Creating and managing projects

All project management functionality is available in the Terra Office Projects window—creating a project, viewing a project, setting a project as the current one, and removing a project. Click Terra Office Projects on the toolbar to open it. When you first open the window, you will see a list of all existing projects (in the Terra Office database) with columns representing the project name, type, source of accuracy, linked map document, and an indication of whether the workspace (geodatabase) of the project matches that of the currently open map document. In general, you can only work with projects (edit them, set them as current, etc.) that use the same geodatabase feature classes as the current map document. The current project is highlighted in green while any compatible projects that can be set as current are highlighted in blue. Only one project can be “set as current” at a time and the Terra Office Field Data dockable window will be used to work with the data in that project.

Projects are created using the same general workflow, regardless of type. This user experience is referred to as the Project Wizard and uses a wizard-style approach for defining project settings. Projects are also edited through the Project Wizard although only a subset of settings are actually editable. If the project selected in the list is not compatible with the current map document, then you can only view the project settings through the Project Wizard in a read-only mode.

To create a new project, click Create.... This launches the Project Wizard where you will first select the type of project you want to create. Validation messages are presented if there are any issues with the current map document that will affect the behavior. Refer to the workflow-specific sections below for further information.
To edit (or view) an existing project, select it in the list and click Edit… (labeled View… when not compatible with the current map document). This will open the project in the Project Wizard. Only a subset of project settings are editable. Refer to the workflow-specific sections below for further information.
To set an existing project as current, select it in the list and click Set Current. Only projects that use the same geodatabase feature classes as the current map document can be used in this context; all connection properties to the geodatabase must match (path, version, etc.). Scroll all the way to the right in the project list to see a summary of the geodatabase connection information stored with the project.

To quickly set a compatible project as the current one, double-click it in the list; this will set it as the current one and immediately close the Projects window.
To remove a project (from the Terra Office database), select it in the list and click Remove . You will not be able to remove projects that have data collection activities (post-processing sessions that are in-progress). If you remove a TerraFlex Cloud project that has been published, you will be prompted to also remove the project in the TerraFlex Cloud (Trimble Connect and the TerraFlex field application).

TerraFlex Cloud

For TerraFlex Cloud projects, the Project Wizard has 6 pages, or steps, after you select the project type.

Trimble Connect. In this step, select the Trimble Connect Project where you want to publish this local Terra Office project. Optionally, provide information for creating a new Trimble Connect Project.

The nomenclature here is confusing because while a Terra Office project is functionally the same as a TerraFlex project in the field app, a Trimble Connect Project is a higher level container (think “organization”) where these individual Terra Office / TerraFlex projects are referred to as Map Workspaces (with template layers) when using the Trimble Connect Map Viewer through a web browser.
Layers. In this step, use the checkboxes to include or exclude layers from your map document for the data collection project. Only layers from the first spatial reference found in the map document will be included. Use the Workspace dropdown at the top if you need to switch to a different geodatabase represented in the map document. Layers that have subtypes will be represented as one layer here but will result in multiple templates generated for TerraFlex. To re-use settings from an earlier project using these same geodatabase feature classes, you can use the Feature Type Library.
Layer Settings. In this step, specify the Accuracy Threshold and Auto Collected Fields (includes GNSS metadata) for each layer selected for the project; both are optional. To set the same accuracy threshold for multiple layers at the same time, use shift+click or control+click. To let the field user override the specified accuracy threshold, use the Allow field user to override accuracy thresholds? checkbox.

In TerraFlex workflows, most GNSS metadata fields are referred to as Auto Collected Fields and these get populated automatically in the field application and also updated after post-processing as necessary. There is also a small number of additional GNSS metadata fields that only get populated through Terra Office when data is downloaded; these appear at the bottom of the list under the Office-side Processing Only header.

For each item in the Auto Collected Field list, use the dropdown to select an existing field from the geodatabase feature class (with the appropriate datatype) to use for that metadata (i.e., for storing it in the geodatabase with the data). When working with file geodatabases, you may also see the option to add a New: field for that metadata value if one does not exist with our standard name. Use the add all (common) link text to automatically include all common metadata fields.
Project Geodetics. In this step, review all coordinate system settings (both Esri and Trimble) and select the appropriate Geodetic workflow for your project. In most cases, the default selection will be the most appropriate and will provide the best accuracy. Use the TerraFlex feature heights dropdown to change from orthometric height (e.g., height above mean sea level or MSL) to ellipsoidal height and to pick a different geoid file to use when calculating orthometric heights. All settings here will be carried through into the TerraFlex Cloud and TerraFlex field application.

