Changelog for QGIS 3.36¶

Feature: OTB Processing provider removed¶

Due to a lack of ongoing maintenance, we’ve made the difficult decision to remove the Orfeo ToolBox (OTB) Processing provider from QGIS. Any users, plugins or scripts which require this functionality will need to be modified accordingly.

Motivated members from the QGIS community are encouraged to create a 3rd party community maintained plugin to restore OTB support.

Feature: “Movie Mode” for the temporal controller¶

We’ve added a brand new “Movie” mode to the temporal controller. This mode has been designed to facilitate creating animated movies from maps. Unlike the other temporal controller modes, while movie mode is activated no time-based filtering of data is performed.

In movie mode, you can set the total number of frames for your movie and the animation will progress frame by frame for that number of frames, advancing the current map settings frame (and @frame_number expression variable) at each step. You can then use animated symbols, or alter your symbology using the @frame_number expression variable, to create dynamic, animated maps.

This feature was funded by North Road

This feature was developed by Nyall Dawson (North Road)

Feature: Custom layer properties in map layer properties¶

We’ve added display of custom layer properties for map layers within the layer properties information tab, making it easy for users to view any additional metadata and properties attached to their map layers.

This feature was developed by Jorge Alexandre Delesderrier da Silva

Feature: Easier project and image saving¶

In 3.36, we’ve made QGIS a little bit cleverer in the way it handles saving of projects and images. The project type (.qgz, .qgs) or image format (.png, .jpg, .tif, etc.) is now (by default) determined by any file extension you’ve typed in the save dialog. This allows for a faster user experience when changing from one format to another, as you don’t need to manually set an explicit format in advance via the format combo box!

This feature was developed by Mathieu Pellerin (OPENGIS.ch)

Feature: Control image height for raster fill symbol layers¶

We’ve introduced a new setting for the “raster fill” symbol type, which allows you to control the width and height of the fill pattern independently. (Previously these settings were locked to each other). You’re now able to create stretched raster fills in the horizontal or vertical directions, giving more flexibility for your custom symbol creation.

This feature was funded by North Road, thanks to SLYR

This feature was developed by Nyall Dawson (North Road)

Feature: New “Filled line” symbol layer type¶

We’ve added a brand new line symbol type for “filled lines”. Much like the older “Filled marker” symbol type offers for marker symbols, this option will render lines using any QGIS fill symbol. This means you can now render lines filled with gradients, line hatches, raster fills, and much more!

This feature was funded by North Road, thanks to SLYR

This feature was developed by Nyall Dawson (North Road)

Feature: Mesh labeling¶

In 3.36 we’ve added labeling support for mesh layers. Labels can be applied to mesh vertices, or mesh faces, and can take advantage of all the advanced formatting options and appearance settings that you get for vector labels. Labelling settings are available through layer properties dialog and the layer styling panel. Toggling mesh labels on and off can also be conveniently done through the layer panel’s context menu.

This feature was funded by GÖTEBORGS STAD

This feature was developed by Stefanos Natsis (Lutra Consulting)

Feature: Data defined color control for simple 3d line rendering¶

You can now set a data-defined, dynamic color for 3D lines rendered using the “Render as simple 3D lines” option. This is extremely useful for visualising line features in 3D, eg displaying underground pipelines in different colors based on their classifications.

This feature was funded by North Road

This feature was developed by Nyall Dawson (North Road)

Feature: Improved “Phong” material and lighting¶

The Phong shader is used as the default material for showing vector features in QGIS 3D views. For 3.36, this shader has been improved to better handle ambient and shininess parameters. Additionally, we’ve taken care to ensure that the exact same shading will apply regardless of the underlying geometry type (points, lines or polygons), and regardless of whether data defined symbol colors are in use. This gives users a much more predictable and easy-to-configure material for their 3D views.

For easier configuration of nicer-looking materials, we also added new controls for modifying the strength of the ambient, diffuse, and specular lighting contributions.

