ArcGIS Online - Export Data as Automatic Download

[KevinRathgeber]

We want to setup a third party account inside our organizational ArcGIS Online to securely obtain data from a Feature Layer we have setup.  We set the Feature Layer to allow export and we then setup a minimum permissioned Level 1 user with access to that Feature Layer.  To our surprise the exporting of data was not allowed.  Upon more investigation we discovered the following:

Currently, in order to download data from a Feature Layer in ArcGIS Online requires two things.  You need a Level 2 organizational user and that user is required to have Create, update, delete permissions.

Why is this one may ask?  ArcGIS Online requires you to first save the exported data as content before you can download the file.  The only way to save content in ArcGIS online is to be a Level 2 user.  This is problem for a couple reasons.  1. You must now supply a more expensive level 2 user and you must now use credits for storing additional content that is technically already stored in ArcGIS Online.

In the history of the internet typical default behavior is when you try to download data, the data is streamed so that you may save the file locally.  Even ArcGIS Online's Open Data site allow you to directly download the data.

This is a request that, as default behavior, ArcGIS Online allow direct download of "Export Data".  Non-default behavior would be to provide an option to save as content if you need it. (of course setting this as Default will obviously break setups that expect the save as content to be default I will accept having a button to automatic download and bypass the requirement to save as content 🙂 )

[Anonymous User]

Please add this as an idea in our ideas space https://community.esri.com/community/arcgis-ideas?sr=search&searchId=19728f67-acd4-4643-af64-0b900dc...‌

[KellyGerrow]

Hey Kevin,

Thanks for the feedback. The output of the export data is a file item that is automatically stored in your content (requiring a level 2 membership). That being said, there are other ways of downloading and exporting data, such as open data, or creating replicas (this is developer based, but works).

Can you provide some more information about your workflow?

What is the data? (brief description would be great)

What is the level 1 user going to do with the data? (use it in ArcGIS Online or download a CSV for other purposes?) 

Are your users looking to export the entire dataset or a subset of the data?

Are your users doing this using Map Viewer or an App for this specific purpose.

-Kelly

[JulieRoebotham]

Is there any plan to allow Level 1 Users download 'private items' within an open data site that has this capability enabled? Currently testing an open data site with some items shared only the org.. the L1 user can download the public items, but this fails for the items shared only to the org (although the 'download' button is available for these items, the download always fails)

[KellyGerrow]

HI Julie,

Level 1 users can't own content. Can you provide some details about your workflow? would the users be downloading the entire data set, a subset? HOw would they interact with the data afterwards? Through a CSV? ArcMap?

Thanks,

Kelly

[JulieRoebotham]

Hi Kelly

It would be to provide an open data like experience but to secured data. So there are a number of L1 users who have access to view a few maps and apps, and there are some spatial datasets that they can download and use however they want - likely in ArcMap but possibly elsewhere (not ArcGIS Online). The data cannot be public, but these users do not have L2 accounts within ArcGIS Online. 

I've noticed you can download files (.csv, .sd , .pdf etc) from the 'private data' section of Open Data as an L1 user - just not spatial data.

[NicholasBarger]

Has there been any movement or solution on this topic?  This is the exact workflow I am looking for and can't seem to accomplish with Open Data or AGOL.

Thanks

[KellyGerrow]

Hi Nicholas,

Was an idea ever logged for this?  Can you provide some details about your desired workflow? Who are the users, (public, private, your employees, contractors, etc.) and what kind of data would they want to download (sample dataset). What would be helpful data output formats for what the users would need to use it for after it's downloaded? csv for use and further use in excel? A shapefile? GeoJSOn? A screenshot?

If this hasn't been logged as an idea, all of this information would also be helpful in the idea. Currently based on the discussion above, there isn't an available workflow for private, Viewers to download data. Understanding the specific use case would help to provide more context for this request.

Thanks,

Kelly

[NicholasBarger]

Sorry for the delay in responding.  I have a variety of potential users.  Some are GIS professionals and some are not.  What I would like to do is give everyone the same singular tool to download data from AGOL privately.  I tried this through Open Data, but it appears that you cannot create a private page only to be shared with a specific audience.  I created an idea about this.  I get that a private Open Data page isn't really "Open", but I think ESRI is missing an opportunity with Open Data.  There needs to be an avenue, or mechanism, to share sensitive information with a specific group of people.

The other option that I looked into was creating a group in AGOL and hosting a Feature Service to that group.  This allowed users to download data, but it created it within that group.  Again, this is not entirely useful and would create potential credit issues from storing multiple files online.

I have basically been told by tech support that there is no way to share data privately unless I use an application.  Which is what I've been doing for some time.  I was really looking for a simple and clean way to share GIS data (shapefiles and tabular), with people who are GIS professionals and non GIS professionals privately.

I hope that helps answer your questions.

[deleted-user-7SLqM7dlvYNN]

We have a very similar use case. We got rid of our external server (with clip,zip & ship function) and moved our data to ArcGIS Online and implemented Open Data for our public datasets. However, we also had some data which was restricted access so we setup a new ArcGIS Online group and accounts for a handful of externals to access this data (they're too small to require their own ArcGIS Online sites or have alternative GIS software in house). We assumed level 1 licenses would be fine as the documentation (Use layers—ArcGIS Online Help | ArcGIS ) has no mention of the need for Level 2 licenses! Needing to grant Level 2 licenses for a user to download a shapefile/json/fgdb, once a month or less frequently, is a waste of a license and fairly absurd. It should be a direct download as not everyone wants to use it in an Esri webmap/application and it could be implemented very similar to the way Open Data does it for public layers.

An Idea very similar to the improvement suggested is here Download data to computer from item details page - without needing an AGO account - I suggest you add your vote to it.

Kelly Gerrow‌ to answer your questions:

Can you provide some more information about your workflow?

Workflow as above - restricted data held in a group for external users to take an extract for their systems. Unfortunately not everyone is in the realm of mashing up services/sourcing them directly due to technology/security considerations.

What is the data? (brief description would be great)

Access Tracks (polylines) - some of which are over private land.

What is the level 1 user going to do with the data? (use it in ArcGIS Online or download a CSV for other purposes?) 

Use it outside of Arc products for their own systems. 

Are your users looking to export the entire dataset or a subset of the data?

Both - most want the whole dataset but some would prefer a subset. Could start things off simple with whole dataset downloads and then implement the smarts for extracting subsets.