Answering these questions requires knowledge of the path from the customer\u2019s location in the network to a source (a feature that provides resources) or a sink (a feature that collects resources). Analysis then answers the question by measuring distance, counting equipment, or performing more advanced calculations along the path within the network.<\/p>\n
In this article you will learn how to answer these types of questions using the tracing capabilities of a utility network. If you\u2019re unfamiliar with tracing or ArcGIS Utility Network, you should read the introduction to the trace framework<\/a> article first.<\/p>\n To get started, let\u2019s look at extending an upstream trace.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":" Running an upstream trace allows you to find the path towards any sources in your network, or in the case of a sink-based network it allows you to find all the paths heading away from the sinks in the network.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":2937481,"id":2937481,"title":"Full Upstream Trace","filename":"Full-Upstream-Trace.png","filesize":432719,"url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Full-Upstream-Trace.png","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/utility-network\/telecommunications\/going-the-distance-with-tracing\/full-upstream-trace","alt":"","author":"304562","description":"","caption":"An upstream trace from a fiber distribution hub to a central office.","name":"full-upstream-trace","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":2937467,"date":"2025-08-27 14:36:46","modified":"2025-08-27 14:44:41","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":624,"height":521,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Full-Upstream-Trace-213x200.png","thumbnail-width":213,"thumbnail-height":200,"medium":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Full-Upstream-Trace.png","medium-width":313,"medium-height":261,"medium_large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Full-Upstream-Trace.png","medium_large-width":624,"medium_large-height":521,"large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Full-Upstream-Trace.png","large-width":624,"large-height":521,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Full-Upstream-Trace.png","1536x1536-width":624,"1536x1536-height":521,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Full-Upstream-Trace.png","2048x2048-width":624,"2048x2048-height":521,"card_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Full-Upstream-Trace-557x465.png","card_image-width":557,"card_image-height":465,"wide_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Full-Upstream-Trace.png","wide_image-width":624,"wide_image-height":521}},"image_position":"center","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":" When running an upstream trace, we are often curious about what the journey from the starting point to the source upstream looks like. These questions typically ask for information such as \u201cWhat is the distance from the starting location to the source? or, \u201cHow many devices are upstream of the starting location?\u201d<\/p>\n These kinds of questions can be answered by adding the following functions to the trace configuration.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":2937482,"id":2937482,"title":"Functions","filename":"Functions.png","filesize":11442,"url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Functions.png","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/utility-network\/telecommunications\/going-the-distance-with-tracing\/functions-2","alt":"","author":"304562","description":"","caption":"Functions to calculate the length of the path and the amount of equipment along the path.","name":"functions-2","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":2937467,"date":"2025-08-27 14:37:32","modified":"2025-08-27 14:45:14","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":583,"height":374,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Functions-213x200.png","thumbnail-width":213,"thumbnail-height":200,"medium":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Functions.png","medium-width":407,"medium-height":261,"medium_large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Functions.png","medium_large-width":583,"medium_large-height":374,"large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Functions.png","large-width":583,"large-height":374,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Functions.png","1536x1536-width":583,"1536x1536-height":374,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Functions.png","2048x2048-width":583,"2048x2048-height":374,"card_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Functions.png","card_image-width":583,"card_image-height":374,"wide_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Functions.png","wide_image-width":583,"wide_image-height":374}},"image_position":"center","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":" A function will apply a calculation to all the features returned by the trace and display them in the trace results. The Add function will add the Shape Length values for all the features in the results, giving us the total length of all the lines in the trace. The Count function will count how many features are in the path by relying on the fact that every network feature has an asset group that can be counted.<\/p>\n This results in the following values being returned by the trace shown above.