This feature was funded by North Road

This feature was developed by Nyall Dawson (North Road)

Feature: “Physically based” metal rough material¶

For even more beautiful 3D maps, we’ve added a new material choice for a “physically based rendering” (PBR) material. This material lets you define the base color of the surface, and how “metal” and “rough” it should appear. This material is simple to configure and get great results from, and is expected to become the default material in a future QGIS release.

This feature was funded by North Road

This feature was developed by Nyall Dawson (North Road)

Feature: Define 3D scene extents on 2D maps¶

We added a shortcut action to the 3D map toolbar that allows users to quickly draw an extent limit for the scene on a 2D map.

This feature was funded by Natural Resources Canada

This feature was developed by Stefanos Natsis (Lutra Consulting)

Feature: Size overrides for point cloud classification¶

In QGIS 3.36 you can now override the default point size for discrete categories in both 2D and 3D views.

A new “Size” column was added to the categories widget, which will appear blank when a category inherits the default point size but allows you to manually specify the size with numeric input. Setting the Size value to 0 for a category will reset it to use the layer’s default point size.

You can also use the right-click context menu to set the point size for multiple selected categories at once.

This feature was funded by Natural Resources Canada

This feature was developed by Stefanos Natsis (Lutra Consulting)

Feature: Render point clouds as a surface in 2D maps¶

We’ve added a new option for 2D styling of Point Clouds that for “Render as a Surface (Triangulate)”.

When enabled, QGIS will perform an on-the-fly Delaunay triangulation of the points in the current map view and render the layer as filled triangles instead of individual points. The color of each point is maintained and interpolated within each triangle.

Global map shading is also supported with the new option so that, when enabled, the elevation of points is retained and a rasterized instance of the triangles with interpolated elevations can be provided to the elevation map.

When “Render as a surface” is enabled, drawing order is ignored and all input points participate in the triangulation.

We also added an option to filter large triangles (based on the maximum length of an edge of a triangle), which allows for visualizing data gaps, but the 2D rendering only provides filtering based on the horizontal length of triangles.

Be sure to check out the feature Pull Request on GitHub for a showcase of the new functionality in different modes and contexts.

This feature was funded by National Resources Canada

This feature was developed by Martin Dobias (Lutra Consulting)

Feature: Faster point cloud rendering by caching decoded data blocks¶

Want even faster point cloud rendering? Well, QGIS now supports rendering point clouds faster by using a cache for storing nodes which have already been decoded.

This optimisation avoids decompressing the same nodes multiple times when panning or zooming, especially when using compressed data sources such as LAZ formatted files.

(A fixed size cache of 200MB is used and shared across all point cloud layers and canvases (2D, 3D, and Profile Plots).)

This feature was funded by Natural Resources Canada

This feature was developed by Stefanos Natsis (Lutra Consulting)

Feature: Metadata preservation during COPC conversion¶

The Untwine tool (which is responsible for conversions of point clouds to the COPC format within QGIS) has been updated to version 1.3. This includes various fixes and small enhancements. Among the enhancements, the conversion to COPC now preserves the following metadata from LAS/LAZ files:

• Global encoding

• Creation time (year+day)

• XYZ offset

This feature was funded by Natural Resources Canada

This feature was developed by Stefanos Natsis (Lutra Consulting)

Feature: Better handling of classification flags¶

LAS/LAZ files may include four flags for each point (synthetic, key-point, withheld, overlap). In older QGIS releases, they have all been exposed in ClassificationFlags as a combined single value. This has been impractical when a user needs to use one of those flags for filtering or visualization.

For version 3.36, we reworked things so that these flags are available as separate attributes both for visualization (eg using the Classification renderer) and for filtering in expressions. Accordingly, we’ve removed the older ClassificationFlags attribute.

This feature was funded by National Resources Canada

This feature was developed by Stefanos Natsis (Lutra Consulting)

Feature: Alias of minimum/maximum for min/max in aggregates¶

We’ve added some new aliases for arguments to the aggregate expression functions, so that “minimum” and “maximum” can be used instead of “min” and”max” for these functions.

This feature was developed by Harrissou Sant-anna

Feature: @counter variable for array_foreach¶

We’ve added a new “@counter” variable to the array_foreach function in expressions. Among other things, this lets you combine values across multiple array fields.

