Repairing paths in a mosaic dataset

Mosaic datasets contain references to their source data, and these paths are not altered as part of a move or copy operation. Therefore, if the mosaic dataset is moved or copied within the same computer, the paths are likely the same and will not be affected. However, when you move or copy your mosaic dataset to another computer, the paths to the source rasters will likely change and you will have to update the paths. Alternatively, if you move the source rasters, the paths will need to be updated in the mosaic dataset.

If you don't see an image when using the mosaic dataset, or if the overviews appear gray, then the paths to the source rasters or overviews may be broken.

If the overviews were created in the default location, next to the geodatabase folder, and they are moved to the same default location, then the path will not need to be updated. If the overviews remain in the same location, and this is visible to the mosaic dataset, then the paths will not need to be updated. If the mosaic dataset cannot access the overviews, or the overviews were moved, the path to the overviews needs to be updated.

If you have lidar data in the mosaic dataset, a cache was likely generated. The cache will regenerate if it doesn't exist in the expected location or it is out of date. If you move the cache and you want to continue to use it, then you must update the path in the mosaic dataset.

If you use the Cached Raster function (or the Build Mosaic Dataset Item Cache tool), then, like the overviews, you will need to update the path.

If you know the paths you need to replace, you can right-click the mosaic dataset in ArcMap or the Catalog window and click Modify > Repair. This opens the Repair Mosaic Dataset dialog box allowing you to define an old path and a new path. Steps to use this dialog box are described below.

If you need to identify the broken paths, use the Export Mosaic Dataset Paths tool. This tool will output a table with all the paths or just the broken paths. You can then fix the broken paths using the Repair Mosaic Dataset Paths tool or the Repair Mosaic Dataset dialog box.

Note:

If publishing a mosaic dataset to ArcGIS for Server, then the paths will be automatically updated.

Note:

When updating an ArcSDE connection you need to provide the old .sde connection file path and the new path with the updated credentials. The old .sde connection file path can be identified through the function chain. To access it, open the attribute table, click the Raster column in the item's row to open the dialog box, click the Functions tab, then double-click the raster at the bottom of the chain to open a message box containing the path to the .sde connection file.

Steps:

1. Add your mosaic dataset to ArcMap.
2. Optionally, use the selection tools to select the rasters in the mosaic dataset whose paths need to be repaired.
3. Right-click the mosaic dataset in the table of contents and click DataRepair Mosaic Dataset Paths.
   Note:

   If you don't need to make a selection, then you do not need to add the mosaic dataset to ArcMap. You can right-click the mosaic dataset in the Catalog window or ArcCatalog and click Modify > Repair.

4. Optionally, check Only Broken Paths.

   The mosaic dataset is aware of the paths that are broken. When you check this option, you can reduce the length of time used to search for and modify the paths. Alternatively, you may have some rasters that remain in the original path location and you don't want these paths to be modified.

5. Click the first row, under Old Path, and type in your old path, such as C:\MyData\City\Rasters.
6. Click the same row, under New Path, and type in your new path, such as \\ServerA\CityData\Rasters.

   The old and new paths do not have to be the entire paths; they can be the parts of the paths that have changed. For example, if you have renamed the disk location, you only need to rename part of it. For C:\MyData\City\Raster, you can specify C:\ for the Old Path and D:\ for the New Path.

7. Optionally, you can use the Folder Paths Depth arrows to identify the beginning part of paths that you may need to modify.
8. If you made a selection, check Repair Selected Items Only.
9. Click OK to run this operation.