Automation of JSON file in Digital Twins

Question

Is there a solution to automatically update/upload the JSon Files from our desktop to digital twins

Answer 1

Yes, you can automatically update or upload JSON files from your desktop to Azure Digital Twins by creating a script or application that leverages the Azure Digital Twins APIs and relevant SDKs. Here's a general guide to accomplishing this task:

### 1. **Set Up Your Development Environment**

Make sure you have the required SDKs and tools installed:

- Azure Digital Twins SDK
- A code editor (such as Visual Studio or Visual Studio Code)
- Required programming language runtime (e.g., .NET, Node.js, etc.)

### 2. **Authenticate with Azure Digital Twins**

You'll need to authenticate your application with Azure Digital Twins. You can utilize the Azure Identity library to authenticate your application.

### 3. **Watch the Directory for Changes**

To automatically update or upload files, you can create a file watcher that monitors your desktop (or specific directory) for changes to JSON files.

For example, in a .NET application, you might use the `FileSystemWatcher` class.

### 4. **Upload the JSON Files to Azure Digital Twins**

When a change is detected, read the JSON file and use the Digital Twins SDK to upload or update the data in Azure Digital Twins.

Here's a high-level code snippet using C#:

```csharp
using Azure.Identity;
using Azure.DigitalTwins.Core;
using System.IO;

// Set up file watcher
FileSystemWatcher watcher = new FileSystemWatcher();
watcher.Path = @"C:\path\to\your\json\files";
watcher.Filter = "*.json";

// Add event handlers
watcher.Changed += OnChanged;

// Start watching
watcher.EnableRaisingEvents = true;

// Event handler
private static async void OnChanged(object source, FileSystemEventArgs e)
{
    // Read the JSON file
    string jsonContent = File.ReadAllText(e.FullPath);

    // Authenticate with Azure Digital Twins
    var credential = new DefaultAzureCredential();
    DigitalTwinsClient client = new DigitalTwinsClient(new Uri("<your-digital-twins-url>"), credential);

    // Upload or update the data in Azure Digital Twins
    // This part depends on your specific use case and the structure of the JSON data
    await client.CreateOrReplaceDigitalTwinAsync("<twin-id>", jsonContent);
}

This code snippet provides a starting point and must be adapted to fit your specific use case and the structure of your JSON data.

5. Handle Errors and Edge Cases

Ensure that your code includes appropriate error handling and accounts for edge cases, such as conflicts in concurrent updates or handling large files.

6. Compliance and Security Considerations

Ensure that the solution complies with your organization's security policies and practices. This includes the secure handling and transmission of data and adherence to any relevant regulations or standards.

Conclusion

By combining a file watcher on the desktop with the Azure Digital Twins SDK, you can create an automated solution to upload or update JSON files in Azure Digital Twins whenever changes are made on the desktop. Make sure to consult the specific SDK documentation and tailor the solution to fit your data model and business requirements.

Answer 2

Hello @Gorthi Sai Sri Sindhuja ,

you want to upload DTDL models in bulk, from your desktop.

This can be done with Digital Twins C# SDK.

Here is a code sample:

// Authenticate with Digital Twins on your laptop 
// Give your account the 'Azure Digital Twins Data Owner' role for your instance of Digital Twins 
// Run 'az login' in the terminal app of your device to login to Azure 
var credential = 
  new DefaultAzureCredential(
    new DefaultAzureCredentialOptions { ExcludeSharedTokenCacheCredential = true });  

// Replace the following values with those from your instance of Digital Twins 
var adtEndpoint = "https://[environment].api.[region].digitaltwins.azure.net";  
var client = new DigitalTwinsClient(new Uri(adtEndpoint), credential);  

// add models in bulk from disk 
var sampleModel = File.ReadAllText("SampleModel.json"); 
var extraSampleModel = File.ReadAllText("ExtraSampleModel.json"); 
var modelList =  new List<string>{sampleModel, extraSampleModel};  

// Models are created in the order they are listed in the modelList 
// Models are not replacable, so if you try to create a model that already exists, an exception will be thrown 
var createdModels = client.CreateModelsAsync(modelList).Result;  

Console.WriteLine($"Models added: {createdModels.Value[0].Id} and {createdModels.Value[1].Id}"); 

Notice you have to provide credentials.

Before executing this run this console command (the Azure CLI must be installed):

az login

Here, I executed the code:

The result is seen in the digital twin explorer:

You are now able to upload models in bulk.

See this blog post for more details.

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