Publishing Express Server WMS Catalogs as ArcGIS Server Layers

Express Server WMS catalogs can be published on an ArcGIS Server if you have ArcMap and access to an Express Server. The advantage of this workflow is that the ArcGIS Server performance is improved when Express Server handles the raster layers via WMS.

To do this, you must connect to the LizardTech WMS server via ArcMAP and then save the catalog as an ArcMap document. ArcMap documents can later be published as layers on ArcGIS Server providing you have the appropriate ESRI Server licensing to publish map services.

To save an Express Server WMS image as a map document in ArcMap.

1. Start ArcMAP and click Add Data. The Add Data dialog appears as shown below.

   

2. Select GIS Servers, then select Add WMS Server. The Add WMS Server dialog opens as shown below.

   

3. In the URL field, enter the LizardTech Express Server WMS address using the format http://<your server>:<port>/lizardtech/iserv/ows? For example:

   http://demo.lizardtech.com/lizardtech/iserv/ows?

   You can verify the connectivity with the server or the WMS catalogs available by selecting Get Layers, but this is not required. Note: If no port is specified, the default of port 80 is assumed.

4. Click OK. A new option appears in the Add Data dialog corresponding to the selected Express Server, to which you are now connected.

5. Double-click the name of the newly added server. This displays the next level in the WMS server hierarchy. Double-click again to access the next level and so on to the level of the catalog you would like to add, as shown below.

   

6. Double-click that catalog or click Add (clicking Add at one of the intermediate levels may result in an error). The catalog appears listed as a layer, as shown below.

   

7. (Optional) Apply post-processing if desired.

8. Select the catalog and choose Save As from the File menu. The Save As dialog appears, as shown below. Name the file, then choose ArcMap Document (*.mxd) in the Save as type drop-down menu and click Save.

   

To publish an Express Server WMS image as a map document in ArcGIS Server:

1. After following the above procedure, place the newly created MXD file in a data directory accessible by your ArcGIS Server.

2. Publish the ArcMAP document to your ArcGIS Server via ArcCatalog or via ArcGIS Server Manager (see ESRI's documentation for these products). Your newly published ArcGIS service now automatically extracts the raster layer from the Express Server WMS image, as shown below.