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File Server

Category: File

Files from a (local) file server or network share, reached via a self-hosted Integration Runtime.

Expected input​

In the Add source wizard you first fill in the standard fields (source name, type, integration runtime, credentials the same for all environments?, credentials expiry date, tags) and then the File Server form.

Connection fields (File Server form):

FieldExplanation
Host / File path on integration runtimeThe UNC path to the share or the path on the machine where the IR runs. Example (placeholder in the form): \\SERVERNAME\SharedFolder.
User nameA Windows / file-share account with read permissions on that path, usually in the form DOMAIN\user.
PasswordThe password for that account.
  • Authentication: Windows username + password (Basic). The source name becomes the name of the linked service; the password is never kept by the frontend.
  • Integration runtime: a self-hosted Integration Runtime is required. A File Server is read via a UNC / file path, which is not reachable from the cloud. AutoResolveIntegrationRuntime (cloud) does not work here. The chosen IR is set in the linked service by the backend (withConnectVia); the FileServer.json template references pwccIntegrationRuntimeLinked.

Prerequisites​

  • Self-hosted Integration Runtime installed on a machine within the network where the files reside, and published so that it appears in the IR dropdown. Without this IR, the source cannot be connected.
  • A Windows / file-share account with read permissions on the specified path, valid from the machine where the IR runs.
  • Network access from the IR machine to the share (firewall/SMB).
Key Vault secret

The password is placed as the secret adf-{sourcename}-connectionstring in the customer's Key Vault (by the modern FileServerSource builder).

Retrieving the details​

The self-hosted IR is an agent you install on a machine within the network where the files reside. Yres reaches the files via that agent.

  • Host / file path — the UNC path to the share (\\server\share\folder) or a local path if the IR runs on that machine. To be determined together with your system/network administrator.
  • User name — an account with read permissions on that folder, usually DOMAIN\user.
  • Password — the password for that account.

Make sure the specified account actually has read access to the path from the machine where the Integration Runtime is installed.

Note: a File Server is a file source. For file sources the metadata step (GetMetaData) is skipped; you define the files and the parsing directly when adding the tables/files.

Official documentation: Copy data from/to a file system (Azure Data Factory)

See also: Integration catalog · All data source requirements · Integrations — overview