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Get AGOL Map Viewer to recognize hyperlinks for feature classes published from ArcPro automatically without having to use arcade

288
10
3 weeks ago
Status: Open
L77
by
Frequent Contributor

In ArcPro we can populate a column in a feature class with urls and click on the hyperlink to get the link to open.

L77_1-1737563995844.png

 

When we publish the feature class in AGOL and open it in Map Viewer it no longer recognizes that it is a hyperlink automatically.

L77_0-1737564318968.png

 

Can you please update Map Viewer to see that the column contains links and get them to work automatically without having to use Arcade.

I also need those links to work in Experience Builder.

Since Web App Builder is retiring in the 4th quarter of 2025 this is important for many users to be able to recreate their apps in Experience Builder, which has proven to be very cumbersome when it comes to getting hyperlinks to work in the new Map Viewer.  Functionality like this would be beneficial to users who do not know how to write code, since lots of people use links.

10 Comments
Laura
by MVP Regular Contributor

Where are your hyperlinks coming from? They need to be coming from a place that the web can access, which wouldn't be your file directory. IIS is a simple and common workflow as they need URLS that start with https://

I use IIS in portal/agol without arcade to display hyperlinks from my file directory and this has been working in exb as well.

L77
by

@Laura How do you setup an IIS Directory? Could you send me a couple of screenshots of where to start?

I am mostly using rest services and the hyperlinks are in a column in the table and are public links.

Here is a link to one of our short plats rest service for example:

https://cowlitzgis.net/ccserver/rest/services/Cadastral/ShortPlatBoundaries/MapServer

A link to one short plat:

https://www.cowlitzinfo.net/WLAudPublicWorks/Search.aspx?dbid=0&repo=CCIMAGES&searchcommand={[AUD - Recorded Documents]:[Rec Doc Volume]="5", [Rec Doc Page]="204", [Rec Doc Document Type]="SHORTP"}

What the columns in the table look like:

OBJECTID *

FILENM

SPNAM

SUBNM

Shape.STArea()

Shape.STLength()

VOL

PAGE

FEE

BPSPNum

TxtPrefix

BPSPName

Shape *

37

261

CC05204

HOLCOMB HOMES 1

332233.5612

2564.231038

5

204

850412023

CC 85-007

https://www.cowlitzinfo.net/WLAudPublicWorks/Search.aspx?dbid=0&repo=CCIMAGES&searchcommand={[AUD - Recorded Documents]:[Rec Doc Volume]="5", [Rec Doc Page]="204", [Rec Doc Document Type]="SHORTP"}

<Null>

Polygon

 

L77_0-1737498221673.png

 

 

they are stored in a database called laserfiche. For the plats the hyperlink is a column in the table and in map viewer classic and web app builder it recognized that it was a link and went straight to the document.

Here is my web app builder app, the short plats, large lots, subdivisions are all linked in the custom pop up window by using the column name as a hyperlink.

https://cowlitz.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=8838029e308e49df9bab1bd6ab89b27a

 

It doesn't work in Map Viewer, but if I copy and paste a hyperlink from the table into a web browser then the link will go to the correct document.

All I had to do in web app builder is make the txtprefix column a hyperlink in the pop up window and it would open the pdfs. That won't work in the new map viewer.

L77_1-1737498288405.png

 

Laura
by MVP Regular Contributor
 

You typically only need an IIS (Internet Information Services) server when your hyperlinks are hosted on personal drives. If your links are publicly accessible via HTTPS, then you should be good to go.

For example, my company uses Laserfiche to store documents, and everyone has individual logins to access it. If I were to use those links directly, they wouldn't work without logging in first.

In ArcGIS Online (AGOL) I have maps & EXBs for our cemetery. In the layer I have a field for obituaries. I configured it so the URL is stored in that field. Here's how it looks in Arcade:

 
<div>Obit URL: <a href="{Obit_URL}">Click Here</a></div>
 

Alternatively, I can add text to the pop-up and hyperlink the word "Obit" to the URL stored in the field, and it works just as well.