Example:

array_foreach( "field_1", @element || ' ' || "field_2"[@counter] )

This feature was developed by Björn Hinkeldey

Feature: Improved expression insertion¶

To make QGIS 3.36 even more user-friendly, we’ve tweaked the “Insert/Edit Expression” behavior. Now,

• If some text is selected and your selection is within an expression (i.e. between “[%” and “%]”), the expression editor will select the whole expression

• If no text is selected, and your cursor is inside an expression, the whole expression is selected

• Otherwise, the expression editor will open with your existing selection.

Additionally, we added a new “Insert/Edit Expression” button to the vector layer properties MapTip tab.

This new expression editing behavior also applies to Print Layout labels, Titles, and Copyright decorations, as well as Annotation items.

This feature was developed by Yoann Quenach de Quivillic

Feature: Toggle Selection in the Organize columns window¶

We added a Toggle Selection button to the Organize Columns dialog to improve your ability to manage datasets with a large number of fields.

The new Toggle Selection button (as well as the Deselect or Select All buttons) will only appear when there are more than 5 fields in a layer.

This feature was developed by Valentin Buira

Feature: –skip-loading-plugins flag for qgis_process¶

The qgis_process command line interface tool benefits from a new --skip-loading-plugins argument. If specified, this can result in faster execution times for commands such as qgis_process plugins, which can now list the installed plugins **without** loading them.

This feature was funded by Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO)

This feature was developed by Nyall Dawson (North Road)

Feature: Click to open output paths in processing logs¶

A super-helpful new shortcut we added to 3.36 is that any output paths (such as file, folder, or HTML outputs) in the Processing log are now clickable, allowing you to directly open the containing folder and preselect the generated file!

This feature was funded by North Road

This feature was developed by Nyall Dawson (North Road)

Feature: Vector coverage algorithms¶

QGIS 3.36 introduces a number of new tools for working with vector coverage layers. “Vector coverages” are polygon layers where the features are expected to neighbour each other, without overlaps or gaps, such as administrative boundary layers. These new Processing algorithms expose tools for working with coverages, including:

• Validate coverage: This algorithm analyzes a coverage to find places where the assumption of exactly matching edges is not met.

• Simplify coverage: This algorithm applies a Visvalingam–Whyatt simplification to the edges in a coverage, while retaining a valid coverage (ie no edges will cross or touch after the simplification)

• Dissolve coverage: This algorithm provides a heavily optimised approach for unioning polygons from a coverage layer, when compared against the standard Dissolve tools.

These new tools rely on functionality from the GEOS geometry handling library. Our thanks go to the GEOS maintainers for making this work possible!

This feature was funded by North Road

This feature was developed by Nyall Dawson (North Road)

Feature: Improved Export Layers to DXF algorithm¶

We’ve introduced a number of new parameters to the “Export Layers to DXF” algorithm , to match the functionality of its non-Processing counterpart:

• An extent parameter to filter features to be exported

• A map theme parameter to override the layers’ symbology when exporting

We’ve also fixed several shortcomings in the algorithm, including skipping layers within which no features were exported.

This feature was funded by QGIS Swiss User Group (QGIS-CH)

This feature was developed by Mathieu Pellerin (OPENGIS.ch)

Feature: Faster GRASS Provider startup¶

We’ve reworked the backend of the Processing GRASS Provider, which helps reduce the startup times for this plugin (especially on Windows installations!). This is especially beneficial for users of the qgis_process tool, who will experience noticeably faster execution times for this tool.

This feature was funded by Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO)

This feature was developed by Nyall Dawson (North Road)

Feature: Faster qgis_process startup¶

For 3.36, we’ve substantially improved the startup speed of the qgis_process command. This was done by applying a variety of optimisations inside QGIS, such as lazy loading of the authentication and style library frameworks so that these frameworks are only initialised when required, and by reworking the logic for migrating user settings between different QGIS versions to avoid unnecessary work.

Together, these improvements have reduced qgis_process startup times from multiple seconds to less than one second!