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":2937483,"id":2937483,"title":"Function Results","filename":"Function-Results.png","filesize":20378,"url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Function-Results.png","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/utility-network\/telecommunications\/going-the-distance-with-tracing\/function-results","alt":"","author":"304562","description":"","caption":"The results of running the trace with functions to show the distance and amount of equipment between the fiber distribution hub and the central office.","name":"function-results","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":2937467,"date":"2025-08-27 14:38:00","modified":"2025-08-27 14:45:49","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":570,"height":331,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Function-Results-213x200.png","thumbnail-width":213,"thumbnail-height":200,"medium":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Function-Results.png","medium-width":449,"medium-height":261,"medium_large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Function-Results.png","medium_large-width":570,"medium_large-height":331,"large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Function-Results.png","large-width":570,"large-height":331,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Function-Results.png","1536x1536-width":570,"1536x1536-height":331,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Function-Results.png","2048x2048-width":570,"2048x2048-height":331,"card_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Function-Results.png","card_image-width":570,"card_image-height":331,"wide_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Function-Results.png","wide_image-width":570,"wide_image-height":331}},"image_position":"center","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":" What if we wanted to limit the results to distribution equipment?<\/p>\n In that case we could use the filtering fields for each function to only calculate values that meet the filter criteria. In the example below we added a filter for features that have a custom network category called Distribution assigned to them.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":2937484,"id":2937484,"title":"Functions with Filters","filename":"Functions-with-Filters.png","filesize":14529,"url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Functions-with-Filters.png","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/utility-network\/telecommunications\/going-the-distance-with-tracing\/functions-with-filters","alt":"","author":"304562","description":"","caption":"Functions to calculate the length of the distribution cable and the amount of distribution equipment along the path.","name":"functions-with-filters","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":2937467,"date":"2025-08-27 14:38:24","modified":"2025-08-27 14:46:43","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":578,"height":376,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Functions-with-Filters-213x200.png","thumbnail-width":213,"thumbnail-height":200,"medium":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Functions-with-Filters.png","medium-width":401,"medium-height":261,"medium_large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Functions-with-Filters.png","medium_large-width":578,"medium_large-height":376,"large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Functions-with-Filters.png","large-width":578,"large-height":376,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Functions-with-Filters.png","1536x1536-width":578,"1536x1536-height":376,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Functions-with-Filters.png","2048x2048-width":578,"2048x2048-height":376,"card_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Functions-with-Filters.png","card_image-width":578,"card_image-height":376,"wide_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Functions-with-Filters.png","wide_image-width":578,"wide_image-height":376}},"image_position":"center","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":" After running the trace, we can see the results reflect the values of the upstream distribution features:<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":2937485,"id":2937485,"title":"Functions with Filters Results","filename":"Functions-with-Filters-Results.png","filesize":65433,"url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Functions-with-Filters-Results.png","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/utility-network\/telecommunications\/going-the-distance-with-tracing\/functions-with-filters-results","alt":"","author":"304562","description":"","caption":"The results of running the trace with functions to show the length of distribution cable and amount of distribution equipment between the fiber distribution hub and the central office.","name":"functions-with-filters-results","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":2937467,"date":"2025-08-27 14:38:43","modified":"2025-08-27 14:46:17","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":624,"height":329,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Functions-with-Filters-Results-213x200.png","thumbnail-width":213,"thumbnail-height":200,"medium":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Functions-with-Filters-Results.png","medium-width":464,"medium-height":245,"medium_large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Functions-with-Filters-Results.png","medium_large-width":624,"medium_large-height":329,"large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Functions-with-Filters-Results.png","large-width":624,"large-height":329,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Functions-with-Filters-Results.png","1536x1536-width":624,"1536x1536-height":329,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Functions-with-Filters-Results.png","2048x2048-width":624,"2048x2048-height":329,"card_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Functions-with-Filters-Results.png","card_image-width":624,"card_image-height":329,"wide_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Functions-with-Filters-Results.png","wide_image-width":624,"wide_image-height":329}},"image_position":"center","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":" Functions are great for providing situational awareness, but what if you want to use them to control results? You will learn how to do that in the next section.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":" When troubleshooting connectivity in a fiber network, it is common for technicians to use a special tool called an OTDR (Optical Time Domain Reflectometer) to analyze and locate a fault. This piece of equipment uses a powerful laser to send a pulse into a fiber strand then measures the amount of time it takes light to reflect back to the device to calculate the distance and signal loss of the connection for that fiber. The ability for this analysis to identify the distance of the signal is what makes this tool invaluable for identifying faults or cable breaks.