Location sharing is an organization-wide capability that allows you to record where mobile workers are and where they have been. When you enable location sharing, licensed users in your organization can use the ArcGIS Field Maps mobile app to upload their location tracks to the location sharing layer. The tracks are secure in the location sharing layer—mobile workers only see their own tracks, and additional permissions are required to view the tracks of others. Once location sharing is enabled, administrators can use the Track Viewer web app to share the last known location and track data with other users in the organization by creating track views.
Note:
This topic provides information on administrating location sharing for your organization. To learn how to share location using the Field Maps mobile app, see Share location.
Get started
As an administrator of your ArcGIS organization or a member with the privilege to manage utility service settings, you can enable location sharing for your members. For more information, see Configure location sharing. To familiarize yourself with location sharing in Field Maps, watch the following video:
Require location sharing
You can require location sharing for specific maps using the Field Maps Designer web app. If a map requires location sharing, mobile workers are prompted to enable location sharing after tapping the map on the Maps list. If mobile workers turn location sharing off, they cannot access a map that requires location sharing.
Note:
If the map contains a geofence that triggers location sharing, it takes precedent over the require location sharing setting. While location sharing is still required for the map, location tracks will only be recorded when they enter or exit the geofence.
Create geofences
You can add geofences to the map using the Field Maps Designer web app that automatically enable or disable location sharing when mobile workers enter or exit an area. If a map contains geofences that trigger location sharing, mobile workers are prompted to enable location sharing after tapping the map on the Maps list. If mobile workers turn location sharing off, they are no longer able to access the map.
Depending on how you configured the geofence, tracks are only recorded when mobile workers are inside or outside the area you defined. To see whether their tracks are currently being recorded, mobile workers can tap the Location banner while viewing the map in Field Maps.
Provide instructions for sharing location
If location sharing is required for your organization, it's helpful to provide mobile workers with instructions on how to start sharing their location in Field Maps. A template for location sharing instructions is provided below:
- Download the location sharing instructions template.
- Follow the instructions in the document to customize the template and share it with mobile workers.
View tracks in Track Viewer
While mobile workers can only see their own tracks, other users who are not administrators—such as supervisors and others with the appropriate permissions—need to view the tracks of multiple mobile workers. A track view contains the last known locations and tracks of a set of mobile workers. Anyone with the privilege to view location tracks and access to a track view can view the tracks of the specified mobile workers. To learn how to create track views in the Track Viewer web app, see Create track views.
Once track viewers have access to tracks, they can view them in the Track Viewer web app or another map or app. Track Viewer provides an overview of the last known locations and tracks of mobile workers and allows the track viewer to perform simple filtering and analysis. To learn how to view tracks in the Track Viewer web app, see View tracks.
For a more complete picture of the locations of your mobile workers and where they've been in relation to other assets and information, add the hosted feature layer view of the tracks to your own map or app. You can also use the tracks to perform advanced analysis in ArcGIS. To use the tracks layer in your own maps and apps, see Track layers.
Additionally, you can use track categories to symbolize and filter tracks in maps, dashboards, and other apps. For more information, see Add track categories in Field Maps Designer.
Location track security
While tracks are collected using the Field Maps mobile app, they are stored in an SQLite database on the mobile device. Each tracked location is created by the user signed in to the app, and editor tracking stores this information with the tracked location. When a user signs out of Field Maps, the SQLite database is removed. Other users who use the app on the device don't have access to the tracks of previous users.
Note:
To learn more about deploying cloud and enterprise GIS in compliance with privacy regulations, such as GDPR, for location sharing services, see ArcGIS Location Sharing Privacy Best Practices.
Additional resources
The following are additional resources for using the location sharing capability in ArcGIS Field Maps: