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Frequently asked questions

General

Use the application

General

What is ArcGIS Excalibur?

ArcGIS Excalibur is a web-based application that modernizes and enhances image and video-based workflows through intuitive experiences. These experiences allow you to search for, discover, and work with imagery in fully integrated workflows.

For more information, see What is ArcGIS Excalibur.

What is required before installing ArcGIS Excalibur?

Prior to installing ArcGIS Excalibur, you need an ArcGIS Enterprise base deployment and can optionally include ArcGIS Image Server and ArcGIS Video Server to leverage full imagery and video capabilities. You can install the base deployment on one or more machines, any of which can be physical, virtual, or cloud machines.

Different versions of ArcGIS Excalibur work with different ArcGIS Enterprise versions. The compatibility is as follows:

  • V3.1 - 11.3, 11.2, 11.1
  • V3.0 – 11.2, 11.1, 11.0
  • V2.5 - 11.1, 11.0, 10.9.1
  • V2.4 - 11.0, 10.9.1, 10.9
  • V2.3—10.9.1, 10.9, 10.8.1
  • V2.2—10.9, 10.8.1, 10.8
  • V2.0-2.1—10.8.1, 10.8, 10.7.1
  • V1.2—10.8, 10.7.1, 10.7
  • V1.1—1.1.1 - 10.7.1, 10.7
  • V1.0—10.7

For more information on hardware and software requirements, see ArcGIS Excalibur system requirements.

How do I install and authorize ArcGIS Excalibur?

Download ArcGIS Excalibur from My Esri by logging in with your Esri account that is associated with your customer number. Install ArcGIS Excalibur on the machine where Portal for ArcGIS is installed.

Once ArcGIS Excalibur is installed, an authorization file must be obtained and authorized.

For more information on installing and authorizing, see Install and authorize ArcGIS Excalibur.

How is ArcGIS Excalibur licensed?

ArcGIS Excalibur is a premium application and requires a separate portal license file. You must have a Creator or GIS Professional user type with the appropriate roles before an ArcGIS Excalibur license can be assigned to you.

For more information, see ArcGIS Excalibur system requirements or Assign members an ArcGIS Excalibur license.

Is ArcGIS Excalibur available in ArcGIS Online?

No. ArcGIS Excalibur is not available in ArcGIS Online and is only available in ArcGIS Enterprise 10.7 and later.

Can I customize ArcGIS Excalibur using an API?

No. ArcGIS Excalibur does not support customization using an API.

Is ArcGIS Excalibur designed for a specific persona?

No. Anyone who wants to discover, analyze, report, and efficiently disseminate image and video-derived information to consumers can use ArcGIS Excalibur. Users include all-source analysts, imagery analysts, and imagery and geospatial managers in industries such as national security, emergency response, local and federal government, humanitarian relief, and public works.

How can I use the Publish Imagery or Video capability in ArcGIS Excalibur?

You must have your environment properly configured and the proper privileges to publish hosted web layers. If you have the proper environment and privileges, you can begin publishing hosted web layers by accessing it through the home page or at any time on the side navigation menu under Publish Layer. For more information, see Publish hosted web layers.

Use the application

Where can I obtain a web service URL?

You can obtain a web service URL through any of the following:

  • The Content tab of your Enterprise portal—You can search My Content or My Organization's Content for the layer type imagery layer.
  • ArcGIS REST Services directory (for example, https://<host.domain.com>/<webadaptor>/rest/services)—Many services defined as an ArcGIS Image Server Service denoted by (ImageServer) can be a supported service.
  • Your organization's GIS administrator

For more information on using imagery web service URLs, see Explore a web service.

Why are there no images returning when I search in the Search and Discover page?

Ensure that your Filters and map extent are set to properties and a location where imagery exists for the selected imagery service layer.

To populate the Search and Discover page with imagery or video, browse for imagery or video.

Why doesn’t my image support render in image focus view?

Image focus view is available on images that have sensor transformation information, such as rational polynomial coefficients (RPC) or frame cameras. Not all web services contain imagery with this sensor information.

For more information on the image focus view, see Explore a web service.

Why don't images show up in the image layer footprints?

Images may not display in the Search and Discover page when Show Imagery is enabled or in the Canvas in the Map Panel due to a visibility scale range set on the image service. Try zooming in closer on the image footprint to get the image or set of images to appear.

Why do some imagery service layers have more measurement options?

The Measurement tool dynamically reads in the metadata and capabilities set on the image service. The measurement options available will depend on the imagery service layer you are working with.

