Save and duplicate layers

As a map author, you can customize the properties of layers in the map to suit your needs. For example, you can change the style of the layer or customize its pop-ups. When you make changes to a feature layer's properties, you can save the feature layer as an item in My Content, which allows you to use the layer configurations in other maps.

To visualize the data in a feature layer in different ways in the same map, you can duplicate the layer and configure different properties on the duplicate layer. For example, suppose the map has a feature layer of hospital service areas styled by the rate of depression. To visualize the rate of Alzheimer's using the data in the same feature layer, you can duplicate the layer and configure the style of the duplicate layer to show the rate of Alzheimer's. This allows you to visualize both the rate of depression and the rate of Alzheimer's using data in the same feature layer in the same map.

Use any of the following options to save or duplicate feature layers in Map Viewer:

• Save —Saves changes to an existing layer item. This option is available when you own the layer item or have privileges to edit it.
• Save as —Creates a new item in My Content from a layer in the map. The new item stores the layer properties and becomes the source for the layer in the map.
• Duplicate —Creates a new layer in the map from an existing layer in the map. The duplicate layer references the data in the source layer.

Note:

The option to duplicate a layer is available only for hosted feature layers, ArcGIS Server feature services, imagery layers, tiled imagery layers, and streaming feature layers. The option to save a layer is available only for hosted feature layers, ArcGIS Server feature services, imagery layers, tiled imagery layers, streaming feature layers, group layer items, route layers, table layers, and media layers. Support for duplicating and saving other layer types will be available in a future release of Map Viewer.

Save a layer

To make your feature layer configurations available for use in other maps, you can save the layer as an item in My Content. If you make changes to the properties of an existing feature layer and want to save your changes without modifying the source layer properties, you can save the layer as a new item. You can modify a layer's properties in Map Viewer or the Visualization tab of the layer's item page and save the property modifications.

Note:

The Visualization tab is not supported for all item types.

To save a layer in Map Viewer, do the following:

1. Verify that you are signed in and have privileges to create content.
2. Open a map you own that contains the layer you want to save, or add the desired layer to a new map in Map Viewer.
3. In the Layers pane, click Options next to the layer you want to save and click Save as .

   Tip:

   You can also save the layer by clicking Properties , expanding the Information section, and clicking Save as .
4. Provide the following information for the new item:
   • Type a title.
   • Choose a folder in My content where you want to save the layer.
   • If your organization has set up content categories, select categories to help people find the layer.
   • Type tags and a summary that describe the layer.
5. Click Save.

   The current layer properties are saved to a new item in My content. The new item becomes the source for the layer in the map.

6. To save additional changes to the layer, click Options and click Save .

Note:

Once you save a layer in Map Viewer, you cannot save changes to the layer in Map Viewer Classic.

Duplicate a layer

To save additional configurations of a feature layer in the map, you can duplicate the feature layer and configure different properties on the duplicate layer. The duplicate layer references the data in the source layer.

To duplicate a layer, do the following:

1. Verify that you are signed in and have privileges to create content.
2. Open a map you own that contains the layer you want to duplicate, or add the desired layer to a new map in Map Viewer.
3. In the Layers pane, click Options next to the layer you want to duplicate and click Duplicate .

   Tip:

   You can also duplicate the layer by clicking Properties , expanding the Information section, and clicking Duplicate .

   A duplicate layer is added to the Layers pane. You can now configure the properties of this layer and, optionally, save the layer as a new item in My Content. Changing the configuration of the duplicate layer does not affect the configuration of the source layer if you save the duplicate layer as a new item.

Considerations

Consider the following before saving and duplicating layers:

• Layer properties can be stored in the map or in the source layer. Each property of a duplicate layer is stored in the same way that the property is stored in the source layer. For example, if a source layer's pop-ups are stored with the source layer and not with the map, the duplicate layer's pop-ups also reference the source layer. If you configure the pop-ups on the duplicate layer and save the map, the pop-ups are then stored with the map. For more information, see Set layer properties.
• If you want the duplicate layer to reflect all future changes to the source layer, you can discard the duplicate layer configuration changes and reset the duplicate to the source layer properties. If you want to save the layer exactly as it appears in the map and not inherit further changes from the source layer, you can disconnect the layer properties. For more information, see Manage feature layer properties.

  Note:

  The ability to disconnect the duplicate layer properties from the source layer is not available for group layer items.

• If you duplicate an editable feature layer, the duplicate is also editable. Edits made to duplicates change the source data.