Octo for open-source software alongside ArcGIS
GDAL reads and writes file geodatabases and extracts feature services; PostGIS cross-references; QGIS runs batch geoprocessing from the command line; GeoServer publishes in WMS and WFS, which ArcGIS Pro consumes in turn. With these free tools, Octo can prepare and check entire procedures without an Esri license on the server, and show honestly what still needs ArcGIS, such as geodatabase versioning and utility network. Switching platforms, publishing to production and signing technical reports belong to the client's people.
Six possible deliverables, drawn from the survey. All of them run on Linux with free tools, coexist with the ArcGIS the client already has and go to the geoprocessing team for review.
Can read a layer from an ArcGIS server with ogr2ogr (ESRIJSON driver, automatic pagination) and load it into PostGIS or a GeoPackage, checking the count against the service itself and respecting the server's terms and limits.
Can convert thousands of shapefiles and file geodatabases to GeoPackage or PostGIS in SIRGAS 2000, fixing geometry and counting, layer by layer, what went in, what was fixed and what did not come out.
Deliverable: converted collection + loss CSVWrites the PostGIS SQL that joins datasets (points in polygons, density per area on the ellipsoid, nearest neighbor) and the verification queries: sum of the parts equals the total, same SRID, invalid polygons.
Deliverable: commented SQL + result tableBuilds qgis_process, GeoPandas or Rasterio batches that repeat an analysis across dozens of regions, with a log per algorithm, and the comparison with the ArcPy result in a reference region.
Can prepare in GeoServer, through the REST API, the PostGIS datastore and the layers in WMS and WFS, in a test environment, for ArcGIS Pro to consume. Publishing to production only on the client's order.
Deliverable: test layers + publishing runbookLists what in the client's environment depends on features with no free equivalent (versioning, utility network, parcel fabric, attribute rules, SDC) so the platform decision is made with that on the table.
Deliverable: inventory of ArcGIS dependenciesThe same Octo cycle, applied to open-source software alongside ArcGIS. Each arm has a narrow role; the client's people decide the platform and sign.
ArcGIS Pro and Enterprise versions, geodatabases and what each one uses: versioning, utility network, attribute rules, SDC compression. That is what says what can and cannot move to a free tool.
CRS of each layer, transformation to SIRGAS 2000, number of input features. Without a starting count, no loss report is worth anything.
Third-party services only within the server's terms and limits; credentials outside the scripts; test GeoServer without restricted data; read-only user on the published database.
ogr2ogr when converting is enough, PostGIS when cross-referencing is needed, qgis_process or GeoPandas for batch analysis, GeoServer for publishing. ArcGIS stays where there is no equivalent.
Shell, SQL and Python scripts with the documentation for each option noted in the file itself, ready to run in batch and to be redone.
Count equal to the service's, sum of the parts equal to the total, same SRID, difference against ArcPy measured on a sample. Checks by the number, not by the absence of errors.
Runs on the server the client approved and publishes to the test GeoServer. Production, license shutdown and platform switching are decisions for the client's team.
Version of each tool, exact command, assumptions, loss report and the differences found against ArcGIS. The next batch starts from this record.
Octo does not decide to switch platforms, publish to production without an order or sign technical reports or licensing documents. That belongs to the client's team and licensed professionals.
The criteria Octo uses to choose. Where there is no compatible free equivalent, the path is to keep ArcGIS.
| Task | Open path | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Reading and writing file geodatabases on Linux | GDAL, OpenFileGDB driver | Writing since GDAL 3.6; does not read SDC; CDF only through the FileGDB driver with the Esri SDK |
| Extracting a feature service layer | ogr2ogr with ESRIJSON: | Automatic pagination; respect the server's terms and limits |
| Converting a collection to SIRGAS 2000 | ogr2ogr -makevalid -t_srs EPSG:4674, gdal vector pipeline, GeoPandas | PROJ grids for SAD69 and Córrego Alegre; loss report |
| Spatial SQL and cross-referencing | PostGIS | ArcGIS Pro connects directly to PostgreSQL |
| Batch geoprocessing | qgis_process, GeoPandas, Rasterio | Compare with ArcPy on a sample before trusting it |
| LiDAR to DEM | PDAL | Compare with a reference DEM |
| Publishing maps and features | GeoServer (WMS, WFS, OGC API) | ArcGIS Pro consumes WMS, WFS, OGC API Features and Tiles |
| Versioned editing, utility network, parcel fabric | Keep ArcGIS | No compatible free equivalent |
Three steps. Each one only makes sense after the previous one has shown results in your environment, and none of them requires turning off ArcGIS.
A proposal, not a promise
You ask in geoprocessing terms and Octo proposes the command, the SQL or the script, checked against the documentation.
ogr2ogrExtractions, conversions and analyses now run in batch on a Linux server, with a log and report for each run.
qgis_process analyses compared with ArcPyWith the dependency inventory in hand, the team decides what stays in ArcGIS and what runs on a free tool.
Each point below has a source published by the vendor, the project or the responsible agency. The sources are in the next section.
4
points with a published source, each with its reference alongside.
resultOffset; the documentation recommends orderByFields.Source: gdal.org, ESRIJSON drivergdal command, since 3.11, is called provisional by the project itself.Source: gdal.org, qgis.org, OSGeo, PyPI, GitHubOcto prepares everything, but does not sign. The document of record stays with whoever is accountable for it.
Gathers, calculates, organizes and produces the documents: spreadsheets, reports, maps and drafts.
Deliverable: material ready for reviewThe licensed professional reviews what Octo delivered before signing. If something doesn't add up, it goes back to Octo with the correction.
Step: review by whoever signsOcto does not sign. Designs, technical reports, ART/RRT, accountability reports and any official document are still signed by the licensed professional at the company or agency: here, the professional of record for the map or survey.
Signature: professional of record for the map or surveyDocumentation from the projects, Esri and public agencies used in the survey, accessed October 29, 2026.
The assessment starts with a layer or a folder from your collection, without touching your ArcGIS. You get a proposal for what can be done with open-source software and what should stay where it is, and decide with it in hand.