Attribute Table function

The Attribute Table function allows you to define an attribute table to symbolize a single-band mosaic dataset or raster dataset. This is useful when you want to present imagery that has undergone a classification to land use, such as forest land, wetlands, crop land, and urban. Additionally, if your table contains fields named red, green, and blue, values within those fields will be used like a color map when rendering the image.

The attribute table is referenced when using this function, even when it is not stored within the dataset—as with raster datasets that can contain internal attribute tables.

The inputs for this function are the following:

• Input Raster
• Attribute Table—The table can come from one of the following:
  • A .dbf file
  • A raster dataset that has an attribute table
  • The table used in the Attribute Table function of another mosaic dataset

When the dataset is displayed, it can be symbolized based on the table values, and when the pixel is queried, the table values will be returned.

Apply the function to a mosaic dataset

1. Create a one-band mosaic dataset.

   You must define the number of bands as 1 when creating the mosaic dataset; otherwise, when you add the raster datasets that may have an associated color map, the mosaic dataset will become a three-band RGB mosaic dataset.

   1. Enter a name in the Mosaic Dataset Name field.
   2. Choose a Coordinate System for the mosaic dataset.
   3. Expand Pixel Properties and type 1 for Number of Bands.
   4. Click OK to run the tool.
2. In the Catalog window, right-click the mosaic dataset and click Properties.

   You need to choose some appropriate defaults to generate a mosaic dataset that will resample the pixels appropriately and display as a thematic image by default.

   1. Click the General tab and change Source Type to Thematic.

      

   2. Click the Defaults tab.
   3. Click the Allowed Compression Methods ellipsis button and uncheck JPEG and LERC, and then set Default Method to LZ77 or None.
   4. Change Default Resampling Method to Nearest Neighbor.

      

3. Add the raster data to the mosaic dataset. Optionally, check the Update Overviews option to build overviews, or build overviews when all data is added. If overviews are not built, calculate the statistics for the mosaic dataset after all the data is added.
4. In the Catalog window, right-click the mosaic dataset and click Properties.
5. Click the Functions tab.
6. Right-click Mosaic Function and click Insert > Attribute Table Function.
7. Click the Attribute Table browse button and browse to one of the supported attribute tables:
   • A .dbf file
   • A raster dataset that has an attribute table
   • The table used in the Attribute Table function of another mosaic dataset

   A raster attribute table contains pixel value and category name mapping that will be displayed in the table of contents, with OID, VALUE, and COUNT fields and optional Red, Green, and Blue columns that ArcGIS Desktop will recognize and use to colorize when rendering.

8. Click OK to close all the windows.

   Tip:

   You may have to remove the mosaic dataset from the table of contents and add it back to the display to see the changes to the properties of the mosaic dataset after adding the function.