Why don't I see project tools in my Tools panel?

Project tools are only available when you open an Excalibur project in the canvas. The Collect Observations and Edit Observations tools are only available when an Observation Layer has been added to the project.

For more information on creating an Excalibur project, see Create an Excalibur project.

Does an observation layer require a specific schema?

No. Any editable layer can be used as an observation layer within an Excalibur project. However, using an observation layer that contains the system managed Excalibur fields adds value to the observation collection workflow as certain fields will be automatically populated with metadata from the image that the observation is collected on.

For more information on an observation layer, see Select observation layer.

How can I change the sharing setting on my Excalibur project?

Excalibur projects can be shared publicly, with your organization, or with specific groups that you own or are a member of, or it can be left private when creating an Excalibur project. At ArcGIS Excalibur 1.0-1.2, Excalibur projects are saved in a folder called Excalibur projects in My Content. Any Excalibur project created after version 1.2 will be created in a folder based on the name of the Excalibur project but can specified during project creation. You can change the share setting for your Excalibur projects in Project Details on the Information tab.

Will my custom-defined user settings still work if I access the application from a different machine?

Yes. User settings are stored and saved with your portal identity allowing you to access the ArcGIS Excalibur application on different machines in different locations while maintaining your customized experience.

Can I use content created in ArcGIS Excalibur in other ArcGIS applications?

Yes. ArcGIS Excalibur uses ArcGIS and its information model to consume and create content that can be applied to other ArcGIS applications. In particular, content created in an Excalibur project is written to a hosted feature service and can be used in other applications like the web map viewer, ArcGIS AllSource, ArcGIS Pro and web applications such as ArcGIS Dashboards and ArcGIS Insights. You can also use exported views from the canvas in ArcGIS StoryMaps templates.

Does ArcGIS Excalibur support non-query-enabled services?

Yes. You can view and work with imagery that is not query enabled. Although these types of web services do not support search capabilities, you can still visualize this imagery in the canvas while using the many tools available to work with the web service.

Can I save my markup in the canvas?

Yes. You can save markup in the canvas as a project and refer to it later. To learn more about saving your markup in the canvas, see Save markup to a project.

How do I add observation layers to my Excalibur project?

You can add or remove an existing observation layer or create a new observation layer through the project details. For more information about observation layers, see Add an observation layer to your Excalibur project.

Is there a limit on the number of search filters that can be applied when I save my query?

No. You can apply as many search filters as you like when you save your query. For more information, see Search by saved search query.

Why do I get an error when I use the Capture Coordinate tool in the Focus Panel?

Ensure that you are searching for your coordinate in your image extent. If you search for a coordinate outside your image extent, you get an error. For more information, see Capture a coordinate.

Why can't I add a GeoEnrichment definition to my Excalibur project?

To create a GeoEnrichment definition in your Excalibur project, the following criteria must be met:

  • You must be the project owner or the portal administrator.
  • You must have a point or polygon observation layer in your Excalibur project.
  • You must have a polygon context layer in a web map added to your project.

For more information, see Enhance an Excalibur project with GeoEnrichment definitions.

Am I allowed to add any layer to my Excalibur project and use it as an observation layer?

Yes, you can add any layer to your Excalibur project to use as an observation layer. You also have the option to add system-managed fields to populate information about the image when an observation is collected. For more information, see Manage system fields and settings.

Does ArcGIS Excalibur support ArcGIS Knowledge graphs as observation layers?

Yes. Starting at ArcGIS Excalibur 3.1, you can add a ArcGIS Knowledge graph layer to your project as an observation layer. The knowledge graph must be a point, line, or polygon spatial entity.

Why is the Detect Change tool unavailable even though I am in the canvas?

The Detect Change tool is unavailable if the web service is not an ArcGIS imagery layer that is query enabled. A minimum of two selected images are required to run the tool. For more information, see Detect Change tool.

Why is the Download Source Imagery option unavailable when I try to export my image?

The Download Source Imagery option is only available if the image service has download capabilities enabled. For more information, see the Export Image tool.

Does my Excalibur project definition file need to be formatted in a specific way before uploading it?

Yes, your JSON file must be properly formatted to successfully create an Excalibur project. You can find the format for projects with a single focus image layer and projects with observation layers in Upload an Excalibur project definition file.

Does ArcGIS Excalibur work with on-demand and livestream videos?

Yes. With ArcGIS Excalibur 3.0 and later, you can upload video and metadata files to create on-demand video layers. You can also connect to UDP, RTMP, and RTSP livestream video feeds to view and analyze.