<\/p>\n The distance returned by the OTDR is the distance estimated based on the distance the signal traveled. The distance the signal travels does not always correlate to the horizontal distance travelled on a map. This is because the infrastructure supporting the signal is inherently 3D. Cables run up and down poles through risers, extra coils of cable are stored in slack loops, the poles themselves are placed on hillsides and mountains, and the heavy fiber optic cables can sag deeply between poles.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":2937486,"id":2937486,"title":"adobestock-484829082.jpg","filename":"adobestock-484829082.jpg","filesize":320256,"url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/adobestock-484829082.jpg","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/utility-network\/telecommunications\/going-the-distance-with-tracing\/black-boxes-and-cable-reels-on-poles-internet-box-or-splitter-box-with-high-speed-fiber-optic-cable-hanging-on-a-metal-electric-pole-on-a-blue-background-with-copy-space-selective-focus","alt":"","author":"304562","description":"","caption":"An electrical pole with fiber optic cables, a splice enclosure, and a slack loop attached to it.","name":"black-boxes-and-cable-reels-on-poles-internet-box-or-splitter-box-with-high-speed-fiber-optic-cable-hanging-on-a-metal-electric-pole-on-a-blue-background-with-copy-space-selective-focus","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":2937467,"date":"2025-08-27 14:39:39","modified":"2025-08-27 15:07:17","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":936,"height":526,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/adobestock-484829082-213x200.jpg","thumbnail-width":213,"thumbnail-height":200,"medium":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/adobestock-484829082.jpg","medium-width":464,"medium-height":261,"medium_large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/adobestock-484829082.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":432,"large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/adobestock-484829082.jpg","large-width":936,"large-height":526,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/adobestock-484829082.jpg","1536x1536-width":936,"1536x1536-height":526,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/adobestock-484829082.jpg","2048x2048-width":936,"2048x2048-height":526,"card_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/adobestock-484829082-826x465.jpg","card_image-width":826,"card_image-height":465,"wide_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/adobestock-484829082.jpg","wide_image-width":936,"wide_image-height":526}},"image_position":"center","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"sidebar","content":" It is common to maintain network attributes on features which take items such as extra slack, measured length, and even the helical twisting factors of cables into account while tracing to more accurately predict the length of traces.<\/p>\n","image_reference":false,"layout":"standard","image_reference_figure":"","snippet":"","spotlight_name":"","section_title":"","position":"Center","spotlight_image":false},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":" Knowing that a signal traveled 1500 feet before it encounters a fault is useful, but to fix the fault you need to be able to identify where in the physical world this is. In the previous section you saw how you can use a Function to calculate distance for a trace. Previous articles also demonstrate that we can use Barriers to stop a trace. To build on this, you can review the trace configuration for a utility network and see that there are two parameters which appear as if they can solve this problem:<\/p>\n These two parameters are similar, but they each serve their own unique purpose.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"sidebar","content":" Other industries have a similar need to trace specific distance in their networks. Some electrical equipment can estimate fault locations using distance, sewer\/stormwater customers may use distance tracing to locate an issue discovered during a CCTV inspection for a particular pipe, and gas\/water customers also have ways of estimating leak detection using pressure drops and distances.<\/p>\n","image_reference":false,"layout":"standard","image_reference_figure":"","snippet":"","spotlight_name":"","section_title":"","position":"Center","spotlight_image":false},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":" A filter function barrier is best used with an upstream or downstream trace to identify the upstream or downstream features of the start point. The filter function barrier allows the source or sinks to be located, then limits the resulting features to meet the criteria you specified, such as stopping after a certain distance has been travelled.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":2937487,"id":2937487,"title":"Filter Function Barriers","filename":"Filter-Function-Barriers.png","filesize":7016,"url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Filter-Function-Barriers.png","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/utility-network\/telecommunications\/going-the-distance-with-tracing\/filter-function-barriers","alt":"","author":"304562","description":"","caption":"A filter function barrier to stop the trace after 500 feet","name":"filter-function-barriers","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":2937467,"date":"2025-08-27 14:40:07","modified":"2025-08-27 15:00:42","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":566,"height":169,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Filter-Function-Barriers-213x169.png","thumbnail-width":213,"thumbnail-height":169,"medium":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Filter-Function-Barriers.png","medium-width":464,"medium-height":139,"medium_large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Filter-Function-Barriers.png","medium_large-width":566,"medium_large-height":169,"large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Filter-Function-Barriers.png","large-width":566,"large-height":169,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Filter-Function-Barriers.png","1536x1536-width":566,"1536x1536-height":169,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Filter-Function-Barriers.png","2048x2048-width":566,"2048x2048-height":169,"card_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Filter-Function-Barriers.png","card_image-width":566,"card_image-height":169,"wide_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Filter-Function-Barriers.png","wide_image-width":566,"wide_image-height":169}},"image_position":"center","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":" Because the trace is likely to stop in the middle of a line, we need to ensure we use the Aggregated Geometry result type. This ensures we return a geometry that represents the partial edge of the result, instead of selecting the entire feature.