Layer's Data Source is inaccessible

[ManeeshMassey]

Dear ESRI Community,

I am using the ArcGIS Desktop 10.1 on Windows 8.1.

My issue is: I've changed machines when installing ArcGIS Desktop 10.1. When trying to load a data layer which was on the previous machine, I am getting an Error Code of 00003: Layer's Data source is inaccessible.

I've tried to Set Data Source from ArcCatalogue by right-clicking and changing the Data Source, yet it refuses to display in ArcGIS Desktop 10.1.

I am having a frustrating time working on a project until and unless the data layer properly loads and displays.

Please help resolve the issue at hand. Let me know if you need any more information.

Appreciate all help.

Thanks you

[ManeeshMassey]

Hi Jayanta,

I removed the definition query from the layer and also moved the data source layer onto another drive like an ext. HDD since I only have one drive on my computer i.e. C drive configured. The drive hasn't been partitioned. Is it okay to keep the data source on an ext. HDD?

I checked to see if the layer becomes visible in ArcMAP, yet it did not work. I still can't get the layer to display in ArcMAP.

I am trying out everything I can. The data source refuses to display. What next ?

[JayantaPoddar]

Maybe you can get in touch with the Esri India Tech Support. They can have a look at the data and work for its resolution. It would be very difficult to provide a solution without having a look at the data.

Esri India Online Technical Support

[RebeccaStrauch__GISP]

I see the first is looking graphic is looking for shapefiles.  Make sure you copied all the files associated with the shapefile, and not just the .shp.    At a minimum there is usually a .shp, .dbf, .shx, but there can be others, especially a .prj that would contain projection information.

https://desktop.arcgis.com/en/arcmap/10.3/manage-data/shapefiles/shapefile-file-extensions.htm 

[ManeeshMassey]

Thanks for the reply Rebecca. I do have all the files associated with the shapefile, none of the individual files seem to be missing. However the data source is still inaccessible. This seems to me to be something wrong with the path of the layer that ArcMAP is looking for.

Any more suggestions?

[DanPatterson_Retired]

what is the path of the file and what is the path of the project?

[ManeeshMassey]

Hi Dan,

The path of the project and the path of the data file both were different however that has now been corrected by me and both files are now within the ext. HDD folder named GIS. I mentioned earlier that I had removed them from C drive on my computer as suggested by Jayanta above and now both the files are on an ext. HDD in a folder named GIS.

Even after this exercise, the data source is not displaying in ArcMAP.

Just to check I launched a new blank map and then load the data source into i, I right-clicked the attribute table to see if it contained any data in the table. The table was having only 3 columns in it which was previously showing a number of other columns.

I fail to understand the reason why it is not being displayed on the map?

[DanPatterson_Retired]

lacking paths to look at, you will have to provide that information to tech support

As for why the table have other fields?  There was apparently a table 'joined' to your table and the join was broken when you loaded it into a new project.  Joins are not permanent but used to display supplemental associated data.

[ManeeshMassey]

Hello Dan,

I can post a screenshot of the paths to both the files here and you may have a look at them. Meanwhile, I have also requested tech support to the issue at hand, but they have not followed me up on this issue yet. And yes the table that was joined to the layer was broken when I moved to another computer. The shapefile I am trying to load into the program had several other columns in it. As of now, I am seeing just a few columns of data in the shapefile. This is strange as columns are missing from the shapefile.

[DanPatterson_Retired · Accepted solution]

i have never seen several columns vanish from a shapefile.  I suspect their presence there was the result of a join.  Unless a shapefile is exported/saved to a new file when it has a join, the join remains temporary and it will be lost even when the shapefile is added to a new project.  The easiest solution would be to go back to some point in time and find a backup or other copy of the main shapefile and the table used in the join and replicate it.  There is essentially nothing that can be done until you locate those files or ... hopefully... your backup copies.

[RebeccaStrauch__GISP]

I agree with Dan that there was most likely a join (or Relate) which is no longer there.

Can you at least temporarily copy the data from the HDD drive back to the C drive to see if the MXD shows all the fields again.  If so, at that point you should be able to review the information needed for the join so you can reestablish it when the data is moved to the new drive.