For a more detailed explanation of this page in the wizard, refer to the Project geodetics section.
Accuracy Settings. In this step, select the Source of accuracy, the Accuracy reporting setting, and Select the local field configurations (for real-time corrections) to include in the published TerraFlex Cloud project.

For a TerraFlex Cloud project, there are 3 options for accuracy:
- Best of Real-time Corrections + Manual Post-processing in Terra Office
- Best of Real-time Corrections + Automatic Post-processing in the TerraFlex Cloud (offline GNSS corrections)
- Real-time Corrections Only
Local field configurations are included in the published TerraFlex project as Real-time GNSS Positioning settings visible in the Connect Map Viewer. Use the Create…, Edit…, Clone, and Remove buttons to manage local field configurations. Once they are included in a project, they will be updated during every re-publish and cannot be removed from the local database nor can they be used across Trimble Connect Projects.
Project Settings. In this last step, provide a unique Local project name (this will also be used for the folder and workspace name within the Trimble Connect Project), review the Workflow summary, and click Publish to publish the project to the TerraFlex Cloud. A progress window will open to show progress or error messages. Optionally, restrict access to a subset of Trimble Connect Project members or group (Team) prior to publishing. Once a project is published, permissions are managed through the Trimble Connect web application. The published templates and map workspace will have a limited amount of editability (e.g., you can still create rules) to prevent breaking changes from being made through the Connect Map Viewer template editor.

A project can be saved without publishing. When that project is re-opened, you will need to reselect the Trimble Connect Project in the first step of the wizard prior to navigating through to the last page to publish the project.

Editing a TerraFlex Cloud project

When editing a project of this type, only the following are allowed:

New layers can be added to the project and published as new templates within the map workspace.
New field configurations can be added and previously selected field configurations will always be updated.

In this case, the Publish button on the last page of the Project Wizard becomes Re-publish; click to add the new layer and update the field configurations in the TerraFlex Cloud.

TerraFlex Local

For TerraFlex Local projects, the Project Wizard has 5 pages, or steps, after selecting the project type.

Layers. In this step, use the checkboxes to include or exclude layers from your map document for the data collection project. Only layers from the first spatial reference found in the map document will be included. Use the Workspace dropdown at the top if you need to switch to a different geodatabase represented in the map document. Layers that have subtypes will be represented as one layer here but will result in multiple templates generated for TerraFlex. To re-use settings from an earlier project using these same geodatabase feature classes, you can use the Feature Type Library.
Layer Settings. In this step, specify the Accuracy Threshold and Auto Collected Fields (includes GNSS metadata) for each layer selected for the project; both are optional. To set the same accuracy threshold for multiple layers at the same time, use shift+click or control+click. To let the field user override the specified accuracy threshold, use the Allow field user to override accuracy thresholds? checkbox.

In TerraFlex workflows, most GNSS metadata fields are referred to as Auto Collected Fields and these get populated automatically in the field application and also updated after post-processing as necessary. There is also a small number of additional GNSS metadata fields that only get populated through Terra Office when data is downloaded—these appear at the bottom of the list under the Office-side Processing Only header.

For each item in the Auto Collected Field list, use the dropdown to select an existing field from the geodatabase feature class (with the appropriate datatype) to use for that metadata (i.e., for storing it in the geodatabase with the data). When working with file geodatabases, you may also see the option to add a New: field for that metadata value if one does not exist with our standard name. Use the add all (common) link text to automatically include all common metadata fields.
Project Geodetics. In this step, review all coordinate system settings (both Esri and Trimble) and select the appropriate Geodetic workflow for your project. In most cases, the default selection will be the most appropriate and will provide the best accuracy. Use the TerraFlex feature heights dropdown to change from orthometric height (e.g., height above mean sea level or MSL) to ellipsoidal height and to pick a different geoid file to use when calculating orthometric heights. All settings here will be carried through into the TerraFlex Cloud and TerraFlex field application.

For a more detailed explanation of this page in the wizard, refer to the Project geodetics section.
Accuracy Settings. In this step, select the Source of accuracy, the Accuracy reporting setting, and Select the local field configurations (for real-time corrections) to include in the TerraFlex Local project.

