geonode: Manage and Share Geospatial Data

Overview

GeoNode is a web-based geospatial content management system that brings data management, metadata, and interactive map publishing into one platform. It helps teams make spatial data discoverable and usable without requiring every contributor to build GIS workflows from scratch.

It is designed for organizations and communities that need to share datasets with public or restricted access, coordinate data quality, and let developers extend or integrate the platform. It is a better fit for a managed geospatial data portal than for a lightweight standalone map viewer.

Key Features

• Upload and manage geospatial datasets in a shared catalog.
• Create and edit dataset metadata.
• Publish interactive maps and styles.
• Set public or user-restricted access to datasets.
• Support collaboration through user profiles, comments, and ratings.
• Provide an extensible platform that developers can customize or integrate with applications.
• Offer Docker Compose setup for running an instance.

Use Cases

• A local government team publishing public spatial datasets with metadata and map previews.
• A research group organizing datasets and controlling access for collaborators.
• A nonprofit or community coordinating shared geospatial information and feedback.
• A development team building a customized geospatial portal on top of a reusable platform.

Project Facts

• Language: Python
• License: NOASSERTION
• Stars: 1.7k
• Forks: 1.2k
• Topics: django, gis, python, sdi, spatial-data-infrastructure
• Archived: false

Getting Started

For a Docker-based start, generate an environment file and launch the services:

python create-envfile.py
docker compose build
docker compose up -d

See the README for configuration options and documentation links.

Considerations

• GeoNode is a full web platform, so operating it involves more setup and administration than using a simple map viewer.
• The Docker quick start requires Docker Compose and environment configuration. Production setup may require a real administrator email and valid SMTP settings, and can request an SSL certificate through Let's Encrypt.
• Development and production environments use different configurations; review the project documentation before deploying an instance.
• Repository metadata reports the license as NOASSERTION, while the README describes GPL version 3 or later. Verify the applicable license in the repository before relying on it.