Reading feature class in file geodatabase using R?

Question

I have a feature contained in a geodatabase that is larger than 2GB as an exported shapefile. I need to run an extract function in R to attribute the polygons with data from a raster file. Exporting the feature as a table is not a solution. How can I read feature classes contained within an Esri file geodatabase?

Answer 1

You can use rgdal to access feature classes in Esri file geodatabases.

require(rgdal)

# The input file geodatabase
fgdb <- "C:/path/to/your/filegeodatabase.gdb"

# List all feature classes in a file geodatabase
subset(ogrDrivers(), grepl("GDB", name))
fc_list <- ogrListLayers(fgdb)
print(fc_list)

# Read the feature class
fc <- readOGR(dsn=fgdb,layer="some_featureclass")

# Determine the FC extent, projection, and attribute information
summary(fc)

# View the feature class
plot(fc)

Answer 2

As already posted in this answer, this now also works very nicely with sf:

require(sf)
fc <- sf::st_read("C:/path/to/your/filegeodatabase.gdb", layer = "some_featureclass")

But writing into a fgdb ist not implemented (yet?), you'd have to have a ArcGIS / ArcMap License as well as the R library arcgisbinding (see https://github.com/R-ArcGIS/r-bridge)

st_drivers()$write[st_drivers()$long_name == "ESRI FileGDB"]
#> [1] FALSE