Documentation
User Guide
Everything you need to import data, build surveys, collect field observations, and sync with ArcGIS Online.
About Aronnax
Aronnax is a Public Participation GIS (PPGIS) platform built by the Digital Reef Charitable Trust. It enables communities across Aotearoa New Zealand to collect and share location-based observations about their environment, in the field, on any device.
The typical workflow is: import your existing data, review and clean it, build a survey from it, send contributors into the field to collect observations, review what comes back, and optionally sync approved data to ArcGIS Online.
Getting started
Logging in
Aronnax uses invite-only registration. Your administrator will provide you with an account.
- 1Go to Log in in the top navigation.
- 2Enter your email address and password.
- 3Once logged in, you will see Data Tables and Surveys in the navigation bar.
User roles
Full access. Import data, build surveys, review submissions, manage users, configure ArcGIS sync.
Import data, build surveys, review submissions. Cannot manage users.
Submit responses to published surveys. Cannot import data or manage tables.
Working with data tables
A data table is your dataset inside Aronnax. It holds rows of data with typed columns. You can import data from a file or pull it from an ArcGIS Online Feature Layer.
Importing from CSV or Excel
- 1Go to Data Tables and click Import File.
- 2Select your .csv, .xlsx, or .xls file.
- 3Aronnax reads the columns and infers data types. If your Excel file has multiple sheets, pick the one you want.
- 4Enter a name and optional description for the table.
- 5Review the column mappings - adjust types and roles if needed.
- 6Click Confirm & Import.
File rules
- Row 1 must be your header row. Each cell becomes a column name.
- One table per sheet. Each sheet should be self-contained.
- No merged cells. Merged cells break column alignment.
- No formulas. Paste as values before importing.
- Keep it flat. Every row is one observation.
Importing from ArcGIS Online
Pull an existing ArcGIS Online Feature Layer directly into Aronnax. This imports all features including their geometry (points, lines, or polygons).
- 1Go to Data Tables and click Import from ArcGIS.
- 2Paste the Feature Service URL from the item page in ArcGIS Online.
https://services.arcgis.com/<orgId>/.../FeatureServer - 3Set the Layer ID - usually
0for single-layer services. - 4Enter a name for the new data table.
- 5Click Import Feature Layer. Aronnax fetches all features, infers column types, and creates the table in review status.
- 6Review column types and roles, then Confirm & Activate.
*The ArcGIS import requires OAuth credentials to be configured by your administrator. If you see "ArcGIS integration not configured", contact your admin.
Editing your data
Once a data table is imported, you can edit individual rows directly in the browser. This is useful for correcting errors, updating descriptions, or adding missing values.
- 1Open your data table from the Data Tables list.
- 2In the Data Preview tab, click any row to start editing.
- 3Each cell becomes an input field. Edit the values you need to change.
- 4Click Save or press Ctrl + Enter to save.
- 5Press Esc or click Cancel to discard changes.
*Only the table owner or an administrator can edit rows. Changes are saved immediately to the database.
Map view
If your data table contains geometry (from ArcGIS imports, or latitude/longitude columns), you can visualise all rows on an interactive map.
- 1Open your data table from the Data Tables list.
- 2Click the Map tab (alongside Data Preview and Column Mappings).
- 3Aronnax loads all rows with geometry and renders them on an OpenTopoMap basemap.
- 4Click any feature (point, line, or polygon) to see a popup with the row data.
Observation sites, sample locations
River sections, trails, routes
Site boundaries, reserves, areas
*The map auto-fits to show all features. For large datasets (1,000+ rows), Aronnax fetches all pages of data before rendering.
Column types reference
Aronnax auto-detects column types from your data. You can change any type during review.
| Type | Detection rule | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Text | Default for any string | Kahurangi Track |
| Integer | Whole numbers only | 42 |
| Decimal | Numbers with a decimal | 174.763 |
| Yes / No | true/false, yes/no, 1/0 | Yes |
| Date | YYYY-MM-DD or DD/MM/YYYY | 2026-03-15 |
| Date & Time | Date with time component | 2026-03-15T09:30 |
| Select | 25 or fewer distinct values | Good, Fair, Poor |
| Recognisable email addresses | info@example.nz | |
| URL | Starts with http(s):// | https://doc.govt.nz |
Domains (permitted responses)
If a text column has 25 or fewer distinct values that repeat across rows, Aronnax treats it as a Select field. Keep values consistent - "Good" and "good" are treated as different. No trailing spaces.
Spatial columns
Aronnax recognises location columns by their header name:
- Latitude / Longitude - columns named lat, latitude, lng, longitude, y, x (decimal degrees, WGS84).
- Geometry - a column containing GeoJSON strings (Point, LineString, or Polygon).
Building surveys
A survey is a form that contributors fill out to submit new observations. You build surveys from active data tables.
- 1From an active data table, click Build Survey from This Table.
- 2Aronnax converts your columns into survey questions - text fields, dropdowns, number inputs, date pickers, and map inputs.
