Layer actions operate on features contained in a tracking layer. Therefore, they can be applied to both real-time and fixed-time tracking layers. Layer actions are saved in a map document and configured through the Actions tab on the Layer Properties dialog box. If you save a tracking layer as a layer file in ArcMap or ArcGlobe, its action settings are saved along with the layer.
Unlike service actions, layer actions exist entirely in a client application such as ArcMap. Therefore, these actions are typically related to data visualization for analysis. For example, you can highlight features on the map that meet a certain trigger condition.
The complete set of layer actions available in Tracking Analyst are described below.
Highlight/Suppress
The Highlight/Suppress action changes the symbology of features that meet the trigger criteria that you define. The highlight action visually emphasizes events of interest by highlighting them using special symbology. You can choose the symbol to be used for the highlight, and it is placed behind the event's regular symbol when the map is drawn. The suppress action hides events that meet the trigger criteria by not drawing them on the map at all. When a highlight or suppress action is defined on a layer, it is immediately applied to all features meeting the trigger criteria in the layer.
Filter
The Filter layer action should not be confused with the Filter service action. The Filter layer action only allows you to specify events to be included in or excluded from further action processing. Tracking Analyst allows you to configure the order in which actions are processed, and understanding the ordering of actions is particularly important for this action. If there are no other layer actions defined after a filter action, the filter action will have no effect at all. If there are actions defined after the filter action, only events included in the filter (or not excluded from the filter) will be passed to the subsequent actions.