What is it?
The Tall Timbers (TT) Web GIS is a collection of systems that allows Tall Timbers staff and collaborators to share data; create interactive maps; configure apps; and, conduct common geospatial workflows such as basic data collection, editing and reporting.
Figure 1: Tall Timbers Web GIS – The nexus of Tall Timbers’ staff, GDI and AGOL Organization.
The two systems that participate in the TT Web GIS are the Tall Timbers Geospatial Data Infrastructure (GDI) and the Tall Timbers ArcGIS Online Organization (AGOL). These systems are powered by the ideas and needs of the Organization’s staff and collaborators.
The GDI is a local system hosted onsite at Tall Timbers and consists of a set of virtualized servers that are configured with a base deployment of ESRI’s ArcGIS Enterprise 11.1 software. The Organization’s AGOL environment is a remote, cloud-based system which consists of space and resources on ESRI’s geospatial cloud, ArcGIS Online.
Similarities and Distinctions
The GDI and AGOL are online, geospatial content management systems that can be accessed both internally and externally. Both deliver their functionality in a web-based environment that is built on standards and protocols which support interaction and integration with a wide array of server, desktop and mobile clients. Standard web browsers, ESRI desktop and mobile software (ArcGIS Desktop, ArcGIS Pro, Collector for ArcGIS and Survey123) and open source software and standards like QGIS Desktop and the OGC WMS map service, are just a few examples of the possible clients and standards that can connect and interact with the systems.
At its core, the GDI is a small-scale version of ArcGIS Online, so the software and capabilities are very similar. Distinctions include scale, capacity, implementation/configuration, and to some degree, reliability. The GDI is a focused lean implementation of ArcGIS Enterprise that has been designed and configured to support the basic geospatial needs of Tall Timbers and its partners. ArcGIS Online, on the other hand, is a vast cloud-based environment built to support ESRI’s entire client-base and potentially the general public.
ESRI does apply feature enhancements and software updates to its geospatial cloud environment (ArcGIS Online) before it makes the same functionality available to its clients as ArcGIS Enterprise software upgrades, however. Therefore, at any given time, AGOL may have functionality and features that are not available locally in the GDI. The GDI is currently configured to support general geospatial use and is not configured to support high intensity processing (dense image processing, temporal or big data analytics). In order to support high-intensity uses, the system will require augmentation.
ESRI Licensing: Users, Roles and Credits
Access to the GDI or to the Tall Timbers AGOL account must be requested as neither is open to the public. The GDI and the Organization’s AGOL systems are configured and authorized according to Tall Timbers’ license agreement with ESRI. Typically, user types are assigned by ESRI based on organization type, size, and number of software licenses purchased. Tall Timbers participates in ESRI’s licensing program for non-profit organizations. This program provides Tall Timbers a discounted rate on ESRI’s software and caps it to a limited number of role-based users who can interact within the GDI or within the AGOL Organization. The users are defined by types which correspond to privileges or roles within the system. Each role has a set of privileges it can perform (view, edit, publish, etc.). Roles are assigned to members when they are invited to join one of the systems (GDI or AGOL).
Default types include Viewers, Editors, Field Workers, Creators and GIS Professionals. Default roles include Viewers, Data Editors, Users, Publishers and Administrators. Basic privileges such as viewing data or maps shared as a public resource do not expend any of the Organizations’ licenses, but advanced functionality such as field data collection and editing do require a license. Therefore, in order to share and interact with data that has not been made public, a license is required.
With regards to AGOL, there is not just a set number of role-based users that can register to use the system, there is also a finite number of credits that ESRI provides to the Organization. Credits are the currency used in AGOL and they are consumed based on data storage (feature and file) within the AGOL Organization (within their geospatial cloud) and based on usage of certain capabilities, such as geocoding, spatial analysis, etc.
Therefore, requests for access to the GDI and/or AGOL and requests for capabilities within AGOL must be balanced against internal staff needs and priorities, as the number of staff employees currently outnumbers the number of licenses and some current projects are already consuming credits within AGOL. Within the GDI there are no credits consumed based on capabilities used, nor are credits consumed based on file or feature storage. Instead, the only limitation is the current capacity of the system (generally limited by budget). The system is currently configured to support general geospatial use and is not configured to support high-intensity image processing, spatiotemporal, nor big data.