You can configure ArcGIS Enterprise to generate printable documents from web maps and apps; this is done with print services. There are varying levels of functionality and customization available depending on the print service configured with your ArcGIS Enterprise organization. Print service options include the following:
- The ArcGIS Enterprise default print service
- The PrintingTools service from an ArcGIS Server site
- A custom print service
The portal comes with a default print service as described below. You can configure your stand-alone portal or federated portal and server site to use the PrintingTools service from an ArcGIS Server instance. If you federate your portal and server site and configure a hosting server, the hosting server's print service is automatically started and configured with the portal. However, if you've previously configured a print service with your portal, the URL is not updated when specifying a hosting server. You must start the service, share the service, and configure it as a utility service.
Legacy:
In 10.3, if you specified a hosting server for your portal, the service was automatically configured with the portal, but you were required to start the service and share it. Beginning at 10.3.1, you only need to share the service.
Additional configuration is necessary when you use an ArcGIS Server print service with services that members add to the portal through HTTPS. You must configure any machine that runs the print service to trust Certificate Authority (CA) signed certificates from the site providing the HTTPS services. This configuration must take place at the operating system level. See Enabling SSL using a new CA-signed certificate for details on how to do this.
The organization's default print service
By default, ArcGIS Enterprise comes with a print service with basic printing functionality. The default print service allows you to print or preview map and feature services from Map Viewer in PNG format. This PNG image is a MAP_ONLY view of the web map and is 670 x 500 pixels. The default print service does not support printing other service types, such as WMS, or files. As well, you can only print cached map services using the default print service when dynamic layers are enabled for the service. You cannot use the default print service with web app templates or ArcGIS Web AppBuilder.
Note:
Make sure the portal is configured to trust certificates from your certifying authority so the default print service can print map and feature services added to the portal that use HTTPS.
The default print service is configured when the Printing dialog box in the organization's Utility Services settings reads Default.
The PrintingTools service
PrintingTools is a preconfigured service in the Utilities folder of an ArcGIS Server site that creates a printable document using one of a set of predefined map layouts. These include basic designs using 8.5 by 11 inch, 11 by 17 inch, A3, and A4 paper sizes in both portrait and landscape orientations. Each layout contains a north arrow, scale bar and ratio, legend, date, and title. The supported output formats from the PrintingTools service are PDF (georeferenced), PNG32, PNG8, JPG, GIF, EPS, SVG, and SVGZ.
The PrintingTools service is stopped by default. Use ArcGIS Server Manager or an administrative GIS Server connection in ArcMap to start the service if you want to support printing workflows. Once the PrintingTools service has started, you can access it using a URL with the following format: https://webadaptorhost.domain.com/webadaptorname/rest/services/Utilities/PrintingTools/GPServer/Export%20Web%20Map%20Task
To configure PrintingTools for your ArcGIS Enterprise organization, see Configure utility services. After you configure a PrintingTools service for the organization, the service is used automatically in the Web AppBuilder print widget and the web app templates that contain print widgets, and the Map Viewer Print button generates a MAP_ONLY view of the web map. To print using the predefined layouts that come with PrintingTools, share the web map in an app from Web AppBuilder or a web app template with printing functionality enabled. You can print from the Basic Viewer, Classic Viewer, and Map Tools web app templates.
Note:
When your map service is cached, the PrintingTools service may use a resolution that is too low (for example, 96 DPI) for large-format or high-quality printing. To print at higher resolutions, enable dynamic layers on your cached map service. This allows the print service to obtain map images through an export map request at the desired resolution (for example, 300 DPI) instead of the lower resolution tiles. To learn more, see About dynamic layers.
Custom print services
If you want to use your map layouts, you can publish your own service for web map printing similar to PrintingTools. Configure this service to reference your folder that you've prepared with various map layouts—either ArcMap documents (.mxd) or ArcGIS Pro projects (.aprx).
You can find instructions for publishing your own service for web printing (and pointing it at your own layouts folder) in Publish a print service from ArcMap. The tutorial also explains what to do if you later decide you want to update your layouts. Your update approach will vary based on whether you registered your layouts folder with the server before publishing; the tutorial contains instructions for both scenarios.
Next, configure the custom print service with your ArcGIS Enterprise organization. See Configure utility services for steps on how to do this. Note that ArcGIS Enterprise requires the custom print service to use HTTPS.
After you configure the custom print service with your organization, it is used automatically in the Web AppBuilder print widget and the web app templates that contain print widgets. With a custom print service configured with the portal, the Map Viewer Print button generates a MAP_ONLY view of the web map. To print using your custom layouts, share the web map in an app from Web AppBuilder or a web app template with printing functionality enabled. You can print from the Basic Viewer, Classic Viewer, and Map Tools web app templates.
When your map service is cached, your custom print service may use a resolution that is too low (for example, 96 DPI) for large-format or high-quality printing. To print at higher resolutions, it is recommended that you enable dynamic layers on your cached map service. This allows the print service to obtain map images (through an export map request) at the desired resolution (for example, 300 DPI) instead of the lower resolution tiles. To learn more, see Dynamic layers.
Custom print layouts in Map Viewer
You can provide custom layouts for printing from Map Viewer. Layouts are based on what's provided in the organization's print service.
Add a print service according to the steps provided in Configure utility services. After ArcGIS Enterprise validates the REST URL you provide, you'll see all the initial layout templates provided by your print service. You'll also see the option to print the legend if it is available. If your ArcGIS Enterprise organization has more than one print layout available, the Map Viewer Print button includes a drop-down list of the different print layouts. You can create, edit, or delete templates to have a more customized experience for printing maps in Map Viewer. These changes are saved as a setting in ArcGIS Enterprise; they are not saved to the print service.
You can manage the layout templates in the following ways:
- To create a layout, click Create Print Template and type a name up to 50 characters in length and a description up to 120 characters in length. The characters < and > are filtered out. Choose the format—Image (PNG32) or PDF—and a layout (provided by your print service). Check the box to print the legend if your service includes a legend. Click Create and Save to save the new layout.
- To view information about a template, click the information button
next to the template. - To edit an existing template, click the edit button
next to the template and make your updates. Click Update to see your changes and click Save to save your changes. - To delete an existing template, click the Delete button
next to the template. - To update the template list to include what's currently provided in your print service, click Refresh. New print layouts in the service are added to the template list. Templates based on print layouts that are no longer available in the service are removed.
- To reset the templates back to what's provided in your print service, remove the print service URL, click Save, and type the print service URL again.
- If you want the default Map Viewer print experience, delete all your layout templates and click Save. You see Map Only in your template list.
- The Map Only layout comes with all print services by default. This layout contains only the contents of the map with no other layout elements.
Legends
Whether your ArcGIS Enterprise organization is configured to use PrintingTools or a custom print service, the legends in your printed output behave similarly. When you print feature services, the legend in the printed document only includes legend entries for the features found in the map extent, whereas legends for other service types include all the legend entries for the features regardless of the map extent.
Note:
Legends for stream layers, WMS, layers with transparency, and layers that use smart mapping may not display correctly.