This feature was funded by Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO)

This feature was developed by Nyall Dawson (North Road)

Feature: “localhost” option for OAuth2 Redirects¶

Some OAuth2 providers, like Microsoft Sharepoint, require specific redirect hosts for security reasons. They may not accept the standard “http://127.0.0.1” redirect, but instead allow only “https://127.0.0.1” or “http://localhost”.

To ensure compatibility with these providers without the complexity of setting up HTTPS, we added a new option to use “localhost” as the redirect host for OAuth2 authentication.

This feature was funded by North Road

This feature was developed by Nyall Dawson (North Road)

Feature: Serial port sensor baudrate selection¶

For 3.36 you can now customize the connection speed (baud rate) to use for serial port sensors. Previously, this parameter was hardcoded at 9600 baud, limiting compatibility with various sensor types, such as NMEA sensors requiring 4800 baud. You can now connect to a wider array of sensors by adjusting the baud rate to meet specific requirements.

This feature was developed by Jorge Tornero

Feature: Open layers with Datasource Manager from browser¶

We’ve introduced a new option in the QGIS browser context menu for “Open with Datasource Manager…”. This option is available for layers which use the OGR provider (including GPKG sources), GDAL provider (raster layers), and Spatialite layers. When activated, a dialog will open on the data source tab of the layer properties, with relevant field values prepopulated to open the layer directly in QGIS, which allows you to set more comprehensive file opening options directly from the browser.

This functionality brings with it the ConfigureFromUri method which has been developed for the Python and C++ APIs. This method will enable source selection widgets to open and configure the data source manager directly from a data source URI, allowing the development of more sophisticated data loading options such as within plugins and when using the Change Data Source utility.

This feature was funded by NOAA

This feature was developed by Alessandro Pasotti

Feature: SensorThings Data Provider¶

For version 3.36 we’ve introduced a brand new core data provider for OGC SensorThings API data sources.

The SensorThings API is an OGC specification for Internet of Things sensors which complements existing communication protocols within the IoT ecosystem.

This functionality was developed in line with QEP 257 and introduces new panels within the QGIS Browser, Data Source Manager, and Layer Properties Source tab for users to configure connections to SensorThings data sources.

We’ve taken care to ensure that SensorThings data sources are loaded in the most optimised way possible, providing an streamlined, user-friendly way to load SensorThings data into your QGIS projects. This is just the beginning though, and we’ve more functionality and improvements planned for access to SensorThings sources in QGIS 3.38!

This feature was developed by Nyall Dawson (North Road)

Feature: Support for WFS documents with complex feature schemas¶

We enhanced the WFS Provider to add support for complex feature schemas. The implementation exposes properties of complex WFS types as JSON content, converted from their original XML representations.

For more details, see the QGIS Enhancement Proposal.

This feature was funded by QGIS user group Germany

This feature was developed by Even Rouault

Feature: WMS GetMap in PDF Format¶

QGIS Server will now support responses in PDF format for GetMap requests.

This feature was developed by mhugent

Feature: QGIS Server Properties Tab for Vector Tile Layers¶

The Layer Properties Dialog for Vector Tile layers will now include a section for editing the QGIS Server layer settings, providing the ability to configure layer-specific settings such as shortname, abstract, and other metadata.

This feature was developed by Sandro Mani

Feature: GetLegendGraphics JSON rule¶

We’ve added a new SHOWRULEDETAILS parameter for WMS services, which will append a rule item in the legend entry. The rule describes the filter expression used on the respective layer when performing a GetLegendGraphic request using the JSON format option.

For example, the request:

text GET /?SERVICE=WMS&VERSION=1.30&REQUEST=GetLegendGraphic&LAYERS=layer1&FORMAT=application/json&SHOWRULEDETAILS=1

Will return the JSON response which includes a rule field when appropriate:

json {"nodes":[{ "symbols":[{ "icon":"...", "title":"Detaljplaner","rule": "plantyp = '1'"}

This feature was funded by Kristianstadt

This feature was developed by Alessandro Pasotti

Feature: Add maptip for raster layer GetFeatureInfo¶

Maptip support was added for raster layer GetFeatureInfo responses, when requesting with parameter WITH_MAPTIP=TRUE. This matches the existing behavior which was in place for vector layers.

