Feature class representations give you greater flexibility and control of your map symbology by storing complex, rule-based symbols in the geodatabase along with the map data. You will learn different ways to create a feature class representation within a geodatabase and how to convert symbolized layers into feature class representations.

Creating and modifying feature class representations require an ArcEditor or ArcInfo license. You will need at least an ArcEditor license to complete the steps of this tutorial.

This map contains layers that are already symbolized. In this tutorial you will see how to use representations to update and improve some of the symbology.

To create representations for a feature class that is represented by a layer on a map, right-click the layer in the table of contents and click Convert Symbology to Representation. The represention will have rules for each of the symbols used in the layer.

The Representation Name property is automatically populated with the name of the feature class plus _Rep.

The RuleID Field is the name of the field that will store an integer value for a feature that references a particular representation rule that dictates how it will be symbolized. The default name for this field is RuleID.

The Override Field is the field that stores any overrides to a representation rule for a feature. It is a BLOB field type. The default name for this field is Override.

The Behavior When Representation Geometry Is Edited property tells ArcGIS where to store geometry edits made with the representation editing tools. These changes can be stored in either the Override field or the Shape field of the feature class.

The new layer (in this example, RoadL_Rep) is added to the table of contents. The original layer (symbolized in this example with unique values) is still in the table of contents below the new representation layer.