Create and delete routes and endpoints by using the Azure CLI

This article shows you how to manage Azure IoT Hub routes and endpoints by using the Azure CLI. Learn how to use the Azure CLI to create routes and endpoints for Azure Event Hubs, Azure Service Bus queues and topics, Azure Storage, and Cosmos DB.

To learn more about how routing works in IoT Hub, see Use IoT Hub message routing to send device-to-cloud messages to different endpoints. To walk through setting up a route that sends messages to storage and then testing on a simulated device, see Tutorial: Send device data to Azure Storage by using IoT Hub message routing.

Prerequisites

The procedures that are described in the article use the following resources:

• The Azure CLI
• An IoT hub
• An endpoint service in Azure

Azure CLI

This article uses the Azure CLI to work with IoT Hub and other Azure services. You can choose how you access the Azure CLI:

• Use the Bash environment in Azure Cloud Shell. For more information, see Quickstart for Bash in Azure Cloud Shell.

  

• If you prefer to run CLI reference commands locally, install the Azure CLI. If you're running on Windows or macOS, consider running Azure CLI in a Docker container. For more information, see How to run the Azure CLI in a Docker container.

  • If you're using a local installation, sign in to the Azure CLI by using the az login command. To finish the authentication process, follow the steps displayed in your terminal. For other sign-in options, see Sign in with the Azure CLI.

  • When you're prompted, install the Azure CLI extension on first use. For more information about extensions, see Use extensions with the Azure CLI.

  • Run az version to find the version and dependent libraries that are installed. To upgrade to the latest version, run az upgrade.

IoT Hub

You need an IoT hub in your Azure subscription. If you don't have a hub yet, you can follow the steps to create an IoT hub by using the Azure CLI.

Endpoint service

You need at least one other Azure service to use as an endpoint to the route. The endpoint receives device messages and event logs.

Decide which Azure service you want to use as an endpoint to receive routed device and event data: an event hub, a Service queue or topic, a storage account, or a Cosmos DB container. For the service you choose to use, complete the steps to create an endpoint service.

Event Hubs

1. Create an Event Hubs namespace and an event hub. For more information, see Quickstart: Create an event hub by using the Azure CLI.

2. Create an authorization rule that will be used to give IoT Hub permission to send data to the event hub.

   Tip

   The name parameter's value RootManageSharedAccessKey is the default name that allows Manage, Send, Listen claims (access). If you want to restrict the claims, give the name parameter your own unique name and include the --rights flag followed by one of the claims. For example, --name my-name --rights Send.

   az eventhubs eventhub authorization-rule create --resource-group my-resource-group --namespace-name my-routing-namespace --eventhub-name my-event-hubs --name RootManageSharedAccessKey
   

   For more information, see Authorize access to Azure Event Hubs.

Service Bus queue

1. Create a Service Bus namespace and queue. For more information, see Use the Azure CLI to create a Service Bus namespace and a queue.

2. Create an authorization rule that will give IoT Hub permission to send data to the queue. For name, use a unique value for your authorization rule.

   az servicebus queue authorization-rule create --resource-group my-resource-group --namespace-name my-namespace --queue-name my-queue --name my-auth-rule --rights Listen
   

   For more authorization rule options, see az servicebus queue authorization-rule create.

Service Bus topic

Create a Service Bus namespace, topic, and subscription. For more information, see Use Azure CLI to create a Service Bus topic and subscriptions to the topic.

Azure Storage

1. Create a storage account. For more information, see Create a storage account.

2. Create a container in your storage account. For more information, see Manage blob containers using Azure CLI

Cosmos DB

Create a Cosmos DB account for SQL API and a Cosmos DB container. For more information, see Create an Azure Cosmos DB for NoSQL.

Create an endpoint

All IoT Hub routes point to an endpoint, which will receive the routed device and event data. More than one route can point to the same endpoint. Currently, IoT Hub supports endpoints for Event hubs, Service Bus queues or topics, Storage, and Cosmos DB. An instance of the service that you use for your endpoint must exist in your Azure subscription before you create the endpoint.

