Introduction to Azure Storage Tables

Azure Storage Tables is a NoSQL key-attribute store that accepts authenticated calls across HTTP or HTTPS, from anywhere in the world. The Table service is a great option for storing large amounts of structured, non-relational data that requires fast access. Tables are schemaless, so you can partition your data as needed and then access it using various technologies.

Note: Azure Table Storage is part of Azure Storage. It's a fully managed NoSQL datastore that supports key-value operations. It's designed for scenarios where you need to store large amounts of structured, non-relational data, and require fast access.

What is Azure Storage Tables?

Azure Storage Tables offers a key-value store for storing large amounts of structured, non-relational data. It's a schemaless datastore, meaning that the columns you define for a table can differ from row to row within the same table. This provides flexibility for evolving data requirements.

Key characteristics of Azure Storage Tables include:

  • Schemaless: Each row in a table can have a different set of columns.
  • Partitioning: Data is organized into partitions for scalability and performance.
  • Scalability: Designed to handle massive datasets and high transaction volumes.
  • Accessibility: Accessible via HTTP/HTTPS from any client.
  • Cost-Effective: A relatively inexpensive way to store large volumes of data.

Key Concepts

Tables

A table is a collection of entities. Tables are schemaless, and each table must have a name that is unique within a storage account. Table names must adhere to specific naming conventions.

Entities

An entity is a set of properties, analogous to a row in a database. Each entity is limited to 1 MB in size. Every entity must have at least two properties:

  • PartitionKey: This string property determines the partition where the entity is stored. Entities with the same PartitionKey are guaranteed to reside on the same storage node, which optimizes queries that filter by PartitionKey.
  • RowKey: This string property is a unique identifier for the entity within a partition. Together, PartitionKey and RowKey form the primary key of an entity.

Properties

A property is a name-value pair within an entity, analogous to a column in a database. Each entity can have up to 252 properties, in addition to the PartitionKey and RowKey properties. Property names are strings, and values can be of various primitive data types, including DateTime, String, Boolean, Double, GUID, Int32, Int64, and Binary. Properties are not typed; the client is responsible for interpreting the data type.

Tip: Use the PartitionKey strategically to group related entities. This will significantly improve the performance of queries that retrieve multiple entities from the same partition.

When to Use Azure Storage Tables

Azure Storage Tables is ideal for scenarios involving:

  • Storing large amounts of structured, non-relational data.
  • Applications requiring fast access to data where relational constraints are not critical.
  • Storing metadata for Azure blobs or files.
  • Serving data for web applications.
  • Time-series data.
  • User profile data.
Important: Azure Table Storage is not a relational database. It does not support complex joins, transactions across multiple entities, or strict schema enforcement. For these requirements, consider Azure SQL Database or Azure Cosmos DB.

Getting Started

To start using Azure Storage Tables, you'll need an Azure subscription and a storage account. You can create a storage account through the Azure portal, Azure CLI, or Azure PowerShell.

You can interact with Azure Storage Tables using:

  • The Azure Storage REST API.
  • Azure SDKs for various programming languages (e.g., .NET, Java, Python, Node.js).
  • Azure Storage Explorer (a graphical tool).
// Example: Conceptual entity structure { "PartitionKey": "User", "RowKey": "123", "Name": "Alice Smith", "Email": "alice.smith@example.com", "LastLogin": "2023-10-27T10:00:00Z" }

Next Steps

Explore the following topics to deepen your understanding:

See Also