Getting Started with Azure Stream Analytics

Step 1: Create an Azure Stream Analytics Job

A Stream Analytics job is the core resource that processes your streaming data. You can create a job through the Azure portal.

1. Navigate to the Azure portal.
2. Click "Create a resource".
3. Search for "Stream Analytics job" and select it.
4. Click "Create".
5. Fill in the required details:
   • Subscription: Select your Azure subscription.
   • Resource group: Create a new one or select an existing one.
   • Name: Give your job a unique name (e.g., my-first-streaming-job).
   • Region: Choose a region close to your data sources or sinks.
   • Environment: Select "Streaming".
   • Pricing tier: Start with "Standard" for basic usage.
6. Click "Review + create" and then "Create".

Step 2: Configure Input and Output

Once your job is created, you need to define where your streaming data will come from (input) and where it will go after processing (output).

Input: Common input sources include Azure Event Hubs, Azure IoT Hub, and Azure Blob Storage.

Output: Common output sinks include Azure SQL Database, Azure Cosmos DB, Azure Blob Storage, and Power BI.

For this getting started guide, let's assume you have an input source (e.g., a simulated Event Hub) and a desired output sink (e.g., a Blob Storage container).

You'll configure these within your Stream Analytics job's settings in the Azure portal.

Step 3: Write Your First Query

The heart of Azure Stream Analytics is its query language, which is similar to SQL. This query defines how to transform and analyze your incoming data.

For example, a simple query to select all data from your input and send it to the output would look like this:

SELECT *
INTO [YourOutputAlias]
FROM [YourInputAlias]

Replace YourOutputAlias and YourInputAlias with the names you configured in Step 2.

You can write and test your queries directly in the Azure portal's job editor.

Step 4: Start Your Job and Monitor

Once your input, output, and query are configured, you can start your Stream Analytics job. Navigate to your job in the Azure portal and click "Start". You can then monitor the job's performance, throughput, and any errors in the "Monitoring" section.