Note

This article uses the az iot hub message-endpoint command group, which was introduced in version 0.19.0 of the azure-iot extension for the Azure CLI. Previous versions of the azure-iot extension used the az iot hub routing-endpoint command group, which is similar and still supported but does not support creating Cosmos DB endpoints.

Use the following command to update to the latest version of the azure-iot extension:

az extension update --name azure-iot

Event Hubs

To create an Event Hubs endpoint, use the authorization rule that you created in the prerequisites.

1. Use the az eventhubs eventhub authorization-rule keys list command to list your authorization rule. Provide the following values for the placeholder parameters:

   parameter	value
   eventhub_group	Resource group of the event hub.
   eventhub_namespace	Name of the Event Hubs namespace.
   eventhub_name	Name of the event hub.
   rule_name	The name of the authorization rule for the event hub. If you copied the example in the prerequisites, this name is RootManageSharedAccessKey.

   az eventhubs eventhub authorization-rule keys list --resource-group {eventhub_group} --namespace-name {eventhub_namespace} --eventhub-name my-event-hubs --name {rule_name}
   

2. Copy your event hub connection string from the output.

3. Use the az iot hub message-endpoint create eventhub command to create your custom endpoint. Provide the following values for the placeholder parameters:

   parameter	value
   iothub_name	The name of the IoT hub where this endpoint is being created.
   endpoint_name	A unique name for the new endpoint.
   eventhub_subscription	Subscription ID of the event hub. This argument can be left out if the event hub is in the same subscription as the IoT hub.
   eventhub_group	Resource group of the event hub. This argument can be left out if the event hub is in the same resource group as the IoT hub.
   eventhub_connection_string	The connection string that you copied from the event hub authorization rule.

   az iot hub message-endpoint create eventhub --hub-name {iothub_name} --endpoint-name {endpoint_name}  --connection-string "{eventhub_connection_string}" --endpoint-subscription-id {eventhub_subscription} --endpoint-resource-group {eventhub_group}
   

Service Bus queue

To create a Service Bus queue endpoint, use the authorization rule that you created in the prerequisites.

1. Use the az servicebus queue authorization-rule keys list command to get your Service Bus queue connection string. Provide the following values for the placeholder parameters:

   parameter	value
   queue_group	Resource group of the Service Bus queue.
   queue_namespace	Name of the Service Bus queue namespace.
   queue_name	Name of the queue.
   rule_name	The name of the authorization rule for the queue. If you copied the example in the prerequisites, this name is my-auth-rule.

   az servicebus queue authorization-rule keys list --resource-group {queue_group} --namespace-name {queue_namespace} --queue-name {queue_name} --name {rule_name}
   

2. Copy your Service Bus queue connection string from the output.

3. Use the az iot hub message-endpoint create servicebus-queue command to create your custom endpoint. Provide the following values for the placeholder parameters:

   parameter	value
   iothub_name	The name of the IoT hub where this endpoint is being created.
   endpoint_name	A unique name for the new endpoint.
   queue_connection_string	The connection string that you copied from the Service Bus queue authorization rule.
   queue_subscription	Subscription ID of the Service Bus queue. This argument can be left out if the queue is in the same subscription as the IoT hub.
   queue_group	Resource group of the Service Bus queue. This argument can be left out if the queue is in the same resource group as the IoT hub.

   az iot hub message-endpoint create servicebus-queue --hub-name {iothub_name} --endpoint-name {endpoint_name} --connection-string "Endpoint={queue_connection_string}" --endpoint-resource-group {queue_group} --endpoint-subscription-id {queue_subscription}
   

Service Bus topic

1. Use the az servicebus topic authorization-rule keys list to get your Service Bus topic connection string. The default name of your authorization rule that comes with a new namespace is RootManageSharedAccessKey. Provide the following values for the placeholder parameters:

   parameter	value
   topic_group	Resource group of the Service Bus topic.
   topic_namespace	Name of the Service Bus topic namespace.
   topic_name	Name of the topic.

