Connecting to Azure Storage in FME

Introduction

FME 2019.0 and onwards provides the ability to connect to Azure File, Blob or Queue storage from the Azure Storage package, available on FME Hub. FME has two options for accessing data in Azure Storage. This article will briefly show those methods and explain the different authentication methods for Azure Storage within FME.

Transformers

An AzureStorageConnector transformer can upload, download, list or delete objects in your Azure Storage Account.

Web as a File System

The Microsoft Azure web file system allows you to select from your Azure Storage Account for reading and writing:

Authenticating with Azure Storage

There are several ways to authenticate with Azure from FME:

Web Connection

SAS (Shared Access Signature)

Embedded

Environment Variables

Anonymous

Azure Storage Web Connection

Web connections are the preferred way of connecting to online services in FME.
In order to set up the Azure Storage Web Connection you will need access to the Azure Portal or an Account Name and Account Key from your Azure Administrator.

Open the transformer parameters for the AzureStorageConnector that you’re using.
Choose Credential Source: Web Connection and Account: Add Web Connection
 

Enter in your Account Name and Account Key:

If you don’t already have the Account Name and Account Key, you will need to obtain them from the Azure Portal: 

SAS (Shared Access Signature)

If you would prefer to use a Shared Access Signature (SAS) then you will need to generate this in the Azure Portal.
Be sure to configure it with the correct settings for your needs (permissions, expiration etc).

Copy the entire SAS token in the AzureStorageConnector parameter box and enter the Account Name.

Click on the [...] to select a Share that you want to connect to:

Embedded

Embedded Credentials use the same Account Name and Account Key that are used to configure the web connection. This will only be available within the transformer instead of globally available as a web connection.

Environment Variables

Environment Variables use the same Account Name and Account Key that are used to configure the web connection. This will be configured as environment variables AZURE_STORAGE_ACCOUNT and AZURE_STORAGE_ACCESS_KEY.

Anonymous

Anonymous only requires the Account Name. The Storage Account will be configured in Azure Portal for anonymous access.