Connect to Microsoft

End users can create connections to AWS Direct Connect using either a Dot1q port or a QinQ port.

The following video shows how to connect to Azure Express Route using Equinix Fabric APIs.
Click here to download the postman scripts shown in this demo.

Layer 2 Connection to Azure ExpressRoute

Step 1: Retrieve Microsoft Service Key

Obtain a location-specific service key via the Azure portal.

Step 2: Create Connection

2a) Authenticate
import StepAuthenticate, { toc as StepAuthenticateTOC } from '@site/fabric/_step-authenticate.mdx'

2b) Get the Port
Retrieve your allocated Equinix Fabric port information.

Refer to GET Port under the API Reference section for instructions on how to retrieve port details. You may skip this step if you already know your port information.

2c) Get Metros
Find all metros where Equinix Fabric is available to check if a connection can be established between the port selected earlier and your desired destination metro.

Use this API to identify the metro codes of your source (A-side) and destination (Z-side) for your connection.

Refer to GET Metros under the API Reference section for instructions on how to get the metro code. You may skip this step if you already know this information.

2d) Get Service Profile
Identify all service profiles available for a given metro or metros, and select the profile to which you wish to connect.

Refer to GET Services under the API Reference section for instructions on how to retrieve service profiles in Equinix Fabric. You may skip this step if you already know the service profile details.

2e) Get ValidateAuthorizationKey
Verify whether your Azure service key can be used to create a connection to the seller profile selected in the previous step.

Refer to GET validateAuthorizationKey under the API Reference section for instructions on how to validate your authorization key. You may skip this step if you are certain that your key is authorized for creating connections with the selected service profile.

2f) Post Connections

POST /ecx/v3/l2/connections
Method POST
URL or Endpoint /ecx/v3/l2/connections
Headers Authorization, Content-Type
Query Parameters Not applicable
Body Parameters primaryName, primaryPortUUID, primaryVlanSTag, profileUUID, authorizationKey, speed, speedUnit, notifications [...], purchaseOrderNumber, sellerMetroCode, secondaryName, secondaryPortUUID, secondaryVlanSTag, secondaryVlanCTag, namedTag, primaryZSideVlanCTag, secondaryZSideVlanCTag,

The POST connections API creates a layer 2 connection between your port and the destination service profile. The authorization token and content-type are the only headers that are passed to this API and a response is received based on the values passed.

If you are unaware of how to obtain an authorization token, refer to Requesting Access and Refresh tokens section under the Getting Access Token.

The following screenshots show a sample curl request to create a layer 2 Azure connection using a Dot1q and QinQ port and a sample JSON response for this API.

Should you want to estimate the price of this connection, use the API GET Prices.


Azure Express Route connection using a Dot1q port

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curl -X
POST "https://api.equinix.com/ecx/v3/l2/connections"
-H "content-type: application/json"
-H "authorization: Bearer qwErtY8zyW1abcdefGHI"
-d '{
  "primaryName": "JohnDoe_Dot1q_Private",
  "profileUUID": "84c6616c-573a-447d-a478-9fab8fff284d",
  "speed": 50,
  "speedUnit": "MB",
  "purchaseOrderNumber": "",
  "primaryPortUUID": "7f891d3b-973e-73e0-bae0-30ac1885197a",
  "primaryVlanSTag": "458",
  "secondaryName": "TestS110",
  "secondaryVlanSTag": "442",
  "secondaryPortUUID": "7f891d3b-9740-7400-bae0-30ac1885197a",
  "namedTag": "Private",
  "sellerMetroCode": "SV",
  "authorizationKey": "76e781b5-2992-4042-b2a2-37d0d5eb6735",
  "notifications": [
    "JohnDoe@example.com"
  ]
}'

C Tag is not applicable for "Private", "Public" and "Microsoft" peering.

