OneLake Shortcuts Explained
Access data across cloud storage without moving or copying it.
OneLake shortcuts allow you to access data from external storage locations without physically copying it, enabling unified data access across your organization.
What Are OneLake Shortcuts?
Shortcuts are pointers to data stored outside OneLake. They appear as if the data is local to your Lakehouse but actually reference the original location. This eliminates data duplication and storage costs.
Supported Data Sources
Cloud Storage - Azure Data Lake Storage Gen2 (ADLS Gen2) - Amazon S3 and S3-compatible storage - Google Cloud Storage - OneLake (other Fabric workspaces)
Internal Fabric - Other Lakehouses in your tenant - Data warehouses - External data shares
Creating Shortcuts
Step 1: Navigate to Your Lakehouse Open the Lakehouse where you want to create the shortcut.
Step 2: Add Shortcut Right-click on Tables or Files and select "New shortcut". Choose your source type.
Step 3: Configure Connection Provide connection details: - Storage account URL - Authentication method (SAS token, account key, service principal) - Container and folder path
Step 4: Name and Confirm Give your shortcut a meaningful name and confirm. The data appears immediately.
Benefits of Shortcuts
- No data movement - Data stays in original location
- Real-time access - Always see current data
- Cost savings - No duplicate storage charges
- Unified governance - Apply Fabric security to external data
- Seamless analytics - Query with SQL or Spark like local data
Frequently Asked Questions
Does OneLake shortcuts copy the data?
No, shortcuts are pointers only. The data remains in its original location. OneLake queries the source directly, so you always access the current data without duplication.
Can I write data through a shortcut?
Shortcuts are read-only for external sources. To write data, you need to use the native Lakehouse tables or write directly to the external storage through its own APIs.