Available WMS service properties

This topic explains the properties available when using a system-generated capabilities file for WMS services. See Use external capabilities files with WMS services to learn more about defining WMS metadata by using an external capabilities file.

Access WMS service properties

The following topics include full instructions on how to access the properties for WMS services:

• Access WMS service properties in Manager
• Access WMS service properties in ArcGIS Desktop

WMS service properties

The following table lists the properties available for WMS services and a description of each:

Property	Description
Name	The OGC service type. This property is automatically populated by ArcGIS Server and should not be modified.
Title	The name of the map or image service that was used to create the WMS service. This property is automatically populated by ArcGIS Server and should not be modified.
Abstract	A narrative description that provides additional information about the WMS service. For example: WMS service maintained by Acme Corporation. Contact: [e-mail]. High-quality map showing eagle nests and possible nesting locations.
Keywords	A list of keywords or keyword phrases describing the WMS service that aid in catalog searching. For example: map, bird, eagle, nest, site
Online Resource	The OnlineResource property lists the URL of the WMS service. It is necessary for a WMS client to communicate correctly with your WMS service. This property is automatically populated by ArcGIS Server and should not be modified.
ContactPerson	The primary contact person for the WMS service. For example: John Smith
ContactPosition	The position of the contact person for the WMS service. For example: IT Analyst
ContactOrganization	The organization that created the WMS service. For example: NASA
Address type	The address type used by the organization that created the WMS service. For example: postal
Address	The address of the organization that created the WMS service. For example: 380 New York Street
City	The city in which the organization that created the WMS service resides. For example: Redlands
StateorProvince	The state in which the organization that created the WMS service resides. For example: California
PostCode	The postal code in which the organization that created the WMS service resides. For example: 92373
Country	The country in which the organization that created the WMS service resides. For example: USA
ContactVoiceTelephone	The telephone number where the primary contact person for the WMS service can be reached. For example: [phone]
ContactFacsimileTelephone	The fax number where the primary contact person for the WMS service can be reached. For example: [phone]
ContactElectronicMailAddress	The email address where the primary contact person for the WMS service can be reached. For example: [e-mail]
Fees	Text describing the fees imposed when accessing the WMS service. For example: none
Access constraints	Text describing the restrictions and legal prerequisites for accessing and using the WMS service. For internal use only. Do not distribute.
SLD Path or URL	SLDs allow you to publish multiple styles for each WMS layer. If you are binding an SLD file to the current WMS service, you need to enter the SLD path or URL property, network share, or physical location of an SLD XML file. The ArcGIS Server account must have access to the location for ArcGIS Server to properly read the SLD XML file. To learn more about SLDs, see Using Styled Layer Descriptors with WMS services.
Additional spatial reference systems	This property can be used to add additional spatial reference systems to WMS services. By default, WMS services only list two spatial reference systems: EPSG:4326 (or CSR:84 for WMS 1.3.0) and the spatial reference of the map service that WMS is enabled on. To list additional spatial reference systems, separate the spatial reference systems with a comma (,). For example, EPSG:4267,EPSG:4269,EPSG:102113. The EPSG namespace (for example, EPSG) and the EPSG ID (for example, 4267) must be separated by a colon (:), or the spatial reference will be ignored by the server.
Custom spatial reference systems	This property allows you to define a custom projection or well-known text (WKT) representation of a projection in a WMS service. This means publishers and consumers of the WMS can do the following: Assign IDs to custom projections and advertise them through the WMS capabilities file. Overwrite an existing projection with a WKT string. Request a map in a particular projection by directly specifying the well-known text.
Identify tolerance (pixels)	This property allows you to define a tolerance (in pixels) in which the GetFeatureInfo operation will return feature information to the client when they click the screen. For example, if you define a pixel tolerance of 10 for your WMS, the information will be returned to the client as long as they click within 10 pixels of the feature on the screen.
Use layer names from the map document	By default, this option is unchecked, meaning that layers in the WMS service will be represented with zero-based integers, indicating their position in the table of contents from the top down. Checking this check box will allow the layer names to be represented with the same strings that are used in the map document's table of contents. All the layer names in the map must be unique and cannot contain any of the characters &, <, >, ", or '. If you need to use one of these characters, refer to the character substitute table below.
Force map re-aspect based on width and height	This property determines whether the map is re-aspected or not. By default, this option is deselected, which means that the pixels representing the map area are stretched to fit into the height and width requested by WMS clients. If this option is selected, the pixel height and width ratio will stay the same. When a map is requested at full extent, it may not fill the entire viewing area.
Assign a name identifier to a layer	By default, WMS services do not assign a <Name> to group layers. To let a WMS service assign a name to group layers, set namedLayersMode to allLayers.