   az servicebus topic authorization-rule keys list --resource-group {topic_group} --namespace-name {topic_namespace} --topic-name {topic_name} --name RootManageSharedAccessKey
   

2. Copy your Service Bus topic connection string from the output.

3. Use the az iot hub message-endpoint create servicebus-topic command to create your custom endpoint. Provide the following values for the placeholder parameters:

   parameter	value
   iothub_name	The name of the IoT hub where this endpoint is being created.
   endpoint_name	A unique name for the new endpoint.
   topic_connection_string	The connection string that you copied from the Service Bus topic authorization rule.
   topic_subscription	Subscription ID of the Service Bus topic. This argument can be left out if the topic is in the same subscription as the IoT hub.
   topic_group	Resource group of the Service Bus topic. This argument can be left out if the topic is in the same resource group as the IoT hub.

   az iot hub message-endpoint create servicebus-topic --hub-name {iothub_name} --endpoint-name {endpoint_name} --connection-string "Endpoint={topic_connection_string};EntityPath=my-service-bus-topic --endpoint-resource-group {topic_group} --endpoint-subscription-id {topic_subscription}
   

Azure Storage

1. Use the az storage account show-connection-string command to get the connection string from your Azure Storage resource to create an endpoint. Provide the following values for the placeholder parameters:

   parameter	value
   storage_group	Resource group of the storage account.
   storage_name	Name of the storage account.

   az storage account show-connection-string --resource-group my-resource-group --name my-storage-account 
   

2. Copy your storage account connection string from the output.

3. Use the az iot hub message-endpoint create storage-container command to create a new Azure Storage endpoint. For all other parameters, use values for your scenario. Provide the following values for the placeholder parameters:

   parameter	value
   iothub_name	The name of the IoT hub where this endpoint is being created.
   endpoint_name	A unique name for the new endpoint.
   storage_connection_string	The connection string that you copied from the storage account command.
   container_name	The name of the container in your storage account where the data will be sent.
   storage_subscription	Subscription ID of the Service Bus storage. This argument can be left out if the storage is in the same subscription as the IoT hub.
   storage_group	Resource group of the Service Bus storage. This argument can be left out if the topic is in the same resource group as the IoT hub.

   az iot hub message-endpoint create storage-container--hub-name {iothub_name} --endpoint-name {endpoint_name} --container {container_name} --endpoint-resource-group {storage_group} --connection-string "DefaultEndpointsProtocol={storage_connection_string}" --endpoint-subscription-id {storage_subscription} --resource-group {storage_group}
   

Cosmos DB

1. Use the az cosmosdb keys list command to get the connection string from your Cosmos DB database account.

   az cosmosdb keys list --name my-cosmosdb-account --resource-group my-resource-group --type connection-strings
   

2. Copy your Cosmos DB connection string from the output.

3. Use the az iot hub message-endpoint create cosmosdb-container command to create your custom endpoint. Provide the following values for the placeholder parameters:

   parameter	value
   iothub_name	The name of the IoT hub where this endpoint is being created.
   endpoint_name	A unique name for the new endpoint.
   cosmosdb_connection_string	The connection string that you copied from the Cosmos DB account command.
   container_name	The name of the container in your Cosmos DB account where the data will be sent.
   database_name	The name of the database in your Cosmos DB account where the data will be sent.
   cosmosdb_subscription	Subscription ID of the Cosmos DB database account. This argument can be left out if the database is in the same subscription as the IoT hub.
   cosmosdb_group	Resource group of the Cosmos DB database account. This argument can be left out if the database is in the same resource group as the IoT hub.

   az iot hub message-endpoint create cosmosdb-container --hub-name {iothub_name} --endpoint-name {endpoint_name} --connection-string "{cosmosdb_connection_string}" --container {container_name} --database-name {database_name} --resource-group my-resource-group --endpoint-account my-cosmosdb-account --container my-cosmosdb-database-container
   

   Note

   If you are using managed identities instead of connection string, use the az cosmosdb sql role assignment create command to authenticate your identity to the Cosmos DB account.

   az cosmosdb sql role assignment create -a my-cosmosdb-account -g my-resource-group --scope '/' -n 'Cosmos DB Built-in Data Contributor' -p "IoT Hub System Assigned or User Assigned Identity"
   

Delete an endpoint

If you want to delete an endpoint from your IoT hub, use the az iot hub message-endpoint delete command. With this command, you can delete a single endpoint, delete all endpoints of a single type, or delete all endpoints from a hub.