- 3Reorder, rename, or remove questions before publishing.
- 4Alternatively, use the AI Survey Builder - describe what you need in plain language and Aronnax generates a draft form.
- 5Click Publish to make the survey available to contributors.
*You can unpublish a survey at any time to stop accepting new submissions.
Collecting data in the field
Published surveys are available at their own URL. Share the link with your team or embed it in your website. Contributors open the link, fill out the form, and submit.
Aronnax validates each submission against the survey schema before accepting it. Required fields must be filled, numbers must be within range, and spatial fields must have valid geometry.
Question types
Each survey supports 13 question types:
Media uploads
The Photo and Voice Note question types support file uploads. When a contributor submits a survey response with media, the file is uploaded to secure cloud storage and linked to the submission.
Photos
Images (JPEG, PNG, WebP), videos (MP4, WebM), and documents (PDF, Word, Excel). Tap the upload area or click to select from your device. A preview appears before submission.
Voice Notes
Record audio directly in the browser using your device microphone. Useful for field observations where typing is impractical. Supported formats: WebM, MP4, OGG audio.
*Maximum file size is 100 MB. Uploaded files are stored in Azure Blob Storage and linked to the submission. Each file gets a unique identifier to prevent duplicates.
GPS track recording
The Geotrace and Geoshape question types support live GPS recording alongside tap-to-draw.
Record Path
Tap the button, then walk. Aronnax records your position continuously and draws the line as you move. Useful for walking routes, river sections, or trail surveys.
Walk Boundary
Same GPS tracking, but the shape auto-closes into a polygon when you stop. Walk the perimeter of a site to capture its boundary.
*The map follows your position and shows GPS accuracy in metres. Points closer than 5 metres are filtered out to keep the geometry clean.
Installing as an app
Aronnax is a Progressive Web App (PWA). Install it to your home screen for a full-screen app that launches instantly and keeps working through a patchy connection.
- 1Open Aronnax in your phone's browser and tap Install or Add to Home Screen.
- 2Open the installed app and navigate to a published survey.
- 3Fill out the form and submit it while you have signal.
You need signal to submit
Offline submission is not yet available. The installed app will open and show pages you have already visited without a connection, but submitting a survey needs signal at the moment you press submit. If the submission fails you will see an error, and the form is not saved for later.
Until offline capture ships, please stay within coverage when you submit, or note your observations another way and enter them once you are back in range.
Reviewing submissions
Survey owners review incoming submissions before they enter the dataset.
- 1Open a survey and go to the Submissions tab.
- 2Filter by status: Pending Approved Rejected
- 3Click Approve to accept a submission, or Reject to discard it.
- 4If ArcGIS sync is configured, approved submissions are automatically pushed to your Feature Layer.
ArcGIS Online sync
Aronnax can push approved submissions to an ArcGIS Online Feature Layer automatically. Community-collected data flows directly into your GIS infrastructure.
Setting up push sync
The sync configuration panel is at the bottom of the submissions dashboard for each survey.
- 1Open a survey's Submissions page.
- 2Scroll down and expand the ArcGIS Online Sync panel.
- 3Enter the Feature Service URL and Layer ID for the target Feature Layer.
- 4In the Field Mapping table, enter the ArcGIS field name next to each survey question. Leave blank to skip a question.
Site name → SITE_NAME - 5Tick Push approved submissions to enable automatic sync.
- 6Click Save Sync Config.
How sync works
- Push is fire-and-forget - approval returns immediately, sync happens in the background.
- Geometry converts automatically (GeoJSON to Esri JSON).
- Each submission is tagged with a GlobalID. Re-approving updates the feature instead of duplicating.
- Failed pushes are recorded. Administrators can retry after fixing the issue.
- Only mapped fields are pushed. Unmapped questions are not sent.
Troubleshooting
Cannot log in
Check your email and password. Registration is invite-only - contact your administrator.
ArcGIS import says "Authentication required"
OAuth credentials may not be configured, or the Feature Layer is not shared with the OAuth application. Contact your admin.
Column types are wrong after import
Go to the Column Mappings tab and change the type using the dropdown. You can do this before or after activating.
Submissions not appearing in ArcGIS
Check that push sync is enabled and the field mapping is configured. Only approved submissions are pushed.
Field type mismatch errors
Ensure ArcGIS Feature Layer field types match the data. A decimal sent to an integer field will fail.
Large imports are slow
Aronnax fetches features in pages of 2,000. Very large layers (100,000+ features) may take a few minutes.
Submission failed with no signal
Offline submission is not yet available. A submission needs a live connection at the moment you press submit, and a failed one is not saved for later - re-enter it once you are back in coverage.
Row edits not saving
Make sure you are logged in and have permission to edit the table (owner or admin role).
Part of The Digital Reef
Built by the Digital Reef Charitable Trust for environmental monitoring and community science initiatives across Aotearoa New Zealand.
info@digitalreef.nz