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":2937488,"id":2937488,"title":"Aggregated Geometry Result Type","filename":"Aggregated-Geometry-Result-Type.png","filesize":13321,"url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Aggregated-Geometry-Result-Type.png","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/utility-network\/telecommunications\/going-the-distance-with-tracing\/aggregated-geometry-result-type","alt":"","author":"304562","description":"","caption":"The aggregated geometry result type will create a layer that represents the results of the trace, taking into consideration that a partial geometry may be needed when filtering on distance","name":"aggregated-geometry-result-type","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":2937467,"date":"2025-08-27 14:40:22","modified":"2025-08-27 15:02:29","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":584,"height":315,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Aggregated-Geometry-Result-Type-213x200.png","thumbnail-width":213,"thumbnail-height":200,"medium":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Aggregated-Geometry-Result-Type.png","medium-width":464,"medium-height":250,"medium_large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Aggregated-Geometry-Result-Type.png","medium_large-width":584,"medium_large-height":315,"large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Aggregated-Geometry-Result-Type.png","large-width":584,"large-height":315,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Aggregated-Geometry-Result-Type.png","1536x1536-width":584,"1536x1536-height":315,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Aggregated-Geometry-Result-Type.png","2048x2048-width":584,"2048x2048-height":315,"card_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Aggregated-Geometry-Result-Type.png","card_image-width":584,"card_image-height":315,"wide_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Aggregated-Geometry-Result-Type.png","wide_image-width":584,"wide_image-height":315}},"image_position":"center","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"sidebar","content":" If you are tracing nonspatial objects, like individual strands of fiber, you will need to use the Synthesize Geometry<\/a> option and uncheck the include container options to create the corresponding geometry for the trace.<\/p>\n","image_reference":false,"layout":"standard","image_reference_figure":"","snippet":"","spotlight_name":"","section_title":"","position":"Center","spotlight_image":false},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":" The trace result below (yellow line) now stops 500 feet upstream of the start point. This is the location where you can expect to find the fault.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":2937489,"id":2937489,"title":"Aggregated Geometry Results Upstream","filename":"Aggregated-Geometry-Results-Upstream.png","filesize":330901,"url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Aggregated-Geometry-Results-Upstream.png","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/utility-network\/telecommunications\/going-the-distance-with-tracing\/aggregated-geometry-results-upstream","alt":"","author":"304562","description":"","caption":"An upstream trace that stops at 500 feet","name":"aggregated-geometry-results-upstream","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":2937467,"date":"2025-08-27 14:40:51","modified":"2025-08-27 15:03:15","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":624,"height":468,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Aggregated-Geometry-Results-Upstream-213x200.png","thumbnail-width":213,"thumbnail-height":200,"medium":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Aggregated-Geometry-Results-Upstream.png","medium-width":348,"medium-height":261,"medium_large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Aggregated-Geometry-Results-Upstream.png","medium_large-width":624,"medium_large-height":468,"large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Aggregated-Geometry-Results-Upstream.png","large-width":624,"large-height":468,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Aggregated-Geometry-Results-Upstream.png","1536x1536-width":624,"1536x1536-height":468,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Aggregated-Geometry-Results-Upstream.png","2048x2048-width":624,"2048x2048-height":468,"card_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Aggregated-Geometry-Results-Upstream-620x465.png","card_image-width":620,"card_image-height":465,"wide_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Aggregated-Geometry-Results-Upstream.png","wide_image-width":624,"wide_image-height":468}},"image_position":"center","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":" If the fault is downstream of the current location (away from the central office), you would use the downstream trace to locate the fault. You can see the trace results below (yellow line) now show the location 500 feet downstream from the start point.