AzureBlobStorageConnector

Connects to Azure Blob Storage to manage files and folders.

Typical Uses

Manage datasets on Blob Storage by uploading, downloading, and deleting files and folders
Transfer a file's contents (such as XML or raster) into or out of an attribute in FME
Read downloaded Blob Storage data using the FeatureReader, or upload data written by the FeatureWriter to Blob Storage
Retrieve file and folder names, paths, links and other information from Blob Storage to use elsewhere in a workspace.

How does it work?

The AzureBlobStorageConnector uses your Azure Storage account credentials (either via a previously defined FME web connection, or by setting up a new FME web connection right from the transformer) to access the file storage service.

Depending on your choice of actions, it will upload or download files, folders, and attributes; list information from the service; or delete items from the service. On uploads, link attributes can be added to the output features. On List actions, file/folder information are added as attributes.

Usage Notes

This transformer cannot be used to directly move or copy files between different Azure Storage locations. However, multiple AzureBlobStorageConnectors can be used to accomplish these tasks.
The FeatureReader can access Azure Blob Storage directly, without using the AzureBlobStorageConnector. In this case, a permanent local copy of the dataset will not be created.

Configuration

Input Ports

Output Ports

Parameters

Authentication

Credential Source	The AzureBlobStorageConnector can use credentials from different sources. Using a web connection integrates best with FME, but in some cases, you may wish to use one of the other sources. Web Connection: - use an Azure Storage web connection stored in the FME web connections database SAS: - use a Shared Account Signature instead of an access key Embedded: - embed an account name and access key as parameters in the transformer Default Azure Credential - Obtain credentials from Microsoft Entra ID, Managed Identity, or Azure CLI. Environment Variables: - use credentials already configured on the system, in the environment variables AZURE_STORAGE_ACCOUNT and AZURE_STORAGE_ACCESS_KEY Anonymous: - access public Blob Storage containers without authenticating
Account	Available when the credential source is Web Connection. To create an Azure Storage connection, click the 'Account' drop-down box and select 'Add Web Connection...'. The connection can then be managed via Tools -> FME Options... -> Web Connections.
Account Name and Account Key	Available when the credential source is Embedded. An account name and access key can be specified directly in the transformer instead of in a web connection.
Account Name and Shared Access Signature Token	Available when the credential source is SAS. An account name and shared access signature can be specified directly in the transformer.
Custom Domain	If the blob storage service is not located at <account>.blob.core.windows.net, this parameter can be used to override the host.

Action > Download

Download Options

Container	The container the file or folder is in. If valid credentials have been provided as a web connection, you may browse for a container.
Path	The full path of a file or folder on Blob Storage to download. If valid credentials have been provided as a web connection, you may browse for a location.
Start of Byte Range	Start of byte range to use for downloading a section of the blob. If no end_range is given, all bytes after the start_range will be downloaded. The start_range and end_range params are inclusive. Ex: start_range=0, end_range=511 will download first 512 bytes of blob
End of Byte Range	End of byte range to use for downloading a section of the blob. If end_range is given, start_range must be provided. The start_range and end_range params are inclusive. Ex: start_range=0, end_range=511 will download first 512 bytes of blob.

Destination

Download as	Select whether to store the downloaded data in a File, Folder or Attribute. File: The downloaded object will be stored in the specified folder. Folder: The downloaded folder object will be stored in the specified folder. Attribute: The downloaded object will be stored in the specified attribute.
Download to Attribute	Specify the attribute that will store the contents of the downloaded file. Valid for Download as Attribute only.
Response Body Encoding	For Download as Attribute, you can specify a character set encoding to ensure the output is in a human-readable form. If Auto Detect from HTTP Header is specified but there is no encoding in the Content-Type metadata associated with the data, the output will be returned as raw bytes.
Download to Folder	Specify the path to the folder that will store the downloaded file. Valid for Download as File or Folder.
If File Exists	Specify what to do if the file already exists locally. Valid for Download as File or Folder. Reject: If downloading a file, the input feature will be rejected. If downloading a folder, a rejected feature will be output for each rejected file. Overwrite: Any existing local files or folders will be overwritten with the remote copy.
Include Subfolders	Choose whether to download subfolders of the Blob Storage source or not. Valid for Download as Folder only.

Action > List

List Options

Container	The container the folder is in. If valid credentials have been provided as a web connection, you may browse for a container.
Path	The full path to the folder on Blob Storage to list. If valid credentials have been provided as a web connection, you may browse for a location.
Include Subfolders	If set to Yes, then subfolders are recursively traversed, and their contents are included in the result.

Action > Upload

Data Source

Upload	The type of data to be uploaded. File: The specified file will be uploaded. Folder: The specified folder and its contents will be uploaded. Attribute: The contents of the specified attribute will be uploaded. When working with large objects, File is a better choice than Attribute, as the data will be streamed directly from disk and not require that the object be stored entirely in memory on a feature. When wanting to upload content from a folder, it is better to upload as a folder instead of setting a fixed path and sending multiple features into the connector to upload as a file.
File to Upload	The file to be uploaded to Blob Storage if Upload is set to File.
Folder to Upload	The folder to be uploaded to Blob Storage if Upload is set to Folder.
Include Subfolders	Choose whether or not to upload subfolders of the Folder to Upload.
Contents Only	Yes: Upload only the contents of the folder to the remote destination. No: Upload the folder to the remote destination.
Attribute to Upload as File	The data to be uploaded, supplied from an attribute if Upload is set to Attribute.

