Save a copy of a layer

In this tutorial, you are building a set of maps of Switzerland for your tourism business's website. There will be a different map for each season since different attractions are popular at different times of the year.

To begin, you need a feature layer of the boundary of Switzerland. You'll use the World Countries layer available on ArcGIS Living Atlas of the World and filter it to only show Switzerland. Then, you'll save the filtered layer as a new item in your ArcGIS Online account so you can reuse it consistently in all of the maps for the website.

This tutorial was last tested on November 5, 2025.

Requirements

• Free ArcGIS public account or a User or higher member role in an ArcGIS organization (see options for software access)

Save a copy of a layer

Video

This tutorial is also available as a video.

Save a copy of a layer video

For full details, refer to the written instruction below.

Note:

This video was recorded in 2023. It may differ slightly from the written instructions below, which are more recent.

Filter the layer

A feature layer contains a reference to a data source, plus layer properties that determine how that data is displayed and behaves on a map. You'll view a feature layer owned by Esri and change some of its layer properties to better suit your purposes.

1. Go to the World Countries item page.

   This is a feature layer owned by Esri. The Terms of use for this item allow you to use it in your maps because you have an ArcGIS subscription.

2. At the top of the item page, click Open in Map Viewer.

   

3. If necessary, on the ribbon, click Sign In. Sign in with your ArcGIS organizational account.

   Note:

   If you don't have an ArcGIS organizational account, you can sign up for a free public account.

   A map of the world appears. You'll filter the layer to show only Switzerland.

4. On the Settings (light) toolbar, click the Filter button.

   

   Note:

   If the Settings toolbar is unavailable, in the Layers pane, click World Countries. The Settings toolbar is only available when a layer is selected.

5. In the Filter pane, click Add new.
6. Under Condition, ensure that the first menu is set to Country Name and the second menu is set to is. In the third menu, type Switzerland.

   

7. Click Save.
8. On the map, zoom to Switzerland.

   

   The map now shows Switzerland, instead of all of the world's countries. You haven't changed the feature layer owned by Esri; you've only changed how it appears in this map.

Save a copy of the layer

Your website will include several maps of Switzerland, each featuring different thematic data. Instead of applying the filter every time, you'll save a copy of the layer that is prefiltered.

1. In the Layers pane, on the World Countries layer, click the Options button and choose Save as.

   

2. In the Save as window, for Title, type Switzerland, followed by your name or initials (for example, Switzerland Your Name).

   Note:

   You cannot create two layers in an ArcGIS organization with the same name. Adding your initials to a layer name ensures that other people in your organization can also complete this tutorial. Once a layer has been created, you can rename it in the map to remove your initials, which will not affect the name of the underlying data layer.

   The Tags are already filled in with information from the source layer. You'll adapt the Summary to include a direct link to the source layer.

3. For Summary, delete the existing text. Copy and paste the following: This layer is a filtered copy of The World Countries layer owned by Esri: https://www.arcgis.com/home/item.html?id=ac80670eb213440ea5899bbf92a04998.

   

4. Click Save.

   A new feature layer item is created in your Content list, but nothing on the map appears to change.

5. On the Settings toolbar, click the Properties button.

   

6. In the Properties pane, expand the Information section.

   The Source layer is listed as Switzerland / World Countries. This is the new feature layer item that you created in your ArcGIS Online account. Previously, the source layer was the World Countries / World Countries feature layer owned by Esri.

   

   Note:

   Switzerland is the sublayer inside the World Countries feature layer.

7. Under Source layer, click Switzerland / World Countries.

   The item page for the feature layer's sublayer appears.

8. On the ribbon, click Switzerland.

   

   The item page for the feature layer appears. This feature layer is owned by you.

   A feature layer does not contain data. Instead, it contains a reference to a data source, plus layer properties. The Switzerland layer references the same data source as the World Countries layer it was created from. If the data source is edited (for example, if a country's name is changed), that edit will appear on the Switzerland layer.

   

   The URL that you added to the summary earlier can help you navigate back to the original feature layer owned by Esri, to retrieve its metadata and data sources.

9. Scroll to the bottom of the page. Next to Acknowledgments, click Edit.

   

   You'll add the same attribution that is used for the World Countries feature layer.

10. Type (or copy and paste) Sources: Esri; Garmin International, Inc.; U.S. Central Intelligence Agency; International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and click Save.