Laura_0-1737555561572.png

The setup is a little different in map viewer compared to classic, but you can still achieve the same results. 

To test this, you can search for "Mary Ann Clark," click on her name, and then select "Click Here" under the Obit URL. Here's the link to try it out: https://experience.arcgis.com/experience/a89b4862cc9b4149b8bc791709f24c13#data_s=id%3AdataSource_8-1...

L77
by

@Laura That's what I am trying to do too, it just isn't working for some reason.

I wonder if it is an issue with laserfiche?

You're app is really cool! I tried clicking on the link but it wasn't clickable: Maybe try testing it in an incognito window to see if it is clickable there? I clicked on Share a loving memorial but it required me to login to my survey 123 account.

L77_0-1737557316090.png

L77_0-1737557455411.png

 

Laura
by MVP Regular Contributor

Ah, it seems that if I refresh the page, the link becomes clickable. This applies to both the arcade and the text in the popup. Kind of weird behavior, though.. Try refreshing on your end and let me know if it behaves the same way. I wonder if it is the same on your applications as well? I was finally able to get into yours and see a list of the documents to look at! It should be allowing that in new map viewer. What does your configuration look like?

Also, thanks for pointing out the issue with the memorial – we're just now getting that feature up and running so I just changed it to public. Easy to miss haha

L77
by

@Laura It seems to be working now, except for survey123. I created a video screen capture, let me know if this goes through.

The app seems to be loading very slowly though. I noticed that my experience builder apps load slower then my web app builder apps and don't know if there is a way to resolve it. I am reading about that too trying to figure it out.

I wonder if you lock your scale so people can't scroll out as far if it would make it load faster? I have been experimenting with that on my apps.

I am meeting with my IT department today to see if they can help me get the hyperlinks to work. I can add some screenshots after. 

I have tried 3 methods:

1. in the text pop-up create a simple click this link text and use the column with the hyperlinks in it to get the hyperlinks to work. 

2. add an expression to point to the column to get the hyperlinks to work

3. add an expressions to use the generic web address and point to the volume and page columns to get the hyperlinks to work

 and with method 2 and 3, I also tried adding scripts to deal with special characters to convert them to non special characters. 

Laura
by MVP Regular Contributor

My app typically loads much faster than that. Load times can sometimes depend on the computer's performance or the browser cache needing to be cleared. I will edit the scale, though! Personally, I haven't noticed a significant difference in load time between EXB and WAP. I had a few issues in Portal, but that had to do with playing around with a layers dedicated vs shared instances. AGOL I haven't faced any issues. 

Even after logging out of AGOL, I'm still able to add a memorial. You might've tried before it was changed to public.

It sounds like you're experiencing the same issue— the app doesn't work on the first load, but works fine afterward. Which isn't expected behavior. Does you application face the same issue? Do you get an error when clicking on your link or is there simply nothing to click? Goodluck with IT!

L77
by

@Laura One of my friends said he had to have his IT department do something to allow his experience builder apps to load faster, something about the website not being recognized as a standard site?

I definitely notice a difference in the loading times of my apps, so maybe your app is loading slowly for me because I am at work on our network?

My hyperlinks don't show up at all.

I cleared my cache and closed google chrome and searched for Mary Ann Clark again and the link showed up the first time, and the survey 123 app is working now.

Laura
by MVP Regular Contributor

Look at or have IT look at the dev tools: like mentioned here by Esri 

Looks like most of your layers (assuming same map as the WAB one) have the visibility set, so that should be helping. 

Thanks for the update 🙂 

L77
by

I met with ESRI tech support and they filed this as a bug.

https://my.esri.com/#/support/bugs/bugs?bugNumber=BUG-000173571

"The URL added to a text in the pop-up is truncated when there is a curly bracket '{}' after the equal sign in the URL."