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Bug

The arcpy.da.Describe() function requires extended time to complete when inputting in a SDE workspace.

Last Published: October 1, 2022 ArcGIS Pro
Bug ID Number BUG-000151318
SubmittedAugust 4, 2022
Last ModifiedApril 16, 2025
Applies toArcGIS Pro
Version found3.0
Operating SystemWindows OS
Operating System VersionN/A
StatusAs Designed

Additional Information

The arcpy.da.Describe function offers better experience when authoring python code (eg: in a notebook) however it is expected it to be slower than arcpy.Describe, especially with egdb data. When running `arcpy.Describe(...).name`, the logic requires a few ArcObjects to retrieve that particular property, and very few python objects need to be created (a python describe object + the string object for the name). For `arcpy.da.Describe(...).name`, create a python dictionary and query and create python object for the exhaustive list of known describe properties on the object found. For a FeatureClass this is 60 distinct properties , hence, 60 distinct python objects we have to create a value for. And while some of these python objects are strings and numbers, some of them are GPDescribe.Index , GPDescribe.Field, and GPDescribe.Children which are a full large-scale GPDescribe object. In conclusion, arcpy.da.Describe is better to work with but can be slower, while arcpy.Describe is opaque, not as effective to interact with but can be faster. Use arcpy.Describe for production code which has performance issues.

Steps to Reproduce

Bug ID: BUG-000151318

Software:

  • ArcGIS Pro

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