your layers’ value with more functional attribute field names, aliases, and descriptions blog to learn more.

With increasing AI integration, Large Language Models (LLMs) also need to understand data to produce accurate results. Descriptive attribute field metadata, such as field aliases and descriptions, enhance models' ability to accurately understand and use the data effectively.

If you have taken the time to populate this metadata, you know it is time-consuming investment! You may have populated attribute field metadata in the data table, only to open up the metadata editor and realize that NONE of that metadata you populated earlier was there!

There are two resources I want to share to make creating and maintaining attribute field metadata easier.

1. Use Hosted Feature Service Alias Updater script to update the attribute field metadata using a lookup table.
2. Use the new enhancement from the ArcGIS Online June 2025 update to synchronize the updated attribute fields and metadata to the metadata record. Learn more in the Sync Attribute Fields Using the Metadata Editor blog.

With this script and recent enhancement, it is easier than ever to maintain attribute fields' metadata across each layer’s item page.

The 2025 Esri User Conference is right around the corner, and we are excited to connect with you. UC is filled with many presentations and events, with hundreds of topics covered. To help you get the most out of your experience, we’ve created a custom agenda for Metadata Management. We hope these sessions will be enjoyable and informative as you continue your geospatial journey.

View our Metadata Management custom agenda that you can add directly to your UC account.

We also have SIGs (Special Interest Groups) available for you to attend this year. Two great SIGs that you might find particularly interesting are the:

Geospatial Ecosystems SIG: Improving ROI for Modern SDI

Community Engagement SIG: Using Hubs for Deeper Collaboration

SIGs are a great way to hear from and network with like-minded professionals. This year advanced sign-ups for SIGs will be required, ensuring everyone who signs up will have a seat, and that there is ample room. It’s easy to reserve, just register for UC and add sessions to your schedule. You can also join a waitlist if your SIG is full, as seats will open as others update their plans. Reservations will be held until 5 minutes before the start time.  If you forget to sign up, or find yourself available at the last minute, any extra spots will be made available at the door on a first-come, first served basis.

The Metadata Management kiosk will be in the Open Platform area. If you would like a pdf of the entire Open Platform schedule to print and take with you, it is attached below.

If you would like a like a pdf of the entire Open Platform schedule to print and take with you, it is attached below.

We hope you have a wonderful UC experience this year!

The new metadata editor is now available in ArcGIS Pro 3.5! Unify your metadata editing experience across the platform.

Watch the video: https://ow.ly/gq2650VYwYW
Read more on the metadata editor in ArcGIS Pro: https://ow.ly/8zPa30sMGcm

Having good metadata is important for making the geospatial content you share findable. Thankfully, it’s never been easier with the new metadata editor. Learn about the process of overwriting metadata, and new enhancements, in this ArcGIS Blog article!