This article outlines the shapefile types that are supported by our Mass Notification system (formerly CivicReady) for use in your alerting map.
What can shapefiles be used for?
Shapefiles can be imported by the Mass Notification Support Team for your organization for two use cases.
Defining your alerting boundary
Adding additional layers to your alerting map
What file formats are supported for shape files?
Depending on your use case, we can support the file formats below.
Defining Your Alerting Boundary
Esri Shapefiles
The .ZIP file must contain at least the .SHP, .SHX, .DBF, and .PRJ files components of the shapefile.
Compression formats other than a .zip archive are not supported.
When you create a .ZIP file that contains the .SHP, .SHX, .DBF, and .PRJ files that comprise the shapefile, store your shapefile directly in the root (the central directory) of the .ZIP archive, not in directories within the archive. If your .ZIP file viewer shows path information, the path should be blank.
The shapefile must contain valid geometries. If you have ArcGIS Pro or ArcMap, you can use the Repair Geometry geoprocessing tool to correct invalid geometries in shapefiles. Invalid geometries cannot be published or drawn in Map Viewer Classic.
The following features are not supported: multipatch or multipoint geometries, geometries that cross the dateline, and self-intersections in polygons. Shapefiles with these features cannot be added to Map Viewer Classic.
Adding Additional Layers for Selection in Your Alerting Map
Esri Shapefile (ZIP archive containing all shapefile files, see additional details above)
.CSV or .TXT files with optional address, place, or coordinate locations (comma, semi-colon, or tab-delimited)
GPX (GPS Exchange Format)
GeoJSON (open standard format for simple geographical features)
Layers can also be imported from a publicly available ArcGIS Server Web Service
An ArcGIS Server web service is a GIS resource that contains shapefiles, map layers, and other mapping resources for your organization.
These services are typically managed by an internal or contracted GIS team.
Each of these services is assigned a custom URL that can be used to import the publicly available resources from the service to an external application, such as the mapping tool for sending alerts.
For more information, view Esri's "ArcGIS Server web services" article.
Note:
If you would like to add additional layers or use a shapefile to update your organization's alerting boundary, submit a ticket to Support. Please include the name of your organization and the file(s) that you would like us to import.
Other Shapefile Limitations
File Size and Dataset Limitation
Shapefile or GeoJSON file with point data can contain 1,000 features
Shapefile or GeoJSON file with polygon or line data can contain 1,000 features
Shapefiles must be smaller than 2, and GeoJSON files must be smaller than 10 MB
For more information, see the "My dataset is too large to add directly to the map" section of the ArcGIS "Troubleshoot" article.
Note:
If your shapefiles exceed any of the limitations above, you will need to work with your GIS team to create a hosted feature layer. As long as the hosted layer or web map service they create is publicly available, it can be added to your alerting map in the Mass Notification system.
For helpful information from Esri regarding hosted feature layers, see their "Publish hosted feature layers" article.