Connecting to Azure Data Lake Storage

Set AzureStorageAccount to the name of your Azure Data Lake Storage account.

Authenticating to Azure Data Lake Storage

Azure Data Lake Storage supports authentication via Access Key, Shared Access Signature (SAS), AzureAD user, Azure Service Principal, or Azure MSI.

Access Key

To authenticate with an Azure Access key, set these connection properties:

• AuthScheme: AccessKey.
• AzureAccessKey: The storage key associated with your Azure Data Lake Storage account.

Shared Access Signature (SAS)

To authenticate with a Shared Access Signature (SAS), you must first generate the SAS at the Azure Portal:

1. Sign into the Azure Portal (https://portal.azure.com/) with your root account credentials.
2. Click Storage accounts and select the storage account you want to use.
3. Under Security + networking, click Shared access signature.
4. Set any required permissions.
5. Specify a time when you want the token to expire.
6. To generate the shared access signature, click Generate SAS and connection string.
7. When the SAS has been generated, copy it.

Once you have obtained the SAS, set these connection properties:

• AuthScheme: AzureStorageSAS.
• AzureSharedAccessSignature: The SAS associated with your Azure Blob Storage account, which you just generated.

AzureAD User

AzureAD User authentication supports connection via a desktop application, a web application, or a headless machine. In all cases, you must set AuthScheme to AzureAD.

Desktop Applications

CData provides an embedded OAuth application that simplifies OAuth desktop Authentication. You can also choose to connect via a custom OAuth application, which provides further flexibility. For further information,see Creating a Custom Azure AD Application.

Get and Refresh the OAuth Access Token

Build your connection string using the following connection properties:

• OAuthClientId (custom applications only): The client Id that was assigned when you registered your custom application.
• OAuthClientSecret (custom applications only): The client secret that was assigned when you registered your custom application.
• CallbackURL (custom application only): The redirect URI you defined when you registered your custom application. For example: http://localhost:33333

When you connect, the add-in opens the Microsoft identity platform's OAuth endpoint in your default browser. Log in and grant permissions to the application. The add-in refreshes the access token automatically when it expires.

Azure Service Principal

Authentication as an Azure Service Principal is handled via the OAuth Client Credentials flow. It does not involve direct user authentication. Instead, credentials are created for just the application itself.

All tasks taken by the application are done without a default user context, but based on the assigned roles. The application access to the resources is controlled through the assigned roles' permissions.

For Azure Service Principal authentication, set AuthScheme to AzureServicePrincipal.

Creating an AzureAD App and an Azure Service Principal

If you will authenticate using an Azure Service Principal, you must first create and register an Azure AD application with an Azure AD tenant, as described in Creating an Entra ID (Azure AD) Application.

In the Azure portal, navigate to App registrations > API permissions. Select the Microsoft Graph permissions. There are two distinct sets of permissions: Delegated permissions and Application permissions. The permissions used during client credential authentication are under Application Permissions.

Assigning a role to the application

To access resources in your subscription, you must assign an appropriate role to the custom Azure AD application. Do the following:

1. Use the search bar to locate the Subscriptions service.
2. Open the Subscriptions page.
3. Select the subscription to which to assign the application.
4. Open Access control (IAM) and select Add > Add role assignment. The Add role assignment page opens.
5. Assign your custom Azure AD application the Owner role.

Setting the connection properties

The connection properties you set to connect with your custom Azure AD application will vary, depending on whether you want to authenticate using a Client Secret or a Certificate.

After you connect, authentication with client credentials takes place automatically like any other connection, except that no window opens to prompt the user. Because there is no user context, there is no need for a browser popup. Connections take place and are handled internally.

Client Secret Connection Properties

• AuthScheme: AzureServicePrincipal.
• InitiateOAuth: GETANDREFRESH. You can use InitiateOAuth to avoid repeating the OAuth exchange and manually setting the OAuthAccessToken.
• AzureTenant: The tenant to which you want to connect.
• OAuthClientId: The client Id in your custom Azure AD application settings.
• OAuthClientSecret: The client secret in your custom Azure AD application settings.

Certificate Connection Properties

• AuthScheme: AzureServicePrincipalCert.
• InitiateOAuth: GETANDREFRESH. You can use InitiateOAuth to avoid repeating the OAuth exchange and manually setting the OAuthAccessToken.
• AzureTenant: The tenant to which you want to connect.
• OAuthJWTCert: The JWT Certificate store.
• OAuthJWTCertType: The type of the certificate store specified by OAuthJWTCert.
• OAuthJWTIssuer: The issuer of the Java Web Token.
  

  Note: In most cases, OAuthJWTIssuer takes the value of the OAuthClientId property and does not need to be individually set.

Azure MSI

If you are connecting from an Azure VM with permissions for Azure Data Lake Storage, set AuthScheme to AzureMSI.