Upload Options

Container	The container the folder is in. If valid credentials have been provided as a web connection, you may browse for a container. If the container does not exist, a new container will be created before uploading the data.
Path	The full path to the folder on Blob Storage to upload to. If valid credentials have been provided as a web connection, you may browse for a location.
Upload with File Name	The name of the file created from the data supplied in Attribute to Upload as File. The name must include a filename extension (for example, .txt, .jpg, .doc).
If File Exists	Specify what to do if the file already exists on Blob Storage. Reject: If uploading a file, the input feature will be rejected. If uploading a folder, rejected files will be listed in the Rejected Files attribute. Overwrite: Any existing files or folders on Blob Storage will be overwritten with the local copy.
Maximum Block Size (MB)	The size of the blocks to create when uploading (provided the file is larger than 4MB). The maximum block size Azure Blob Storage supports is 100MB. For more information about block size, see https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/rest/api/storageservices/understanding-block-blobs--append-blobs--and-page-blobs

Metadata

Use this section to specify custom Name and Value pairs of metadata to associate with each uploaded file.

If the name matches a recognized HTTP header value, it will be set such that HTTP requests for the uploaded file will return those headers.

If Content-Type is not specified, then it will be set based on the extension of the uploaded file if possible.

If Content-Encoding is also unset, then a value will also be determined if applicable.

Generate Shared Access Signature

If checked, a Shared Access Signature (SAS) will be generated for the uploaded file. The attributes _sas_url and _sas_token will be added to the output feature. This option is only available for file and attribute upload.

SAS generation requires authenticating using an Account Key. For more information about SAS, please see the Microsoft Azure documentation.

SAS Token Expiry Time	When the token should expire.
IP Address or Range	If provided, restrict access to an IP address or range of IP addresses. Ranges are given in the format “203.0.113.0–203.0.113.255”.
Restrict to HTTPS	If Yes, the token can only be used via HTTPS.

Output Attributes

Available attributes vary according to the selected Action.

Attributes to Add

Select any available attributes to be included on the output features:

_created	Date and time when the file was created
_download_path	Path of the downloaded object on the local file system. This attribute will not be added for Download as Attribute.
_file_or_folder	Whether the item is a file or a folder
_file_size	File size (not present for folders)
_full_path	Full path of the file or folder.
_last_modified	Date and time when the file was last modified
_lease_duration	The lease type (fixed or infinite). Possible values: fixed, infinite.
_lease_state	The current state of the blob's lease. Possible values: available, leased, expired, breaking, broken.
_lease_status	Indicates if the blob is locked (leased) or unlocked. Possible values: locked, unlocked.
_name	Name of the file or folder.
_relative_path	Path to the item relative to the list path
_url	URL to the file or folder.

Editing Transformer Parameters

Transformer parameters can be set by directly entering values, using expressions, or referencing other elements in the workspace such as attribute values or user parameters. Various editors and context menus are available to assist. To see what is available, click beside the applicable parameter.

How to Set Parameter Values

Defining Values

There are several ways to define a value for use in a Transformer. The simplest is to simply type in a value or string, which can include functions of various types such as attribute references, math and string functions, and workspace parameters.

Using the Text Editor

The Text Editor provides a convenient way to construct text strings (including regular expressions) from various data sources, such as attributes, parameters, and constants, where the result is used directly inside a parameter.

Text Editor

Using the Arithmetic Editor

The Arithmetic Editor provides a convenient way to construct math expressions from various data sources, such as attributes, parameters, and feature functions, where the result is used directly inside a parameter.

Arithmetic Editor

Conditional Values

Set values depending on one or more test conditions that either pass or fail.

Parameter Condition Definition Dialog

Content

Expressions and strings can include a number of functions, characters, parameters, and more.

When setting values - whether entered directly in a parameter or constructed using one of the editors - strings and expressions containing String, Math, Date/Time or FME Feature Functions will have those functions evaluated. Therefore, the names of these functions (in the form @<function_name>) should not be used as literal string values.

Content Types

String Functions	These functions manipulate and format strings.
Special Characters	A set of control characters is available in the Text Editor.
Math Functions	Math functions are available in both editors.
Date/Time Functions	Date and time functions are available in the Text Editor.
Math Operators	These operators are available in the Arithmetic Editor.
FME Feature Functions	These return primarily feature-specific values.
FME Parameters	FME and workspace-specific parameters may be used.
Creating and Modifying User Parameters	Create your own editable parameters.

Dialog Options - Tables

Table Tools

Transformers with table-style parameters have additional tools for populating and manipulating values.

Row Reordering

Enabled once you have clicked on a row item. Choices include:

Add a row
Remove a row
Move current row up one
Move current row down one
Move current row to top
Move current row to bottom

Cut, Copy, and Paste

Enabled once you have clicked on a row item. Choices include:

Cut a row - delete and copy to clipboard
Copy a row to the clipboard
Paste a row from the clipboard

Cut, copy, and paste may be used within a transformer, or between transformers.

Filter

Start typing a string, and the matrix will only display rows matching those characters. Searches all columns. This only affects the display of attributes within the transformer - it does not alter which attributes are output.

Import

Import populates the table with a set of new attributes read from a dataset. Specific application varies between transformers.

Reset/Refresh

Generally resets the table to its initial state, and may provide additional options to remove invalid entries. Behavior varies between transformers.

Note: Not all tools are available in all transformers.

For more information, see Transformer Parameter Menu Options.

Reference

Processing Behavior	Feature-Based
Feature Holding	No
Dependencies	Azure Storage Account
Aliases	MicrosoftAzureBlobStorageConnector
History	Released FME 2019.0

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