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":2937490,"id":2937490,"title":"Aggregated Geometry Results Downstream","filename":"Aggregated-Geometry-Results-Downstream.png","filesize":334024,"url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Aggregated-Geometry-Results-Downstream.png","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/utility-network\/telecommunications\/going-the-distance-with-tracing\/aggregated-geometry-results-downstream","alt":"","author":"304562","description":"","caption":"A downstream trace that stops at 500 feet","name":"aggregated-geometry-results-downstream","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":2937467,"date":"2025-08-27 14:41:11","modified":"2025-08-27 15:03:11","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":624,"height":468,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Aggregated-Geometry-Results-Downstream-213x200.png","thumbnail-width":213,"thumbnail-height":200,"medium":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Aggregated-Geometry-Results-Downstream.png","medium-width":348,"medium-height":261,"medium_large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Aggregated-Geometry-Results-Downstream.png","medium_large-width":624,"medium_large-height":468,"large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Aggregated-Geometry-Results-Downstream.png","large-width":624,"large-height":468,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Aggregated-Geometry-Results-Downstream.png","1536x1536-width":624,"1536x1536-height":468,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Aggregated-Geometry-Results-Downstream.png","2048x2048-width":624,"2048x2048-height":468,"card_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Aggregated-Geometry-Results-Downstream-620x465.png","card_image-width":620,"card_image-height":465,"wide_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Aggregated-Geometry-Results-Downstream.png","wide_image-width":624,"wide_image-height":468}},"image_position":"center","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":" This result allows field crews to quickly identify the location of the fault in the field, providing knowledge not only of which cable they need to repair but also the location along the cable where the fault occurred.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":" A function barrier is used to control when a trace stops, in utility network terminology this means that it is part of the conditions evaluated to determine traversability across features in the network. Function barriers are useful with a connected or shortest path trace, because you want the trace to stop once it meets the criteria of the function barrier and do not have the need to first identify the source or sink controllers. Using a function barrier with a subnetwork-based trace, like upstream or downstream trace, will often result in the trace failing because it can\u2019t reach a subnetwork controller due to the defined function barrier.<\/p>\n Going back to the original example and running a connected trace with a 500-foot function barrier to create an aggregated geometry result.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":2937492,"id":2937492,"title":"Connected Trace","filename":"Connected-Trace.png","filesize":180321,"url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Connected-Trace.png","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/utility-network\/telecommunications\/going-the-distance-with-tracing\/connected-trace","alt":"","author":"304562","description":"","caption":"A function barrier using a connected trace","name":"connected-trace","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":2937467,"date":"2025-08-27 14:42:17","modified":"2025-08-27 15:03:36","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":566,"height":456,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Connected-Trace-213x200.png","thumbnail-width":213,"thumbnail-height":200,"medium":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Connected-Trace.png","medium-width":324,"medium-height":261,"medium_large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Connected-Trace.png","medium_large-width":566,"medium_large-height":456,"large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Connected-Trace.png","large-width":566,"large-height":456,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Connected-Trace.png","1536x1536-width":566,"1536x1536-height":456,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Connected-Trace.png","2048x2048-width":566,"2048x2048-height":456,"card_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Connected-Trace.png","card_image-width":566,"card_image-height":456,"wide_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Connected-Trace.png","wide_image-width":566,"wide_image-height":456}},"image_position":"center","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":" Because you ran a connected trace, the trace result is returned both going towards and away from the central office (off-screen to the left). A connected trace isn\u2019t aware of subnetwork controllers, so it considers paths on either end of the starting location. This is easily addressed by adding a barrier on the side of the device you don\u2019t want to analyze.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"image","image":{"ID":2937493,"id":2937493,"title":"Connected Trace Downstream Barrier","filename":"Connected-Trace-Downstream-Barrier.png","filesize":157684,"url":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Connected-Trace-Downstream-Barrier.png","link":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/products\/utility-network\/telecommunications\/going-the-distance-with-tracing\/connected-trace-downstream-barrier","alt":"","author":"304562","description":"","caption":"A function barrier that is constrained to trace towards the central office by placing a barrier on the downstream edge.","name":"connected-trace-downstream-barrier","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":2937467,"date":"2025-08-27 14:42:42","modified":"2025-08-27 