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I've got three point shapes with different fields that I cannot seem to merge as I get ERROR 000229: cannot open 'name of shapefile'. Instead of solving this error, I wanted to try something different: in edit mode, I selected and copied all points into a new shapefile. However, all attributes got lost.

Now I would like to somehow migrate the values from the field 'TOP', which is present in all source shapefiles, to the new shapefile.

I know there is a possibility to extract values from a raster dataset ('Extract Values to Points'). Is it also possible to extract values FROM points, to points in a different shp if they are in the exact same location?

EDIT: In a comment below, I was advised to try Spatial Join which by the look of it would suit my needs perfectly, except that I get the same ERROR 000229. I guess I just have to solve my initial problem.

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    What you're describing should be fairly simple in ArcMap. Can you elaborate a bit more about the process you've attempted, like what "copied" actually means? Also, have you attempted to use a Spatial Join?
    – jcarlson
    Commented May 8, 2019 at 15:54
  • Yes, thanks, I'll edit the question. After reading your comment I've tried spatial join (which looks to be exactly what I need) but it fails, producing the same error message as I got during my attempts to merge: "ERROR 000229: Cannot open shapefile".
    – Renée
    Commented May 8, 2019 at 16:18
  • I think I should try and solve the initial error before asking further. Thanks very much for the tip on Spatial Join!
    – Renée
    Commented May 8, 2019 at 16:30
  • It's not clear if the error is occurring for all your 3 shapefiles or just one of them? Try starting a blank mxd and load each one into the map, does one fail to load? If all three are failing then it would suggest you have corrupted data. A classic error made by people is not to provide all the files that make up a shapefile. A shapefile is at least 4 files, more depending if other things have been done to it. If you have been just sent the "shp" then you will never be able to use these datasets.
    – Hornbydd
    Commented May 9, 2019 at 10:30
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    @JoshC, your comment to use Spatial Join answered my question. Should you want to provide this as an answer rather than a comment, then I'll mark the question as solved. Cheers!
    – Renée
    Commented May 9, 2019 at 11:54

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As long as the points are in the exact same position, you can use the Spatial Join tool, which is the Analysis > Overlay toolbox. This tool merges the geometry, but retains each layer's attributes separately in the output. The merge tool would simply put all your points into a single layer, effectively giving you a single-layer version of the same problem you're trying to solve.

With multiple layers, you'll have to run the tool a couple times, or throw it into a simple model:

two-join model

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