Azure Data Factory (ADF) is a cloud-based data integration service that allows you to create, schedule, and manage data pipelines. Here are the basic steps for using ADF:
- Create an Azure Data Factory: Go to the Azure portal and create a new data factory. This will create a new resource group and storage account for your data factory.
- Create a pipeline: Once the data factory is created, you can create a new pipeline by clicking on the “Author & Monitor” button. This will open the ADF visual interface where you can create a new pipeline.
- Add data sources and sinks: A pipeline is made up of one or more activities that move data from one source to one or more sinks. To add data sources and sinks to your pipeline, click on the “New” button in the pipeline designer and select the appropriate data source or sink.
- Configure pipeline activities: Once your data sources and sinks are added, you can configure the activities that move data between them. You can choose from a variety of activities such as copy, move, transform, and more.
- Schedule and run the pipeline: Once your pipeline is configured, you can schedule it to run on a regular basis or run it manually. You can also monitor the status of your pipeline runs in the “Monitor” section of the ADF visual interface.
- Manage and Monitor: You can manage and monitor your pipelines, runs, and data flows through the Azure portal, Azure Data Factory REST API, Azure Data Factory .NET SDK, and Azure Data Factory PowerShell cmdlets.