A quick tour of administering ArcSDE geodatabases with ArcGIS for Desktop
ArcSDE geodatabases are typically accessed by a large number of users making many updates to features and tables while editing. As a result, editors and ArcSDE administrators have a number of geodatabase maintenance tasks to perform to ensure the geodatabase is running smoothly and users can access the data with which they need to work. This topic offers an overview of the Geodatabase Administration dialog box within ArcCatalog and ArcMap along with a number of geoprocessing tools that help in administering ArcSDE geodatabases. The geoprocessing tools are an effective way to perform routine maintenance on your geodatabases and better their performance. The Geodatabase Administration dialog box is a helpful tool for managing versions, user connections, and locks.
Version administration
The Versions tab of the Geodatabase Administration dialog box contains the following four subtabs to help you manage versions:
 | Transactional—This subtab displays all versions in the geodatabase with their owner and a time stamp for the date and time each was last modified. Learn more about version properties |
 | Tree View—This subtab allows you to see the structure and relationships between parent and child versions. This helps you visualize which versions can be reconciled with one another, which can be deleted, and which child versions will be affected by a cascade deletion. Learn more about the version tree view |
 | Reconcile Order—This subtab is available only if you are connected as the geodatabase administrator. This subtab lists only the transactional versions that are preventing the DEFAULT version from being compressed to state 0. This allows the geodatabase administrator to see which versions need to be reconciled with DEFAULT and in what order. Learn more about recommended reconciling order |
 | Historical—This subtab shows the historical markers that have been created with their name and a time stamp for the date and time each represents. From this subtab, you can create and delete historical markers as well as change the name, date, and time of a selected marker. Learn more about working with historical versions |
From the Transactional, Tree View, and Reconcile Order subtabs, a context menu allows you to create new versions, delete versions, choose one or many versions to reconcile, and view the locks currently held on a selected version.
To maintain good performance in a geodatabase containing versions, there are a few key administrative tasks that should be run regularly. A recommended workflow for ArcSDE administrators is to frequently reconcile and post, compress the geodatabase, then run the Analyze Datasets and Rebuild Indexes geoprocessing tools. This sort of routine maintenance can be set up to run nightly as a script or by building a model.
Learn more about a recommended version administration workflow and using Python scripting to batch reconcile and post versions.
Managing user connections
Geodatabase administrators can use the Connections tab on the Geodatabase Administration dialog box to view all users connected to ArcSDE geodatabases. From this dialog box, an administrator can view user connections and also disconnect users from the geodatabase.
A user may need to be disconnected for a number of reasons. For example, he or she might be holding a lock on an object, preventing another editor from accessing it. In situations where there are a limited number of connections that can be made to a geodatabase, an administrator might also need to disconnect a user to free up a connection for another user.
Managing locks in the geodatabase
As users edit and query data, ArcGIS automatically applies and releases locks on datasets in the geodatabase to help users manage changes without causing conflicts with other users. As objects in a geodatabase are locked, access to these objects changes. The Locks tab on the Geodatabase Administration dialog box allows you to view and manage locks in the geodatabase. Through this dialog box, you can see active locks on datasets and versions and which user has acquired the lock. This lets you identify who may be blocking you from editing operations on specific datasets and versions, which can help you coordinate editing processes with other users.
An administrator can use the dialog box to help manage common maintenance tasks on a geodatabase. By viewing all the locks on a geodatabase, an administrator can see which users may be blocking specific datasets and versions from a maintenance task. The administrator can then judge whether it is safe to disconnect any users to allow those processes to run.
Preventing new user connections to an ArcSDE geodatabase
Geodatabase administrators can prohibit new connections to a geodatabase by navigating to the Connections tab on the Database Properties dialog box and unchecking the Geodatabase is accepting connections check box. This is important for administrators who need to perform geodatabase-wide maintenance that requires no user connections on the system. By preventing new connections to the geodatabase, the administrator can let currently connected users finish their work while gradually progressing toward a state where no users are connected to the geodatabase.
Learn more about preventing new user connections to an ArcSDE geodatabase
Using the Analyze Datasets tool
The Analyze Datasets tool is used to update statistics on datasets in the geodatabase. This tool updates the statistics of business tables, delta tables, and historical archive tables along with the statistics on the indexes associated with those tables.
You should update statistics after a compress operation; after you add or remove topology rules; and after you finish importing, loading, or copying data into an ArcSDE geodatabase. The geodatabase administrator can use the Analyze Datasets tool to update statistics on the geodatabase system tables after a large amount of data has been loaded to the geodatabase or after compressing a versioned geodatabase. See Using the Analyze Datasets tool to update statistics on geodatabase system tables for more information.
Using the Rebuild Indexes tool
After a large number of edits or a database compress operation, your indexes may become fragmented. Rebuilding indexes might give you a small performance boost. The geodatabase administrator can use the Rebuild Indexes tool to rebuild indexes on the states, state_lineages, and mv_versions_modified system tables after a compress operation. See Using the Rebuild Indexes tool on system tables for more information.