In my last article, we discussed Azure storage types. Here, we will discuss Azure Storage Explorer.
Table of Contents
What Is Azure Storage Explorer
It is an excellent Microsoft tool that will improve your Azure storage development experience.
This application helps you connect your Azure storage account with any device. It supports operating systems like Windows, Linux, Mac OS, etc. A free tool from Microsoft to manage your Azure resources.
Benefits
- Easy to use with very simple and user-friendly UI.
- You can connect easily and can access multiple storage accounts.
- We can easily deal with storage management, which increases productivity.
- You can work with connecting to the cloud as well as offline.
- Multiple platform support like Windows, Linux,macOS, etc.
Azure Storage Explorer Online
If you don’t want to download and install the Azure Storage Explorer tool, you can also use Azure Storage Explorer web version. To access it, follow the below steps.
- Navigate to Azure Storage Explorer Online.
- You must log in with your Azure account and Azure Key or shared access signature. You can also directly log in with your storage account name and the access key.
Note: You can find your account keys in the Azure portal. Open your storage account page, select Settings, and select Access keys.
3. Once you log in with any of the storage account names and keys, you can see all the options below. As I explained in the above section, you can use them based on your requirements.
How to download and install Azure Storage Explorer?
To set this up, we need to download and install it. To do that, follow the instructions below. Let’s download the Azure Storage Explorer first.
- First, you must get the Azure Storage Explorer download option from the Microsoft official site. (Click on the link).
- Select the operating system and then click on the Download Now button.
- You will get a StorageExplorer.exe file. Run the exe.
4. Click on the Finish button to complete the installation
5. To access this, search for it in the start menu and click on it to open it.
6. Click on the Add an Account link.
7. On the Connect to Azure Storage window, You will find multiple options like those below
- Add a resource via Azure Active Directory (Azure AD)
- Use a connection string
- Use a shared access signature(SAS) URI
- Use a storage account name and key
- Attach to a local emulator
8. You can select any of the above options to log in or directly click on the Next button without selecting any of the options. It will then ask you to enter your Azure credentials.
9. After clicking the Next button, you will be prompted to enter your Microsoft Azure credentials. Enter your credentials to log in.
10. Once you log in, Choose the subscription you want to work for the storage account and click the Apply button to save the changes.
11. Now, you can see all the storage accounts and other details under the same subscription.
Blob Container
You can do the following operations using this.
- Create Blob Container
- Configure CORS Settings
- Configure Soft Delete Policy
- Query, Import, Export, Add, Edit, Delete, etc
Blob Storage
You can do the following operations.
- Copy Blobs and folders
- List Blob Containers
- Uploading and Downloading Blobs
- Delete Blobs
Table Storage
You can do the following operations.
- Create Table
- Import, Export functionality.
- Query, Add, Edit, and Delete entities.
Queue Storage
You can do the following operations.
- Create a queue
- View message, Add message, Dequeue message, Requeue message, Clear Queue, etc
File Storage
You can do the following operations.
- Create file share
- Upload, download, copy, paste, etc
- Create and Delete Directory
Check out: How to use Storage Explorer in Azure
Azure storage explorer command line
AzCopy is the command-line utility that helps you with the in and out data transfer from the Azure storage explorer and with copying blobs or files to or from a storage account.
The file/data transfer performance is great here for the AzCopy utility.
FAQs
Is Microsoft Azure Storage Explorer free?
Yes, It is absolutely free to use.
How do I upgrade my Azure storage explorer?
You can easily upgrade it by navigating to the Help menu –> Check for Updates.
Do you need an Azure Storage Explorer License?
You don’t need any separate license to use this as it is free of cost from Microsoft.
Is Azure Storage Explorer free?
Yes, it is a free tool from Microsoft that supports multiple operating systems, such as Windows, Linux, Mac OS, etc. It helps you connect an Azure storage account with any device.
What are Azure storage explorer alternatives?
Some alternative options are available in the Market if you do not want to go with this.
Below is the list of alternatives
- AWS Storage Gateway
- VMware vSAN
- Datrium
- StorPool
- Zadara Storage
- NetApp Cloud Volumes ONTAP
- Google Hybrid Cloud
- NooBaa
- Igneous DataProtect
- Compellent
Which is the tool provided by Microsoft to access Azure storage?
Answer: Azure Storage Explorer
Conclusion
Azure Storage Explorer is a powerful tool for managing Azure storage resources such as blobs, files, tables, etc. It provides a great way to interact with your Azure storage account. I hope you have enjoyed this article !!!
I am Bijay, a Microsoft MVP (10 times) having more than 17 years of experience in the software industry. During my IT career, I got a chance to share my expertise in SharePoint and Microsoft Azure, like Azure VM, Azure Active Directory, Azure PowerShell, etc. I hope you will learn from these Azure tutorials. Read more