Configure layer properties

Next, you'll change some of the layer's appearance properties. You could click Open in Map Viewer and make the changes there. However, those changes would be saved in a web map, so they would only control how the layer appears in that map. You want to ensure that layer properties are set consistently across multiple maps, so you'll make your changes on the item page's Visualization tab. These changes will be saved in the feature layer. They will affect how the layer appears in every map.

1. On the ribbon, click the Visualization tab.

   

   A map view of the Switzerland feature layer appears.

   Note:

   This is only a map view, not a map item. You can't add any other layers to this map.

   You can control layer properties in this map view. Any properties you change here will be stored in the feature layer, rather than in a web map.

2. On the map, zoom to Switzerland.

   You'll change the layer's appearance so the basemap can be seen under the layer.

3. If necessary, on the Contents (dark) toolbar, click the Layers button.

   

4. On the Settings toolbar, click the Properties button.
5. In the Properties pane, in the Appearance section, change Transparency to 40 percent.

   

   The hillshade of the Alps becomes visible, but it is still partially obscured by the layer.

   

   You'll use a blend mode to allow the mountains to display more crisply.

6. For Blending, choose Multiply.

   

   Blend modes control how a layer's pixels interact with the pixels underneath it.

   

   The color theme of each of the seasonal maps will be different, so you'll change the layer's color in each map, rather than here on the Visualization tab.

7. Above the map view, click Save.

   

   When you add this layer to new maps, it will have all of the properties set here, including the filter, transparency, and blending settings.

Use the layer in a map

The Switzerland feature layer is ready to add to the seasonal maps. You'll add it to the winter-themed map and change its color to blue. You'll also confirm that all other properties are controlled by the source layer, rather than the map.

1. Open the Switzerland Winter map.

   

2. If necessary, on the ribbon, click Sign In. Sign in with your ArcGIS organizational account.
3. If necessary, on the Contents toolbar, click the Layers button to open the Layers pane.
4. In the Layers pane, click the Add button.

   

5. Ensure that the filter at the top of the Add layer pane is set to My content.
6. From the top of the item list, on the Switzerland feature layer card, click the Add button.

   

   The Switzerland layer is added to the map. The orange color doesn't suit the winter-themed map. You'll change its color to blue.

7. On the Settings toolbar, click the Effects button.

   

   Note:

   You can also change the layer's color in the Style pane.

8. In the Effects pane, turn on Hue rotate.

   

9. In the Hue rotate window, type 163.

   

   The Switzerland layer changes to a blue color that better matches the basemap.

10. Close the Hue rotate window.
11. On the Settings toolbar, click the Properties button.
12. In the Properties pane, expand the Information section. Click Some properties are stored in this web map.

    

    The Layer properties status window appears.

    Layer properties are divided into two categories: Data properties and Appearance properties. The Appearance properties section shows that only one property—Effects—is stored in the web map. All other properties are stored in the source layer.

    

    This means that if you return to the source layer (on the Visualization tab of the Switzerland feature layer item page) and make a change in the Effects pane, it will result in no change to this map.

    All other properties are stored in the source layer. This means that if you change the Blending, Filter, Pop-ups, or any other property of the source layer, those changes will appear on this map.

    It helps to know where properties are stored so you can predict how they will behave. In this case, you own the source layer, so layer property changes won't happen unexpectedly.

    Note:

    You don't own the data, so data changes could still happen unexpectedly.

    You can use the feature layer to control those properties you want to be consistent across all maps, and you can set those properties you want to be different (including the Hue rotate Effect property) separately in each map.

13. Close the Layer properties status window.

    Tip:

    To store all layer properties in the same place, click Manage layer properties.

In this tutorial, you learned how to manage layer properties by saving a new feature layer to your account. The data referenced by the feature layer is not owned by you, but all of the layer properties are. On the layer's Visualization tab, you configured the layer properties needed for all of your tourism maps. In the winter web map, you configured a final layer property (color) needed just for that map.

You can find more tutorials in the tutorial gallery.

Acknowledgements

• World Countries: Esri; Garmin International, Inc.; United States Central Intelligence Agency
• World Topographic Map sources: Esri, TomTom, Garmin, FAO, NOAA, USGS, OpenStreetMap contributors, and the GIS User Community
• Human Geography Map sources: Esri, TomTom, Garmin, FAO, NOAA, USGS, OpenStreetMap contributors, and the GIS User Community
• World Hillshade layer sources: Esri, Maxar, Airbus DS, USGS, NGA, NASA, CGIAR, N Robinson, NCEAS, NLS, OS, NMA, Geodatastyrelsen, Rijkswaterstaat, GSA, Geoland, FEMA, Intermap, and the GIS user community