9.3 Geospatial Packages (Map Packages, Project Packages, Geoprocessing Packages)

Geospatial Packages

Quick Answer: Geospatial packages are compressed files that bundle GIS resources—like maps, layers, projects, and geoprocessing tools—along with their referenced data. This makes it easy to share complex GIS work with colleagues, clients, or across isolated network environments without worrying about broken data links.

While web services are ideal for broad consumption and web-based applications, there are many scenarios where you need to share the actual ArcGIS Pro project files, tools, or raw data. For example, you might need to send a project to a colleague for further analysis, archive a completed map, or deliver a geoprocessing model to a client. This is where Packages come in.

A package in ArcGIS Pro is essentially a compressed archive (similar to a .zip file) that encapsulates the GIS item and, crucially, the data it references. When another user unpacks the file, ArcGIS Pro automatically reconstructs the item and repaths the data connections, ensuring everything works seamlessly out of the box.

Map Packages (.mpkx)

A Map Package (.mpkx) contains a single map (or scene) and all the data referenced by the layers in that map.

Use Cases

• Sharing a Specific Map: When you want to share a fully symbolized map document but don't need to share the entire project (which might contain layouts and other maps).
• Archiving: Saving a snapshot of a map and its data at a specific point in time.

When you create a map package, ArcGIS Pro consolidates the spatial data (shapefiles, file geodatabase feature classes, etc.) and bundles it with the map definition. If your map contains web layers, the package will maintain the references to those web URLs rather than downloading the web data.

Layer Packages (.lpkx)

A Layer Package (.lpkx) bundles the properties of one or more layers (such as symbology, labeling, and definition queries) with the actual dataset referenced by the layer.

Use Cases

• Standardizing Symbology: Distributing a specific layer (e.g., a complex geologic fault layer) to a team so everyone uses the exact same symbology and dataset.
• Data Delivery: Sending a subset of data with predefined cartography rather than just sending a raw shapefile or geodatabase.

A layer package differs from a layer file (.lyrx). A .lyrx file only stores the pointer to the data and the rendering rules. If you email someone a .lyrx file without the underlying data, the layer will be broken (represented by a red exclamation point). A .lpkx includes both the rendering rules and the data.

Project Packages (.ppkx)

A Project Package (.ppkx) is the most comprehensive packaging option. It bundles an entire ArcGIS Pro project, including all maps, scenes, layouts, toolboxes, database connections, folder connections, and the data referenced by the project.

Use Cases

• Collaborative Workflows: Passing an entire project to a colleague who needs to pick up exactly where you left off.
• Project Archiving: Creating a complete, self-contained backup of a project upon its conclusion.
• Offline Delivery: Sending a massive project via an external hard drive to a client with an air-gapped network.

When packaging a project, you have the option to include or exclude specific components to manage the final file size.

Geoprocessing Packages (.gpkx)

A Geoprocessing Package (.gpkx) consolidates a geoprocessing tool (such as a custom ModelBuilder model or a Python script tool) along with the data required to run it.

Use Cases

• Sharing Custom Tools: Distributing a complex analysis workflow to other users so they can run it on their own machines.
• Support and Debugging: Sending a failing geoprocessing workflow to Esri Technical Support. By packaging the tool, Support receives the exact data and parameters needed to reproduce the issue.

Geoprocessing packages can also include supplementary files like documentation, PDF reports, or style files used by the tool.

Consolidation Options

When creating any type of package via the Share ribbon or the Geoprocessing tools (e.g., Package Project), you must define the consolidation options. This determines how data is gathered:

• All data: The most common option. It copies all referenced datasets into the package, converting enterprise geodatabase data into file geodatabase data for portability.
• Reference data only: Creates the package but does not copy the data. The package only maintains the file paths or database connections. This is useful if you are sharing the package with a colleague who already has access to the same shared network drives or enterprise databases.
• Extent options: You can choose to package all features, or only the features that intersect the current map extent, which drastically reduces the package size for large datasets.

Unpacked File Paths

Understanding what happens when a package is opened is a common exam topic. When a user double-clicks a .ppkx, .mpkx, or .lpkx file, ArcGIS Pro automatically unpacks it.

By default, ArcGIS Pro extracts packages into a specific directory in the user's documents folder: \\Users\\<username>\\Documents\\ArcGIS\\Packages

Once extracted, ArcGIS Pro opens the project or adds the map/layer to the current project, automatically repathing all data sources to point to the extracted files in the Packages folder. The user can then interact with the local copy of the data without affecting the original source data of the package creator.