Set the IdentifyToleranceInPixel property

The IdentifyToleranceInPixel property allows you to define a tolerance (in pixels) in which the GetFeatureInfo operation will return feature information to the client when they click the screen. For example, if you define a pixel tolerance of 10 for your WMS, the information will be returned to the client as long as they click within 10 pixels of the feature on the screen.

At 10.7, this property can be configured using Manager. Prior to 10.7, this property could only be added to the list of WMS properties using the ArcGIS Server Administrator Directory.

To add this property using the directory, follow these steps:

1. Open the Administrator Directory in a browser and log in. The typical URL to the directory is https://gisserver.domain.com:6443/arcgis/admin/.
2. Click services.
3. On the Folder page, click the name of the WMS-enabled map service that you want to edit. If you don't see your service in the list, it may be located in a subfolder under the root folder.
4. On the service's page, scroll to the bottom and click edit.
5. On the Service Properties dialog box, locate the "typeName": "WMSServer" section.
6. In the properties section, add the IdentifyToleranceInPixel property and specify the desired pixel tolerance, for example:

   "properties": {
       "IdentifyToleranceInPixel": "10",
       ...

7. Click Save Edits.

The IdentifyToleranceInPixel property is added to your WMS.

Set the listCustomCRS property

The listCustomCRS property allows you to define a custom projection or WKT representation of a projection in a WMS service. This means that publishers and consumers of the WMS can do the following:

• Assign IDs to custom projections and advertise them through the WMS capabilities file
• Overwrite an existing projection with a WKT string
• Request a map in a particular projection by directly specifying the well-known text

At 10.7, this property can be configured using Manager. Prior to 10.7, this property could only be added to the list of WMS properties using the ArcGIS Server Administrator Directory.

To add this property using the directory, follow these steps:

1. Open the Administrator Directory in a browser and sign in. The typical URL to the directory is https://gisserver.domain.com:6443/arcgis/admin/.
2. Click services.
3. On the Folder page, click the name of the WMS-enabled map service that you want to edit. If you don't see your service in the list, it may be located in a subfolder under the root folder.
4. On the service's page, scroll to the bottom and click edit.
5. On the Service Properties dialog box, locate the "typeName": "WMSServer" section.
6. In the properties section, add the listCustomCRS property and define the custom projection or WKT representation of a projection. For example, to define a default custom projection for your WMS service, use the following:

   "properties": {
       "listCustomCRS": "EPSG:200001=DEFAULT",
       ...

7. Click Save Edits.

The listCustomCRS property is added to your WMS. For more information on how to define a custom projection or WKT and request a map in a specific projection, see Define a custom projection for a WMS service.

Set the namedLayersMode property

The namedLayersMode property allows you to control how layers in a WMS service are assigned a Name identifier. If the property is set to allLayers, a Name identifier is assigned both to group layers and to their sublayers. If it is set to subLayers or left unspecified, a Name identifier is only assigned to the sublayers of a group layer. This means clients cannot include a group layer in a GetMap request, but have to specify each individual sublayer inside the group layer.

This property can be added to the list of WMS properties using the ArcGIS Server Administrator Directory. To add this property, follow these steps:

1. Open the ArcGIS Server Administrator Directory in a browser and sign in. The typical URL to the directory https://gisserver.domain.com:6443/arcgis/admin/.
2. Click services.
3. On the Folder page, click the name of the WMS-enabled map service that you want to edit. If you don't see your service in the list, it may be located in a subfolder under the root folder.
4. On the service's page, scroll to the bottom and click edit.
5. In the Service Properties dialog box, locate the "typeName": "WMSServer" section.
6. In the properties section, add the namedLayersMode property and set its value to be either subLayers or allLayers.

   "properties": {
      "namedLayersMode": "allLayers",
      ...

7. Click Save Edits.

Special characters in service properties

The following characters cannot be included in any of the service properties: &, <, >, ", '. If you need to use one of these characters, you must substitute the appropriate escape sequence from the table below:

Character	Character substitute
&	&
<	&lt;
>	&gt;
"	&quot;
'	&apos;