ArcGIS Desktop

  • ArcGIS Pro
  • ArcMap

  • My Profile
  • Help
  • Sign Out
ArcGIS Desktop

ArcGIS Online

The mapping platform for your organization

ArcGIS Desktop

A complete professional GIS

ArcGIS Enterprise

GIS in your enterprise

ArcGIS for Developers

Tools to build location-aware apps

ArcGIS Solutions

Free template maps and apps for your industry

ArcGIS Marketplace

Get apps and data for your organization

  • Documentation
  • Support
Esri
  • Sign In
user
  • My Profile
  • Sign Out

ArcGIS Help

  • Home
  • Get Started
  • Map
  • Analyze
  • Manage Data
  • Tools
  • More...

Client and geodatabase compatibility

  • Compatible releases
  • When do you need to upgrade a geodatabase?

The geodatabases described in Types of geodatabases can be accessed by various Esri client software. These include the following:

  • ArcGIS for Desktop
  • ArcGIS for Server applications and services (not supported with personal or desktop geodatabases)

Compatible releases

You do not have to keep your geodatabase and ArcGIS clients at the same release. Just be aware that, when you make a connection between releases, the functionality available to you may be limited.

The following table indicates which version of ArcGIS client applications can connect to which versions of the geodatabase:

Client releasePersonal geodatabase release (ArcGIS for Desktop only)File geodatabase releaseEnterprise, workgroup, or desktop geodatabase using a direct connectionEnterprise geodatabase using an ArcSDE service connection

10*

9.1, 9.2, 9.3, 9.3.1 10, 10.1, 10.2, 10.2.1, 10.2.2, 10.3, 10.3.1

9.2, 9.3, 10, 10.1, 10.2, 10.2.1, 10.2.2, 10.3, 10.3.1

9.2, 9.3, 10, 10.1, 10.2, 10.3, 10.3.1

9.2, 9.3, 10, 10.1, 10.2

10.1

9.2, 9.3, 9.3.1, 10, 10.1, 10.2, 10.2.1, 10.2.2, 10.3, 10.3.1

9.2, 9.3, 9.3.1, 10, 10.1, 10.2, 10.2.1, 10.2.2, 10.3, 10.3.1

9.3, 9.3.1, 10, 10.1, 10.2, 10.2.1, 10.2.2, 10.3, 10.3.1

9.3, 9.3.1, 10, 10.1, 10.2, 10.2.1, 10.2.2

10.2 (including 10.2.1 and 10.2.2)

9.2, 9.3, 9.3.1, 10, 10.1, 10.2, 10.2.1, 10.2.2, 10.3, 10.3.1

9.2, 9.3, 9.3.1, 10, 10.1, 10.2, 10.2.1, 10.2.2, 10.3, 10.3.1

9.3, 9.3.1, 10, 10.1, 10.2, 10.2.1, 10.2.2, 10.3, 10.3.1

9.3, 9.3.1, 10, 10.1, 10.2, 10.2.1, 10.2.2

10.3 (including 10.3.1)

9.3, 9.3.1, 10, 10.1, 10.2, 10.2.1, 10.2.2, 10.3, 10.3.1

9.3, 9.3.1, 10, 10.1, 10.2, 10.2.1, 10.2.2, 10.3, 10.3.1

10, 10.1, 10.2, 10.2.1, 10.2.2, 10.3, 10.3.1

You can connect to 9.3 and 9.3.1 geodatabases to upgrade them.

10, 10.1, 10.2, 10.2.1, 10.2.2

*Esri recommends that ArcGIS 10 clients connecting to 10.1 or later release geodatabases use 10 SP2, which contains several fixes to improve the user experience for connections.

For more information on client connections made to enterprise geodatabases, see the topic appropriate to your database management system:

  • Compatibility between clients and geodatabases in DB2
  • Compatibility between clients and geodatabases in Informix
  • Compatibility between clients and geodatabases in Oracle
  • Compatibility between clients and geodatabases in PostgreSQL
  • Compatibility between clients and geodatabases in SQL Server

Functionality available when using mixed client and geodatabase releases

You do not need to upgrade the geodatabase to the current release to take advantage of the following functionality:

  • Python scripting with annotation and dimension feature classes
  • Editor tracking on tables and feature classes
  • Network datasets that include functionality for live traffic data, soft restrictions, preferred truck routes, and Python script evaluators
  • Mosaic datasets that include improved generation of seamlines and footprints, support for more raster types, additional properties, and tools to analyze the mosaic dataset for known errors or limitations

When you connect from an ArcGIS 10.3.x client to a version 10 geodatabase, you can create datasets with 10.3.x functionality, while still allowing ArcGIS 10 clients to connect and use the geodatabase. This allows you to migrate your desktop clients to newer releases over time to take advantage of new functionality without having to immediately upgrade your geodatabase.

While ArcGIS 10 clients can open, query, edit, and save data in 10.1, 10.2.x, and 10.3.x geodatabases, they cannot open datasets with 10.1, 10.2.x, or 10.3.x functionality and will encounter the following error message when trying to open one of these datasets:

The version of the Geodatabase client is incompatible with the dataset and cannot open it.

Similarly, you can apply Conflict Field Filters to versioned tables and feature classes with ArcGIS 10.2.1 or later release clients. However, you will receive the afore mentioned error if you try to open these versioned tables and feature classes using an ArcGIS 10.2 or earlier version client.

When do you need to upgrade a geodatabase?

In many cases, upgrading the geodatabase is optional. You should upgrade, though, if either of the following is true:

  • The client release you are using cannot connect to the geodatabase release you want to use.
  • You want to take advantage of functionality available in a newer release of the geodatabase.

For more information on geodatabase upgrades, see the upgrade topics appropriate to the type of geodatabase you are using:

File or personal geodatabases

Upgrade file and personal geodatabases

Desktop or workgroup geodatabases

Upgrade geodatabases on database servers

Enterprise geodatabases in DB2 on Linux or Windows

Upgrade a geodatabase in DB2

Enterprise geodatabases in DB2 on the z operating system

Upgrade a geodatabase for DB2 on z/OS

Enterprise geodatabases in Informix

Upgrade a geodatabase in Informix

Enterprise geodatabases in Oracle

Upgrade a geodatabase in Oracle

Enterprise geodatabases in PostgreSQL

Upgrade a geodatabase in PostgreSQL

Enterprise geodatabases in SQL Server

Upgrade a geodatabase in SQL Server

ArcGIS Desktop

  • Home
  • Documentation
  • Support

ArcGIS Platform

  • ArcGIS Online
  • ArcGIS Desktop
  • ArcGIS Enterprise
  • ArcGIS for Developers
  • ArcGIS Solutions
  • ArcGIS Marketplace

About Esri

  • About Us
  • Careers
  • Esri Blog
  • User Conference
  • Developer Summit
Esri
Tell us what you think.
Copyright © 2019 Esri. | Privacy | Legal