In this context, the variable layer_cursor_point holds the GetFeatureInfo position, so that maptips which are working in QGIS desktop are working also with QGIS Server GetFeatureInfo.

This feature was developed by Björn Hinkeldey

Feature: WMS parameter to request only maptip for HTML feature info responses¶

We added a new value HTML_FI_ONLY_MAPTIP for the existing WMS vendor parameter WITH_MAPTIP.

If set, the feature info HTML response includes only the maptip, which gives full control over the HTML response using e.g. the built-in maptip editor which has a nice preview.

This feature was developed by Björn Hinkeldey

Feature: Option to skip “name” attribute for groups in WMS GetCapabilities¶

We’ve added a new project level setting to Skip name attribute for groups. This is disabled by default, but enabling it allows you to exclude group names from a GetCapabilities response on a WMS request. This prevents name duplication in instances where a layer and group share the same name, whilst preserving the group element and bringing the QGIS Server capabilities more in line with the OGC WMS Specification.

For example:

text <Layer queryable="1">   <Name>layer_name</Name> <--- this will be skipped when option is enabled   <Title>Human readable name</Title>

This feature was developed by Tomas Straupis

Feature: Use active layer when importing vector data with DB Manager¶

When importing vector data in the DB Manager core plugin, the “Input” combo box, which is populated with all the vector data in the layer tree, is now automatically set to the active layer whenever possible. This small change makes it much more user-friendly, especially when working with large and complex projects!

This feature was developed by Patrice Pineault

Feature: Expose 3D views to PyQGIS¶

You now have the ability to create, list, and close 3D views from Python, matching the functionality of their 2D counterparts.

We refactored a number of application classes to introduce support the following iface methods:

• createNewMapCanvas3D: Creates a named 3D view instance

• closeMapCanvas3D: Closes a 3D view by name

• mapCanvases3D: List existing 3D views in the project context

This feature was funded by Natural Resources Canada

This feature was developed by Stefanos Natsis (Lutra Consulting)

Feature: Optimised methods to convert GeoJSON geometries to QgsGeometry¶

We’ve added some highly optimised methods which allow direct construction of geometries (QgsGeometry) from raw JSON objects, instead of requiring translation through another library’s geometry structures. These methods are exposed through the new API call QgsJsonUtils.geometryFromGeoJson.

This feature was developed by Nyall Dawson (North Road)

Feature: Qt WebEngine classes can now be used by plugins¶

In older QGIS versions, an incompatibility between the modern Qt “WebEngine” classes and QGIS’ 3D framework prevented QGIS plugins from using any WebEngine widgets. This was a significant shortcoming, as the older Qt “WebKit” widgets were very limited, slow, and did not support many modern JavaScript essentials.

In 3.36, we’ve reworked how QGIS 3D is initialised to remove this incompatibility. Scripts and plugins can now safely use Qt’s WebEngine classes without issue!

This feature was funded by https://qgis.org

This feature was developed by QGIS.org

Feature: Vertical and compound Coordinate Reference System support in CRS widgets¶

As part of the ongoing QGIS grant project for vertical CRS handling (see QEP 267), all of QGIS’ coordinate reference system can now be set to show only vertical or compound CRS. This allows plugins and scripts to present users with choices of vertical CRS, ready for use in QgsCoordinateTransform objects for vertical CRS transformations.

See QgsCoordinateReferenceSystemProxyModel.Filter for the available CRS filtering options for use in these widgets.

This feature was funded by QGIS.org

This feature was developed by Nyall Dawson (North Road)

Feature: Python support in Qt6 builds¶

While version 5.15 remains the recommended Qt version for compiling QGIS, we’ve been hard at work adding full support for Qt 6 builds of QGIS. This is necessary in order to support modern desktop requirements, such as full compatibility with Wayland based Linux environments and for optimised Apple silicon builds.