For a TerraFlex Local project, there are 2 options for accuracy:
- Best of Real-time Corrections + Manual Post-processing in Terra Office
- Real-time Corrections Only
Local field configurations get included in the TerraFlex project. Use the Create…, Edit…, Clone, and Remove buttons to manage local field configurations. For TerraFlex Local workflows, this is the only way to configure real-time GNSS correction settings for TerraFlex as they cannot be added in the field; they can only be selected from what’s in the project.
Project Settings. In this last step, provide a unique Project name and save the project.

Editing a TerraFlex Local project

When editing a project of this type, only the following are allowed:

New layers can be added to the project.
New and previously selected field configurations can be fully managed.

TerraSync (legacy)

There are 2 options for creating TerraSync projects: from layers in an existing map document or by creating new geodatabase schema from an existing TerraSync SSF/DDF file.

Option 1 - Use schema from layers in an existing map document

For this option, select TerraSync for the Project Type on the initial page of the wizard. Then, the Project Wizard has 4 remaining pages, or steps.

Layers. In this step, use the checkboxes to include or exclude layers from your map document for the data collection project. Only layers from the first spatial reference found in the map document will be included. Use the Workspace dropdown at the top if you need to switch to a different geodatabase represented in the map document. Layers that have subtypes will be represented as one layer here but will result in multiple layers generated for TerraSync. To re-use settings from an earlier project using these same geodatabase feature classes, you can use the Feature Type Library.
Layer Settings. In this step, specify the Accuracy Threshold and GNSS Metadata Transfer fields for each layer selected for the project; both are optional. To set the same accuracy threshold for multiple layers at the same time, use shift+click or control+click.

For each item in the Metadata Transfer list, use the dropdown to select an existing field from the geodatabase feature class (with the appropriate datatype) to use for that metadata (i.e., for storing it in the geodatabase with the data). When working with file geodatabases, you may also see the option to add a New: field for that metadata value if one does not exist with our standard name. Use the add all (common) link text to automatically include all common metadata fields.
Project Geodetics. In this step, review all coordinate system settings and select the appropriate Geodetic workflow for your project. In most cases, the default selection will be the most appropriate and will provide the best accuracy. Use the Feature heights dropdown to change from orthometric height (e.g., height above mean sea level or MSL) to ellipsoidal height and to pick a different geoid file to use when calculating orthometric heights. These settings apply only to the processing of TerraSync data within the add-in and do not get included in any settings available within the TerraSync field application.

For a more detailed explanation of this page in the wizard, refer to the Project geodetics section. Although the TerraFlex content does not apply here, the descriptions of Geodetic workflow options are still relevant.
Project Settings. In this last step, provide a unique Project name and select the Accuracy reporting value before saving the project.

Option 2 - Create new geodatabase schema from an existing TerraSync SSF/DDF file

For this option, you must start with an empty map document. Then, start creating a new project and on the initial page of the wizard select TerraSync (import from file) for the Project Type. The Project Wizard has 4 remaining pages, or steps.

Project Options. In this step, specify the DDF/SSF file to use, the folder where you want the new file geodatabase and map document to be created, the spatial reference you want the feature classes to be created with (e.g., if you know the data in the SSF is not WGS 1984), and if you want the “required” field entry property from the data dictionary to be propagated into the geodatabase feature classes. When you navigate to the next page of the wizard, schema from the DDF/SSF will be created in a new file geodatabase in the specified folder.
Layer Settings. In this step, specify the Accuracy Threshold and GNSS Metadata Transfer fields for each layer selected for the project; both are optional. To set the same accuracy threshold for multiple layers at the same time, use shift+click or control+click.

For each item in the Metadata Transfer list, use the dropdown to select an existing field from the geodatabase feature class (with the appropriate datatype) to use for that metadata (i.e., for storing it in the geodatabase with the data). When working with file geodatabases, you may also see the option to add a New: field for that metadata value if one does not exist with our standard name. Use the add all (common) link text to automatically include all common metadata fields.
Project Geodetics. In this step, review all coordinate system settings and select the appropriate Geodetic workflow for your project. In most cases, the default selection will be the most appropriate and will provide the best accuracy. Use the Feature heights dropdown to change from orthometric height (e.g., height above mean sea level or MSL) to ellipsoidal height and to pick a different geoid file to use when calculating orthometric heights. These settings apply only to the processing of TerraSync data within the add-in and do not get included in any settings available within the TerraSync field application.

For a more detailed explanation of this page in the wizard, refer to the Project geodetics section. Although the TerraFlex content does not apply here, the descriptions of Geodetic workflow options are still relevant.
Project Settings. In this last step, provide a unique Project name and select the Accuracy reporting value before saving the project.