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curl -X
POST "https://api.equinix.com/ecx/v3/l2/connections"
-H "content-type: application/json"
-H "authorization: Bearer qwErtY8zyW1abcdefGHI"
-d '{
  "primaryName": "JohnDoe_Dot1q_Manual",
  "profileUUID": "84c6616c-573a-447d-a478-9fab8fff284d",
  "speed": 50,
  "speedUnit": "MB",
  "purchaseOrderNumber": "",
  "primaryPortUUID": "7f891d3b-973e-73e0-bae0-30ac1885197a",
  "primaryVlanSTag": "458",
  "secondaryName": "TestS110",
  "secondaryVlanSTag": "442",
  "secondaryZSideVlanCTag": "542",
  "primaryZSideVlanCTag":"558",
  "secondaryPortUUID": "7f891d3b-9740-7400-bae0-30ac1885197a",
  "namedTag": "Manual",
  "sellerMetroCode": "SV",
  "authorizationKey": "76e781b5-2992-4042-b2a2-37d0d5eb6735",
  "notifications": [
    "JohnDoe@example.com"
  ]
}'

Azure Express Route connection using a QinQ port

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curl -X
POST "https://api.equinix.com/ecx/v3/l2/connections"
-H "content-type: application/json"
-H "authorization: Bearer qwErtY8zyW1abcdefGHI"
-d '{
  "purchaseOrderNumber": "1234567890",
  "primaryName": "JohnDoe_Azure_QinQ",
  "secondaryName": "JohnDoe2_Azure_QinQ",
  "primaryPortUUID": "7f891d3b-973d-73d0-bae0-30ac1885197a",
  "secondaryPortUUID": "7f891d3b-973d-73d0-bae0-30ac1885197a",
  "primaryVlanSTag": 640,
  "secondaryVlanSTag": 650,
  "profileUUID": "84c6616c-573a-447d-a478-9fab8fff284d",
  "authorizationKey": "e03da869-8243-4dac-ae49-a95c80f5425d",
  "sellerMetroCode": "DC",
  "speed": 50,
  "speedUnit": "MB",
  "notifications": [
    "JohnDoe@example.com"
  ],
}'

The description of the body parameters is as follows:

Body Parameter Name Mandatory Type Example Applicable Values Description
primaryName Yes string JohnDoe_Dot1q_Manual User-defined name of the primary connection.

Supply an alpha-numeric string, which can include hyphens and underscores ('-' & '_') as special characters (no other special characters are allowed).

Max Length: 24 characters
primaryPortUUID Yes string 7f891d3b-973d-73d0-bae0-30ac1885197a Unique Equinix-assigned ID of the buyer's primary port from where the connection originates.
primaryVlanSTag Yes integer 640 S-Tag/Outer-Tag of the primary connection.

Range: 2 - 4094
profileUUID Yes string 84c6616c-573a-447d-a478-9fab8fff284d Unique Equinix-assigned ID of the provider's service profile.
authorizationKey Yes string e03da869-8243-4dac-ae49-a95c80f5425d Authorization Key provided by Azure.

For example, the Service Key from Azure Express Route.
speed No integer 50 Speed/bandwidth to be allocated to the connection.
speedUnit No string MB Unit of the speed/bandwidth to be allocated to the connection.

Values: Either MB or GB.
notifications Yes array JohnDoe@example.com A list of email addresses that are notified when there are any updates on this connection.

Example:
["user@example.com", "user2@example.com"]
purchaseOrderNumber Yes string This optional field links the purchase order to the connection on Equinix. This link is reflected on the invoice.
sellerMetroCode Yes string DC The metro code that denotes the connection’s destination (Z side).

If sellerMetroCode is empty, thevalue defaults to themetro codeof the port.
secondaryName Yes string JohnDoe2_Azure_QinQ Name of the secondary connection.

Supply an alpha-numeric string, which can include hyphens and underscores ('-' & '_') as special characters (no other special characters are allowed).

Max Length: 24 characters
secondaryPortUUID Yes string 7f891d3b-973d-73d0-bae0-30ac1885197a Unique ID of the buyer's secondary port from which the secondary connection would originate.
secondaryZSideVlanSTag Yes integer 442 S-Tag/Outer-Tag of the secondary connection.

Range: 2 - 4094
secondaryZSideVlanCTag Yes integer 542 C-Tag/Inner-Tag of the secondary connection.

Range: 2 - 4094
namedTag Yes string Private "Private"
"Public"
"Microsoft"
"Manual" 		The type of peering to set up with Azure Express Route.
primaryZSideVlanCTag Yes integer 558 C-Tag/Inner-Tag of the primary connectionon the Z side. This is only applicable for "Manual" peering. (i.e. namedTag = "Manual").

Range: 2 - 4094
secondaryZSideVlanCTag Yes integer 542 C-Tag/Inner-Tag of the secondary connectionon the Z side.This is only applicable for "Manual" peering. (i.e. namedTag = "Manual").