QGIS 3.36 brings support for running Python under Qt 6 builds, and enables use of the PyQGIS library within Qt 6. This is a significant milestone in our ongoing journey towards full support for Qt 6!

This feature was funded by QGIS.org

Feature: Add meshMenu to QGIS Interface¶

meshMenu has been added to the iface object, giving plugins and scripts an easy way to extend the Mesh menu.

This feature was developed by Loïc Bartoletti

Feature: Server: onProjectReady method for filter plugins¶

The new onProjectReady method is called after the QgsProject instance is ready for a server request and before entering the main logic for core services.

The onRequestReady method is called after the QgsRequestHandler is ready and populated with parameters, but before the QgsProject instance is ready.

You can use onProjectReady to perform operations at the project level, like adding variables, checking vector layer categories, etc.

This feature was funded by 3Liz

This feature was developed by rldhont

Feature: Add fuzzy comparisons methods¶

We’ve added new methods for fuzzyEquals and fuzzyDistanceEquals to the QGIS geometry classes. These methods compare geometric objects with a tolerance for small variations, enhancing the precision of equality and distance calculations. They will be particularly useful in scenarios where exact matches may not be feasible or necessary.

```python epsilon = 0.001 geom1 = QgsLineString(QgsPoint(0.0, 0.0), QgsPoint(0.001, 0.001)) geom2 = QgsLineString(QgsPoint(0.0, 0.0), QgsPoint(0.002, 0.002))

self.assertNotEqual(geom1, geom2) # epsilon = 1e-8 here

self.assertTrue(geom1.fuzzyEqual(geom2, epsilon)) self.assertFalse(geom1.fuzzyDistanceEqual(geom2, epsilon)) ```

This feature was funded by QGIS.ORG (through GRANT)

This feature was developed by Loïc Bartoletti

Feature: Measured line methods¶

In QGIS 3.36 we’ve introduced a measuredLine method within Qgs(Multi)LineString. This method builds upon the code from PostGIS behind ST_AddMeasure.

This feature was developed by Loïc Bartoletti

Feature: Bug fixes by Alessandro Pasotti (itOpen / qcooperative)¶

This feature was funded by QGIS.ORG (through donations and sustaining memberships)

This feature was developed by Alessandro Pasotti (itOpen / qcooperative)

Feature: Bug fixes by Even Rouault (Spatialys)¶

This feature was funded by QGIS.ORG (through donations and sustaining memberships)

This feature was developed by Even Rouault (Spatialys)

Feature: Bug fixes by Jacky Volpes (Oslandia)¶

This feature was funded by QGIS.ORG (through donations and sustaining memberships)

This feature was developed by Jacky Volpes (Oslandia)

Feature: Bug fixes by Alexander Bruy¶

This feature was funded by QGIS.ORG (through donations and sustaining memberships)

This feature was developed by Alexander Bruy

Feature: Bug fixes by Loïc Bartoletti (Oslandia)¶

This feature was funded by QGIS.ORG (through donations and sustaining memberships)

This feature was developed by Loïc Bartoletti (Oslandia)

Feature: Bug fixes by Jean Felder (Oslandia)¶

This feature was funded by QGIS.ORG (through donations and sustaining memberships)

This feature was developed by Jean Felder (Oslandia)

Feature: Bug fixes by Stefanos Natsis (LutraConsulting)¶

This feature was funded by QGIS.ORG (through donations and sustaining memberships)

This feature was developed by Stefanos Natsis (LutraConsulting)

Feature: Bug fixes by Mathieu Pellerin¶

This feature was funded by QGIS.ORG (through donations and sustaining memberships)

This feature was developed by Mathieu Pellerin

Feature: Bug fixes by Nyall Dawson (North Road)¶

This feature was funded by QGIS.ORG (through donations and sustaining memberships)

This feature was developed by Nyall Dawson (North Road)

Feature: Bug fixes by Martin Dobias (LutraConsulting)¶

This feature was funded by QGIS.ORG (through donations and sustaining memberships)

This feature was developed by Martin Dobias (LutraConsulting)