Example: Publish a service using a service definition file—ArcGIS Server

A service definition file (.sd) encapsulates a service into a single transferable file, optionally including source GIS data. The Upload Service Definition geoprocessing tool uploads a service definition to the ArcGIS Server site and publishes it. You can invoke the tool from the ArcPy site package included with ArcGIS Server.

The following Python example loops through a given folder on a Microsoft Windows machine, finds the service definitions contained in the folder (excluding subfolders), and publishes them to the stand-alone ArcGIS Server site specified using the connection file (.ags).

Running the tool requires a local data location containing the service definition files, the path to the ArcGIS Server connection file, and the name of the destination folder on the ArcGIS Server site.

# Publishes all service definitions in an operating system directory
#  (excluding subfolders). Services are published but not started.
# Import required modules
import arcpy
import os

# Define path to SD files on local machine
sdDir = "C:/data/sd_files"

# Provide path to ArcGIS Server connection file
con = "C:/projects/publishing_project/arcgis on myserver_6443.ags"

# Destination folder name on ArcGIS Server
serverFolder = "ScriptPublish"

# Loop through all items in local directory
sdList = os.listdir(sdDir)

for sd in sdList:
    
    # Construct path to item
    extension = os.path.splitext(sd)[1]  # Get file extension
    sdPath = os.path.join(sdDir, sd)

    # Check if item is an SD file and, if so, try to publish
    if os.path.isfile(sdPath) and extension == ".sd":    
        try:     
            arcpy.UploadServiceDefinition_server(sdPath, con, "", "", "EXISTING", serverFolder, "STOPPED")
            print("Published " + sd + " with no errors reported.")
            
        except:
            print("Could not complete publishing operation for " + sd + ".")

        print(arcpy.GetMessages())

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