Why am I facing connectivity issues when trying to upload file in countries such as Ethiopia and Myanmar?

Question

We are encountering issues when uploading files to blob storage, where users located in Ethiopia and Myanmar are intermittently unable to complete uploads. This issue appears to affect only users in these two countries and occurs sporadically. Initially, we suspected country-specific network infrastructure or government-related restrictions; however, this no longer appears to be the root cause.

Answer 1

Hi Calan Moy Ka-Shing,

Thanks for reaching out in Microsoft Q&A forum,

It sounds like you're having some frustrating connectivity issues when trying to upload files to Azure Blob Storage from Ethiopia and Myanmar. This can definitely be irritating, especially when it seems to be inconsistent. Here are a few things you can check and try to troubleshoot the problem:

Troubleshooting Steps:

1. Network Stability:
   • Check the stability of the internet connection from those locations. Unstable networks can cause intermittent upload issues.
2. Use AzCopy:
   • Using the AzCopy tool can optimize uploads. Make sure you use the --block-size-mb option to increase the block size and possibly improve upload speed. You can also check the integrity of uploads with the --check-md5 option.
3. Diagnostics:
   • Review Azure Monitor metrics for your storage account. Look for any availability or success latency metrics that might indicate service-level issues during the times users report problems.
4. Authentication and Access:
   • Ensure that the users in those countries have the proper access rights to the storage account and that there are no restrictive network security rules set up that may be blocking their access.
5. Review Specific Error Messages:
   • If users are receiving specific error codes (like 403, 404, or 409) upon attempting uploads, you can refer to Azure's documentation on how to diagnose and resolve these particular issues.
6. Cross-Origin Resource Sharing (CORS):
   • If uploads are done via web applications, ensure that CORS is properly configured on your storage account to allow requests from those regions

References:

• Troubleshoot connectivity errors
• Using AzCopy for better upload performance
• Review specific HTTP error responses
• Monitoring Azure Storage metrics

Hope this helps get to the bottom of the connectivity issues! Let me know if you need further assistance.
Please do not forget to and “up-vote” wherever the information provided helps you, this can be beneficial to other community members.

Answer 2

Connectivity issues when uploading files to Azure Blob Storage can arise from various factors, especially in specific regions like Ethiopia and Myanmar. Here are some potential causes to consider:

1. Network Infrastructure: Even if government-related restrictions are ruled out, the local network infrastructure may still be inadequate or unstable, leading to intermittent connectivity issues.
2. Latency and Performance: Users in distant geographical locations may experience higher latency, which can affect upload speeds and reliability. It’s important to consider the physical distance from the Azure data centers, as this can impact the performance of uploads.
3. Service Availability: Check if there are any known service disruptions or maintenance activities in the Azure regions that might affect connectivity for users in those countries.
4. Error Handling: Implementing robust error handling and retry logic in your application can help mitigate issues caused by temporary connectivity problems. This ensures that uploads can be retried automatically if they fail due to transient issues.
5. Blob Storage Configuration: Ensure that the configuration for your Azure Blob Storage is optimized for the types of uploads being performed. This includes checking for any limits on block sizes or the number of blocks that can be uploaded simultaneously.

If the issue persists, consider reaching out to Azure support for more targeted assistance based on the specific error messages encountered during uploads.