ArcGIS Feature Services in VS Code

Overview

ArcGIS is a mapping and location platform whose data lives in feature services: each service holds feature layers (with geometry) and non-spatial tables, made up of rows with typed attribute columns and a stable object-id, accessed through the ArcGIS REST API rather than SQL. DBCode connects directly to your portal so you can browse and edit that attribute data - and see the geometry on the map - alongside your other databases.

DBCode connects the same way to both portal shapes:

• ArcGIS Online: https://www.arcgis.com
• ArcGIS Enterprise: your own portal at https://<host>/portal

Connecting

To connect to ArcGIS in DBCode:

1. Open the DBCode extension and select Add Connection.
2. Select ArcGIS as the database type.
3. Enter the Portal URL: https://www.arcgis.com for ArcGIS Online, or your ArcGIS Enterprise portal address.
4. Enter an API Key, created in the ArcGIS developer dashboard (or your portal) and scoped to the feature services you want to browse.
5. Optionally, turn on Enable SSL/TLS to connect over HTTPS, even when the portal URL starts with http://, and to set how DBCode checks the server’s certificate: choose the Certificate Verification mode, add an SSL Server Certificate for a private or self-signed CA, and add an SSL Client Certificate and SSL Client Key when a proxy in front of your portal requires a client certificate.
6. Save the connection and open it from the DB Explorer.

Without these settings, an https:// portal is encrypted and verified against your system’s trusted certificates, which suits ArcGIS Online. Use them for an ArcGIS Enterprise portal behind a certificate your system does not trust, or behind a proxy that asks for a client certificate. DBCode sends the API key only over HTTPS, so a portal URL that starts with http:// needs Enable SSL/TLS turned on.

Each feature service you can reach appears as a database in DBCode, with its layers and tables listed underneath: the services you own, plus the feature services in your organization that your account can see.

Working with ArcGIS

• Browse feature services, layers, tables, and rows in the DB Explorer.
• Open a layer or table to load its rows into the grid; geometry columns render on the map view.
• Filter, sort, and page through rows - the query runs server-side.
• Add, update, and delete attribute rows on layers whose service permits editing; read-only layers open without edit actions.
• Connect read-only when you only need to look.

Layers, tables, and services are created and managed in ArcGIS itself.