For example, the following command deletes all endpoints in an IoT hub that point to Storage resources:

az iot hub message-endpoint delete --hub-name {iothub_name} --endpoint-type storage-container

Create an IoT Hub route

In IoT Hub, you can create a route to send messages or capture events. Each route has a data source and an endpoint. The data source is where messages or event logs originate. The endpoint is where the messages or event logs end up. You choose locations for the data source and endpoint when you create a new route in your IoT hub. Optionally, you can Add queries to message routes to filter messages or events before they go to the endpoint.

Note

This article uses the az iot hub message-route command group, which was introduced in version 0.19.0 of the azure-iot extension for the Azure CLI. Previous versions of the azure-iot extension used the az iot hub route command group, which is similar and still supported.

Use the following command to update to the latest version of the azure-iot extension:

az extension update --name azure-iot

1. Use the az iot hub message-route create command to create a new IoT Hub route by using that endpoint. Provide the following values for the placeholder parameters:

   parameter	value
   iothub_name	The name of the IoT hub where this route is being created.
   route_name	A unique name for the new route.
   endpoint_name	The name of the endpoint that the route will send data to.
   data_source	The source of the route. Accepted values are: deviceconnectionstateevents, devicejoblifecycleevents, devicelifecycleevents, devicemessages, digitaltwinchangeevents, invalid, or twinchangeevents.

   az iot hub message-route create --hub-name {iothub_name} --route-name {route_name} --endpoint-name {endpoint_name} --source {data_source}
   

2. To confirm that the new route is in your IoT hub, use the az iot hub message-route list command to see all routes in your IoT hub:

   az iot hub message-route list --hub-name {iothub_name}
   

   You should see a response in the Azure CLI that's similar to this example:

   [
      {
        "condition": "true",
        "endpointNames": [
          "endpoint_name"
        ],
        "isEnabled": true,
        "name": "route_name",
        "source": "DeviceConnectionStateEvents"
      }
   ]
   

Update an IoT Hub route

You can update some properties of a route after it's created. You can change the source, endpoint, condition, or enabled state of an existing route.

Use the az iot hub message-route show command to view the details of a route.

az iot hub message-route show --hub-name {iothub_name} --route-name {route_name}

Use the az iot hub message-route update command to update the properties of a route. For example, the following command updates the route's source.

az iot hub message-route update --hub-name {iothub_name} --route-name {route_name} --source devicejoblifecycleevents

Delete an IoT Hub route

Use the az iot hub message-route delete command to delete a route from your IoT hub.

Deleting a route doesn't delete its endpoint because other routes may point to the same endpoint. If you want to delete an endpoint, you can do so separately from deleting a route.

az iot hub message-route delete --hub-name {iothub_name} --route-name {route_name}

Manage the fallback route

The fallback route sends all the messages from devicemessages source that don't satisfy query conditions on any of the existing routes to the built-in endpoint.

Use the az iot hub message-route fallback show command to see the status of the fallback route in your IoT hub.

az iot hub message-route fallback show --hub-name {iothub_name}

Use the az iot hub message-route fallback set command to enable or disable the fallback route in your IoT hub.

az iot hub message-route fallback set --hub-name {iothub_name} --enabled {true_false}

Next steps

In this how-to article, you learned how to create a route and endpoint for Event Hubs, Service Bus queues and topics, and Azure Storage.

To learn more about message routing, see Tutorial: Send device data to Azure Storage by using IoT Hub message routing. In the tutorial, you create a storage route and test it with a device in your IoT hub.