Get Up and Running with GeoServer and Google Earth in Minutes

The fastest way to have Google Earth display your GeoServer data is to type a WMS/KML request into your web browser. For example http://localhost:8080/geoserver/wms/kml_reflect?layers=topp:states

Select "Open with Google Earth" from the pop up window and voila... Google Earth will open and you should see your data.

kml_reflect? You may be asking what is this kml_reflect thing? It does not look like a WMS request! Your right it is not. Its a convenient shortcut known as the "KML Reflector" which is used to specify WMS requests which in normal form can be quite verbose. The KML Reflector is described in greater detail here.

Alternative: Adding a Network Link

So maybe that was too easy for you. Or maybe you want a bit more control over how Google Earth handles the KML produced by GeoServer. An alternative to specifying the KML request in the browser is to specify it directly in Google Earth as a Network Link. To do so:

1. Right-click on My Places on the left hand side of the screen and select Add->NetworkLink....
   
2. In the New dialog:
   1. Set Link to "http://localhost:8080/geoserver/wms/kml_reflect?layers=topp:states"
   2. Click on the Refresh tab and set When to "After Camera Stops", and decrease the time to "1" second.
      
   3. Click Ok

Adding your own data.

To add your own data, start with the Shapefile Tutorial, and then at the preview page just hit on 'KML' to see it on Google Earth. For other formats adjust params from the shapefile tutorial, or browse the full documentation

More Information?

Check out the KML Styling Guide and the Tutorial for more information.

browser.png (image/png)
browser.png (image/png)
ge.png (image/png)
newNetworkLink.png (image/png)
addNetworkLink.png (image/png)