15:04:09","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":526,"height":406,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Connected-Trace-Downstream-Barrier-213x200.png","thumbnail-width":213,"thumbnail-height":200,"medium":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Connected-Trace-Downstream-Barrier.png","medium-width":338,"medium-height":261,"medium_large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Connected-Trace-Downstream-Barrier.png","medium_large-width":526,"medium_large-height":406,"large":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Connected-Trace-Downstream-Barrier.png","large-width":526,"large-height":406,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Connected-Trace-Downstream-Barrier.png","1536x1536-width":526,"1536x1536-height":406,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Connected-Trace-Downstream-Barrier.png","2048x2048-width":526,"2048x2048-height":406,"card_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Connected-Trace-Downstream-Barrier.png","card_image-width":526,"card_image-height":406,"wide_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/Connected-Trace-Downstream-Barrier.png","wide_image-width":526,"wide_image-height":406}},"image_position":"center","orientation":"horizontal","hyperlink":""},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":" By adding a barrier on the downstream edge connected to the device (not visible underneath the start point) we can constrain the trace to show the upstream features. This is only required because the area being analyzed doesn\u2019t have a source or sink to calculate flow, so we must manually orient the trace using a feature barrier.<\/p>\n"},{"acf_fc_layout":"content","content":" In this article you learned how to perform calculations using a trace configuration. You saw how these functions can be used to present values or even constrain the results to specific conditions. The examples shown in this article were all based on a communications network, but similar equipment and techniques are used in pipe networks to identify blockages or electrical networks to identify faults.<\/p>\n Answering questions about what or how features in your GIS are connected is one of the fundamental capabilities of ArcGIS Utility Network. In earlier articles you learned the basics of the trace framework<\/a>, how containers and associations can be used to answer questions<\/a>, and even how to perform more complex analysis like isolation tracing<\/a>. The main thing that all the previous examples have in common is they are trying to answer the question by using the topological relationships between features in the network to answer questions.<\/p>\n If you\u2019re interested in watching a presentation that discusses these topics, you can find the Advanced Network Management (2024)<\/a> presentation from the Esri User Conference on the Esri Video site<\/p>\nTracing and Functions<\/h2>\n
Stopping at a certain distance<\/h2>\n
\n
Filter Function Barrier<\/h2>\n
Function Barrier<\/h2>\n
Conclusion<\/h2>\n
"}],"related_articles":[{"ID":1465422,"post_author":"7521","post_date":"2023-07-31 07:00:16","post_date_gmt":"2023-07-31 14:00:16","post_content":"","post_title":"Exploring the ArcGIS Utility Network Trace Framework","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"exploring-the-arcgis-utility-network-trace-framework","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2023-10-19 13:12:38","post_modified_gmt":"2023-10-19 20:12:38","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/?post_type=blog&p=1465422","menu_order":0,"post_type":"blog","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"3","filter":"raw"},{"ID":2882972,"post_author":"304562","post_date":"2025-05-04 11:03:16","post_date_gmt":"2025-05-04 18:03:16","post_content":"","post_title":"Electric Utility Network Reading List","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"electric-utility-network-reading-list","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2025-12-19 14:43:52","post_modified_gmt":"2025-12-19 22:43:52","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/?post_type=blog&p=2882972","menu_order":0,"post_type":"blog","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":2888022,"post_author":"304562","post_date":"2025-05-04 14:41:45","post_date_gmt":"2025-05-04 21:41:45","post_content":"","post_title":"Stormwater Utility Network Reading List","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"stormwater-utility-network-reading-list","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2025-12-19 14:37:23","post_modified_gmt":"2025-12-19 22:37:23","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/?post_type=blog&p=2888022","menu_order":0,"post_type":"blog","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":2887562,"post_author":"304562","post_date":"2025-05-04 12:22:59","post_date_gmt":"2025-05-04 19:22:59","post_content":"","post_title":"Wastewater Utility Network Reading List","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"wastewater-utility-network-reading-list","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2025-12-19 14:37:57","post_modified_gmt":"2025-12-19 22:37:57","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/?post_type=blog&p=2887562","menu_order":0,"post_type":"blog","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":2886332,"post_author":"304562","post_date":"2025-05-04 11:20:17","post_date_gmt":"2025-05-04 18:20:17","post_content":"","post_title":"Water Utility Network Reading List","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"water-utility-network-reading-list","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2025-12-19 14:41:55","post_modified_gmt":"2025-12-19 22:41:55","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/?post_type=blog&p=2886332","menu_order":0,"post_type":"blog","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":2886292,"post_author":"304562","post_date":"2025-05-04 12:06:58","post_date_gmt":"2025-05-04 19:06:58","post_content":"","post_title":"Gas and Pipeline Utility Network Reading List","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"gas-and-pipeline-utility-network-reading-list","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2025-12-19 14:40:48","post_modified_gmt":"2025-12-19 22:40:48","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/?post_type=blog&p=2886292","menu_order":0,"post_type":"blog","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"show_article_image":false,"card_image":"https:\/\/www.esri.com\/arcgis-blog\/app\/uploads\/2025\/08\/adobestock-451437101.jpg","wide_image":false},"yoast_head":"\n