Geoprocessing tool reference > Analysis toolbox > Overlay toolset > Tools
Symmetrical Difference (Analysis) (ArcInfo only) |
|
|
Release 9.2
Last modified January 13, 2009 |
Print all topics in : "Tools" |
Computes a geometric intersection of the input and update features. Features or portions of features in the input and update features which do not overlap will be written to the Output Feature Class.
Learn more about how Symmetrical Difference works
Illustration
Usage tips
-
The input and difference feature class and feature layer must have polygon geometry.
-
Output may be multipart. If multipart features are not desired, use the Multipart to Singlepart tool on the output.
-
When processing datasets that contain any individual feature with a very large number of vertices (e.g., hundreds of thousands to millions of vertices within a single feature), some geometric processing operations may run out of memory. For more details, see Geoprocessing with large datasets.
-
The following environment settings affect this tool: Coordinate system, Extent, XY Tolerance, Z Tolerance, M Tolerance, XY Resolution, Z Resolution, M Resolution, Output XY domain, Output Z domain, Output M domain, Output has M values, Output has Z values, Default Z value, Configuration keyword, Output Spatial Grid.
Command line syntax
An overview of the Command Line window
SymDiff_analysis <in_features> <update_features> <out_feature_class> {NO_FID | ONLY_FID | ALL} {cluster_tolerance}
| Parameter | Explanation | Data Type |
| <in_features> |
The input feature class or layer. Geometry type must be polygon. |
Feature Layer |
| <update_features> |
The update feature class or layer. Geometry type must be polygon. |
Feature Layer |
| <out_feature_class> |
The feature class to which the results will be written. |
Feature Class |
| {NO_FID | ONLY_FID | ALL} |
Determines which attributes will be transferred to the Output Feature Class.
|
String |
| {cluster_tolerance} |
The minimum distance separating all feature coordinates (nodes and vertices) as well as the distance a coordinate can move in X or Y (or both). You can set the value to be higher for data that has less coordinate accuracy and lower for datasets with extremely high accuracy. |
Linear unit |
Command line example
workspace d:\test_data symdiff forest\polygon cutzones.shp gdb.mdb\futurecut no_fid 0.25
Scripting syntax
About getting started with writing geoprocessing scripts
SymDiff_analysis (in_features, update_features, out_feature_class, join_attributes, cluster_tolerance)
| Parameter | Explanation | Data Type |
| in_features (Required) |
The input feature class or layer. Geometry type must be polygon. |
Feature Layer |
| update_features (Required) |
The update feature class or layer. Geometry type must be polygon. |
Feature Layer |
| out_feature_class (Required) |
The feature class to which the results will be written. |
Feature Class |
| join_attributes (Optional) |
Determines which attributes will be transferred to the Output Feature Class.
|
String |
| cluster_tolerance (Optional) |
The minimum distance separating all feature coordinates (nodes and vertices) as well as the distance a coordinate can move in X or Y (or both). You can set the value to be higher for data that has less coordinate accuracy and lower for datasets with extremely high accuracy. |
Linear unit |
Data types for geoprocessing tool parameters
Script example
# Create the geoprocessor
import arcgisscripting
gp = arcgisscripting.create()
# Use error trapping in case a problem occurs when running the SymDiff tool
try:
gp.SymDiff("c:/test_data/covs/forest", "c:/test_data/shp/cutzones.shp", "c:/test_data/gdb.mdb/futurecut", "only_fid" "0.25")
except:
print gp.GetMessage()