{"id":2877152,"date":"2025-07-08T12:40:53","date_gmt":"2025-07-08T19:40:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/?post_type=blog&p=2877152"},"modified":"2025-12-15T08:45:18","modified_gmt":"2025-12-15T16:45:18","slug":"administering-user-types-in-arcgis","status":"publish","type":"blog","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis\/administration\/administering-user-types-in-arcgis","title":{"rendered":"Administering User Types in ArcGIS"},"author":280142,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_searchwp_excluded":""},"categories":[37501,37101],"tags":[776062,30131,261022],"industry":[],"product":[421922,36571,36551,36561],"class_list":["post-2877152","blog","type-blog","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-administration","category-announcements","tag-arcgis-user-types","tag-licensing","tag-user-types","product-arcgis","product-arcgis-enterprise","product-arcgis-online","product-arcgis-pro"],"acf":{"authors":[{"ID":280142,"user_firstname":"Sarah","user_lastname":"Scher","nickname":"Sarah Scher","user_nicename":"sscher","display_name":"Sarah Scher","user_email":"SScher@esri.com","user_url":"","user_registered":"2021-09-22 18:30:31","user_description":"Sarah is an Architect at Esri focused on systems innovation . She's passionate about making tech topics easier to understand and apply, helping organizations advance their business goals by strategically leveraging Geography and GIS. In her free time, she likes to play map-based strategy games, go on adventures with her dog Willow, and prepare for her Starfleet entrance exams.","user_avatar":""}],"short_description":"This blog outlines how user types are managed, and the value of adopting a user-centric licensing model with ArcGIS.","flexible_content":[{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"

Technology has advanced significantly since the first release of ArcMap over 25 years ago. From GIS professionals working on desktop machines only, to now, with many types of users employing geospatial capabilities in their work across desktop, web and mobile devices. Consequently, Esri evolved to meet our customers’ changing needs by providing broader access across the entire ArcGIS platform. Now, licensing is associated with people and the work they do, rather than the machines they work at.<\/p>\n

In the past, organizations managed their ArcGIS desktop licenses as Single Use or Concurrent Use. Today, the approach has shifted. Instead of a software-centric<\/em> licensing model, we have adopted a<\/em> user-centric <\/em>model. For example, where administrators would previously manage licenses for ArcGIS Desktop, they now administer user types<\/a> that grant users access to a breadth of capabilities, apps, and content based upon their role.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":2450792,"id":2450792,"title":"ArcGIS User Types","filename":"UserTypes.png","filesize":595485,"url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2024\/08\/UserTypes.png","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis-pro\/announcements\/reimagine-your-gis-from-arcmap-to-arcgis-pro-and-user-types\/usertypes-5","alt":"","author":"308712","description":"","caption":"","name":"usertypes-5","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":2450682,"date":"2024-08-02 13:49:25","modified":"2024-08-02 13:49:38","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/png","type":"image","subtype":"png","icon":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":802,"height":574,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2024\/08\/UserTypes-213x200.png","thumbnail-width":213,"thumbnail-height":200,"medium":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2024\/08\/UserTypes.png","medium-width":365,"medium-height":261,"medium_large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2024\/08\/UserTypes.png","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":550,"large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2024\/08\/UserTypes.png","large-width":802,"large-height":574,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2024\/08\/UserTypes.png","1536x1536-width":802,"1536x1536-height":574,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2024\/08\/UserTypes.png","2048x2048-width":802,"2048x2048-height":574,"card_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2024\/08\/UserTypes-650x465.png","card_image-width":650,"card_image-height":465,"wide_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2024\/08\/UserTypes.png","wide_image-width":802,"wide_image-height":574}},"image_position":"right","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"

Why the shift?<\/h2>\n

To meet growing demand for seamless access to geospatial capabilities, Esri has reimagined how organizations manage and administer access to ArcGIS. This shift reflects how organizations operate in today\u2019s landscape.<\/p>\n

