NAME

       shptree - create a quadtree-based spatial index for a Shape data set

SYNOPSIS

       shptree [ shpfile [depth] [index_format] | -v]

DESCRIPTION

       shptree creates a quadtree-based spatial index for a Shape data set. The default tree depth is calculated
       so that each tree node (quadtree cell) contains 8 shapes. Do not use the  default  with  point  files,  a
       value between 6 and 10 seems to work ok. Your millage may vary and you'll need to do some experimenting.

       This utility is a must for any MapServer application that uses Shape data sets. shptree creates a spatial
       index of your Shape data set, using a quadtree method. This means that MapServer will use this  index  to
       quickly  find  the appropriate shapes to draw. It creates a file of the same name as your Shape data set,
       with a .qix file extension. The quadtree method breaks the file into 4 quadrants, recursively until  only
       a  few  shapes are contained in each quadrant. This minimum number can be set with the depth parameter of
       the command.

OPTIONS

       shpfile
              The name of the .shp file to index.

       depth  (Optional) The maximum depth of the index to create,  default  is  0  meaning  that  shptree  will
              calculate a reasonable default depth.

       index_format
              (Optional) One of:

              NL     LSB byte order, using new index format

              NM     MSB byte order, using new index format

       The following old format options are deprecated:

              N      Native byte order

              L      LSB (intel) byte order

              M      MSB byte order

       The default index_format on this system is: NL

       -v     Display mapserver version and build options.

NOTES

       Shape data sets are native to MapServer, and therefore do not require the .shp extension in the DATA path
       of the LAYER. In fact, in order for MapServer to  use  the  .qix  extension  you  MUST  NOT  specify  the
       extension, for example:

              LAYER
                ...
                DATA "us_states"    #MapServer will search for us_states.qix and will use it
                ...
              END

              LAYER
                ...
                DATA "us_states.shp" #MapServer will search for us_states.shp.qix and won't find it
                ...
              END

       Note: As of MapServer 5.2 the qix will be used even when the .shp extension is specified.

EXAMPLE

       shptree us_states.shp
         creating index of new  LSB format

       Result:
              A  file  named  'us_states.qix'  is  created  in  the  same  location.  (note that you can use the
              shptreevis(1) utility to view the actual quadtree quadrants that are used by MapServer in this qix
              file)

SEE ALSO

       shptreetst(1), shptreevis(1), sortshp(1)

       The  shptree wiki page ⟨https://github.com/mapserver/mapserver/wiki/ShpTree⟩ may also contain information
       on this utility.

                                                28 February 2020                                      shptree(1)