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Migrating from one type of single-user geodatabase to another

Migrating from one type of single-user geodatabase to another
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About migrating between single-user geodatabases

Note:This topic was updated for 9.3.1.

If you have been using personal geodatabases stored in Microsoft Access, you might reach the maximum file size but still want to use a single-user geodatabase. You could move your data to a file geodatabase, which has a size limit of 1,000 GB per table. Or you might decide you want to take advantage of the ArcSDE functionality (versioned editing, history, and multigeneration replication) in an ArcSDE geodatabase for SQL Server Express but still want to use a single-user geodatabase. You can move the data in your personal or file geodatabase to an ArcSDE geodatabase licensed through an ArcInfo or ArcEditor license level of ArcGIS Desktop.

All these geodatabases are limited to single editors but can be accessed concurrently by a few users.

For all migrations, the easiest method is to copy the contents of one geodatabase and paste them into another.

NOTE: There are certain limitations between database types that could prove problematic if you move from a personal geodatabase to an ArcSDE geodatabase. These include spaces in the names of database objects, name length limitations, and data type conversion issues including memo fields (in personal geodatabases) being interpreted as binary large object (BLOB) fields.

How to

Migrate from a personal geodatabase to a file geodatabase

  1. In the Catalog tree, click the personal geodatabase from which you want to migrate.

  2. On the Contents tab, click the first data item in the list. Then, while holding down the Shift key, click the last data item in the list. This will select all items in the personal geodatabase.

  3. Right-click one of the selected items and click Copy.

  4. Right-click the file geodatabase to which you want to migrate and click Paste. If the file geodatabase does not yet exist, you must create one.

    5. See Creating a new geodatabase topic in the "Creating a new geodatabase" section of the help for instructions.

  5. On the Data Transfer dialog box, confirm that all items you want to transfer are listed.

  6. If you want to specify a configuration keyword for any of the data items being transferred, click in the Config Keyword field. From the pull-down list, choose the desired keyword.

    7. For more information on configuration keywords, see Configuration keywords for file geodatabases in the "Defining the properties of a geodatabase" section of the help.

  7. Click OK.

Migrate from a personal or file geodatabase to an ArcSDE geodatabase for SQL Server Express

  1. In the Catalog tree, click the personal or file geodatabase from which you want to migrate.

  2. On the Contents tab, hold down the Shift key and click the first item in the list and the last item in the list. This will select all the contents of the personal or file geodatabase.

  3. Right-click one of the selected items and click Copy.

  4. Open the Database Servers folder.

  5. To confirm that you are connected to the database server, double-click it. When you are connected, the icon will no longer have a red X on it.

  6. Right-click the geodatabase to which you want to migrate and choose Paste from the context menu. If the geodatabase does not yet exist on the desired ArcSDE database server, you must create it.

    7. See Creating a new geodatabase topic in the "Creating a new geodatabase" section of the help for instructions.

  7. On the Data Transfer dialog box, confirm that all the data items you want to migrate are listed.

  8. Click OK.

Migrate from an ArcSDE geodatabase for SQL Server Express to a file geodatabase

  1. In the Catalog tree, connect to the database server that contains the geodatabase from which you want to migrate by double-clicking it. When you are connected, the icon will no longer have a red X on it.

  2. Click the geodatabase from which you want to migrate.

  3. On the Contents tab, click the first item in the list. Then, while holding down the Shift key, click the last item in the list. This will select the entire contents of the geodatabase.

  4. Right-click one of the items and click Copy.

  5. In the ArcCatalog tree, right-click the file geodatabase to which you want to migrate and click Paste. If the file geodatabase does not yet exist, create one.

    6. See Creating a new geodatabase topic in the "Creating a new geodatabase" section of the help for instructions.

  6. On the Data Transfer dialog box, confirm that all the data items you want to migrate are present.

  7. If you want to specify a configuration keyword for any of the data items being imported, click the Config Keyword field. From the pull-down list, choose the desired keyword.

    8. For more information on configuration keywords, see Configuration keywords for file geodatabases in the "Defining the properties of a geodatabase" section of the help.

  8. Click OK.

See Also

  • An overview of scaling and moving a geodatabase