Rather than managing multiple licenses for different applications, organizations can assign a user type that grants the right apps, capabilities, and privileges in alignment to each user’s role. This role-based<\/a> licensing provides greater flexibility and scalability. Further, it allows users to get what they need, whether on the web, desktop, or a mobile device.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"

Modern license management<\/h2>\n

Today, there are six user type<\/a>s which can be managed and assigned through a portal: either via ArcGIS Online or through ArcGIS Enterprise. The right choice depends on your organization\u2019s current deployment, business needs, technical requirements, and skills:<\/p>\n

1. ArcGIS Online <\/strong>is an Esri-hosted software as a service (SaaS). As a fully managed, cloud-based platform requiring no infrastructure maintenance on your part, it is a great lower-effort choice to get started at scale. To reduce the overall level of effort, consider managing user types in ArcGIS Online. Learn more about administering user types with ArcGIS Online here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

2. ArcGIS Enterprise <\/strong>is self-hosted software, which gives you control over how you deploy and manage it. ArcGIS Enterprise involves additional administrative steps compared to ArcGIS Online, but offers more customization options and advanced configurations for data management, security, and more. If your organization doesn\u2019t use ArcGIS Online or prefers to use ArcGIS Enterprise for license management, user type licenses will be managed there, with the option to use enterprise logins, web-tier authentication, or the built-in identity store. Learn more about administering user types in ArcGIS Enterprise here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

For more information on the differences and relationship between ArcGIS Online and ArcGIS Enterprise, click here.<\/a><\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"

Next steps<\/h2>\n

With this user-centric model, Esri aims to simplify license management while committing to delivering the capabilities users need, when and where they need them.<\/p>\n

Transitioning to user types may feel like a big change, but you’re not alone. With ArcGIS Desktop’s retirement<\/a> around the corner, now is a great time to explore your licensing options and connect with Esri experts. Whether you’re just starting or have already begun your migration, there are resources available to help you. To get started:<\/p>\n

1<\/strong>. Review the user type migration guide<\/a> and additional resources below.<\/p>\n

2.<\/strong> Consider whether managing user types in ArcGIS Online or ArcGIS Enterprise meets your organization\u2019s needs best.<\/p>\n

3<\/strong>. For customers with three or fewer licenses, explore the migration tool on My Esri. Go to the Licensing tab > License Information > Product Migration as the Primary Maintenance Contact with Perform Transaction Tasks permissions.<\/p>\n

4.<\/strong> Reach out to your account manager or contact us<\/a> for personalized support.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":2877822,"id":2877822,"title":"UC_Collaboration","filename":"collaborationuc-scaled.jpg","filesize":448728,"url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/07\/collaborationuc-scaled.jpg","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/arcgis\/administration\/administering-user-types-in-arcgis\/collaborationuc","alt":"","author":"280142","description":"","caption":"","name":"collaborationuc","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":2877152,"date":"2025-07-03 17:32:56","modified":"2025-07-03 17:33:22","menu_order":0,"mime_type":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.png","width":2560,"height":1759,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/07\/collaborationuc-213x200.jpg","thumbnail-width":213,"thumbnail-height":200,"medium":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/07\/collaborationuc-scaled.jpg","medium-width":380,"medium-height":261,"medium_large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/07\/collaborationuc-scaled.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":528,"large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/07\/collaborationuc-scaled.jpg","large-width":1572,"large-height":1080,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/07\/collaborationuc-1536x1056.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1056,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/07\/collaborationuc-2048x1408.jpg","2048x2048-width":2048,"2048x2048-height":1408,"card_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/07\/collaborationuc-677x465.jpg","card_image-width":677,"card_image-height":465,"wide_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/07\/collaborationuc-1571x1080.jpg","wide_image-width":1571,"wide_image-height":1080}},"image_position":"left-center","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":"

Additional resources<\/h2>\n

For more information on license management and user types, explore the following:<\/p>\n