Range: 2 - 4094

Equinix Fabric participants with Dot1q ports can create up to three connections to Azure using the same Azure service key. However, all 3 connections must have different namedTags such as "private", "public", "Microsoft" or "Manual" peering. Note that "Microsoft" peering requires special permission from Microsoft. Equinix Fabric participants with QinQ ports only need to create one primary and one redundant connection. When creating a connection to Azure, the payload expectations with regard to c-tags and s-tags vary based on the type of port (Dot1q or QinQ) from which you are creating a connection to Azure. The following table indicates the tagging criteria to be followed when a buyer/customer (A-side) wants to connect to Azure Express Route (Z - side QinQ).

Port Type (A-side) Maximum Number Of Connections Peering Type (indicated bynamedTagfield) S-tag required C-tag required Port Type (Z-side)
Dot1q port 3 pairs (3 primary and 3 redundant) Public Yes No.

Note: Only a Z side C-tag is required and it is provided under VLANID while setting up peering in Azure portal. 		QinQ port
Private Yes No.

Note: Only a Z side C-tag is required and it is provided under VLANID while setting up peering in Azure portal.
Microsoft Yes No.

Note:Only a Z side C-tag is required and it is provided under VLANID while setting up peering in Azure portal.
Manual Yes Yes.

Note: Only a Z side C-tag is required, and it is provided in the Equinix Fabric portal or in the API request payload.
QinQ port 1 pair (1 primary and 1 redundant) Public Yes No
Private Yes No
Microsoft Yes No
Manual Yes No

If you get "Access Denied" error, contact your local Equinix Service Desk for Equinix Fabric Portal access.

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{
    "message": "Connection Saved Successfully",
    "primaryConnectionId": "9994b8d-dcdb-45bc-b760-55368e16f3c4",
    "secondaryConnectionId": "888d4c1-5444-4511-b2e4-51f06f062974"
}

The description of the response payload is as follows:

Field Name Type Example Description
message string Connection Saved Successfully Indicates the status of the API call.
primaryConnectionId string 9994b8d-dcdb-45bc-b760-55368e16f3c4 Indicates the primary connection ID of the connection that was just created.
secondaryConnectionId string 888d4c1-5444-4511-b2e4-51f06f062974 Indicates the secondary connection ID of the connection that was just created.

Once the POST Connections API is successfully called, you may check the status of the connection using the API GET Connections{uuid}.
Should you want to upgrade the speed/bandwidth of this connection, you can use the API PATCH Connections{uuid}.

When a connection is created, the connection transitions through various states within the Equinix and Azure infrastructure. These states can be monitored using the response attributes of the API GET Connections{uuid}. The "status" attribute indicates the connection status in Equinix and the "providerStatus" indicates the status in Azure.

Equinix States under /ecx/v3/l2/connections/{connId} Azure States
"status" attribute values "providerStatus" attribute values Azure's Provider Status Azure's Peerings Status Description
PROVISIONING NOT_AVAILABLE Not provisioned Not provisioned Connection request has not been yet sent to Microsoft Azure.
PENDING_BGP_PEERING PENDING_BGP Provisioned Not provisioned

The connection has been approved and awaits for the customer to configure Microsoft peering on the Azure portal.

Note that the status will be "PENDING_BGP_PEERING" until peering is completed in the Azure portal and the status will only change to "PROVISIONED" once Equinix Fabric syncs with Microsoft. If you want to synchronize the BGP peering instantly, you may use the Equinix Fabric Portal.

PROVISIONING PROVISIONED Provisioned Provisioned Provisioning completed at Microsoft's end and the connection is provisioning at Equinix's end.
PROVISIONED PROVISIONED Provisioned Provisioned The connection is provisioned.

When an end user deletes a connection using the API DELETE Connections{uuid} the connection transitions through the following states within the Equinix infrastructure.

Equinix States under /ecx/v3/l2/connections/{connId}
"status" attribute values "providerStatus" attribute values Description
DEPROVISIONING PROVISIONED Connection disbandment in progress.
DEPROVISIONED DEPROVISIONED Connection deleted.

Step 3: Setup Microsoft Peering

Configure BGP peering on the Azure portal and call the below API to synchronize the peering changes with Equinix. Once it is completed, the connection status retrieved via the GET Connections{uuid} should change from "Pending-BGP-Peering" to "Provisioned". Alternatively, you can also synchronize the peering using the Equinix portal.

Refer to https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/expressroute/expressroute-howto-routing-portal-resource-manager for instructions on how to configure peering for an Express Route connection.