diff --git a/asterixdb/NOTICE b/asterixdb/NOTICE
index b4729a8..4aabe27 100644
--- a/asterixdb/NOTICE
+++ b/asterixdb/NOTICE
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 Apache AsterixDB
-Copyright 2015-2020 The Apache Software Foundation
+Copyright 2015-2021 The Apache Software Foundation
 
 This product includes software developed at
 The Apache Software Foundation (http://www.apache.org/).
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-app/pom.xml b/asterixdb/asterix-app/pom.xml
index 7f8085d..e309132 100644
--- a/asterixdb/asterix-app/pom.xml
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-app/pom.xml
@@ -861,6 +861,10 @@
       <artifactId>azure-storage-blob</artifactId>
     </dependency>
     <dependency>
+      <groupId>com.azure</groupId>
+      <artifactId>azure-storage-common</artifactId>
+    </dependency>
+    <dependency>
       <groupId>org.apache.logging.log4j</groupId>
       <artifactId>log4j-1.2-api</artifactId>
     </dependency>
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/common/TestConstants.java b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/common/TestConstants.java
index ef2ec6c..9188033 100644
--- a/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/common/TestConstants.java
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/common/TestConstants.java
@@ -36,14 +36,37 @@
             + "\"),\n" + "(\"serviceEndpoint\"=\"" + S3_SERVICE_ENDPOINT_DEFAULT + "\")";
 
     // Azure blob storage constants and place holders
-    public static final String AZURE_ACCOUNT_NAME_PLACEHOLDER = "%accountName%";
+    // account name
+    public static final String AZURE_ACCOUNT_NAME_PLACEHOLDER = "%azureblob-accountname%";
     public static final String AZURE_AZURITE_ACCOUNT_NAME_DEFAULT = "devstoreaccount1";
-    public static final String AZURE_ACCOUNT_KEY_PLACEHOLDER = "%accountKey%";
+
+    // account key
+    public static final String AZURE_ACCOUNT_KEY_PLACEHOLDER = "%azureblob-accountkey%";
     public static final String AZURE_AZURITE_ACCOUNT_KEY_DEFAULT =
-            "Eby8vdM02xNOcqFlqUwJPLlmEtlCDXJ1OUzFT50uSRZ6IFsu" + "Fq2UVErCz4I6tq/K1SZFPTOtr/KBHBeksoGMGw==";
-    public static final String AZURE_BLOB_ENDPOINT_PLACEHOLDER = "%blobEndpoint%";
+            "Eby8vdM02xNOcqFlqUwJPLlmEtlCDXJ1OUzFT50uSRZ6IFsuFq2UVErCz4I6tq/K1SZFPTOtr/KBHBeksoGMGw==";
+
+    // SAS token: this is generated and assigned at runtime at the start of the test
+    public static final String AZURE_SAS_TOKEN_PLACEHOLDER = "%azureblob-sas%";
+    public static String sasToken = "";
+
+    // blob endpoint
+    public static final String AZURE_BLOB_ENDPOINT_PLACEHOLDER = "%azureblob-blobendpoint%";
     public static final String AZURE_BLOB_ENDPOINT_DEFAULT =
             "http://localhost:20000/" + AZURE_AZURITE_ACCOUNT_NAME_DEFAULT;
+
+    // connection string with account name & account key
+    public static final String AZURE_CONNECTION_STRING_ACCOUNT_KEY_PLACEHOLDER =
+            "%azureblob-connectionstringaccountkey%";
+    public static final String AZURE_CONNECTION_STRING_ACCOUNT_KEY = "AccountName=" + AZURE_ACCOUNT_NAME_PLACEHOLDER
+            + ";AccountKey=" + AZURE_ACCOUNT_KEY_PLACEHOLDER + ";BlobEndpoint=" + AZURE_BLOB_ENDPOINT_PLACEHOLDER;
+
+    // connection string with account name & sas token
+    public static final String AZURE_CONNECTION_STRING_SAS_TOKEN_PLACEHOLDER = "%azureblob-connectionstringsas%";
+    public static final String AZURE_CONNECTION_STRING_SAS_TOKEN =
+            "AccountName=" + AZURE_ACCOUNT_NAME_PLACEHOLDER + ";SharedAccessSignature=" + AZURE_SAS_TOKEN_PLACEHOLDER
+                    + ";BlobEndpoint=" + AZURE_BLOB_ENDPOINT_PLACEHOLDER;
+
+    // azure template and default template
     public static final String AZURE_TEMPLATE = "(\"accountName\"=\"" + AZURE_AZURITE_ACCOUNT_NAME_DEFAULT + "\"),\n"
             + "(\"accountKey\"=\"" + AZURE_AZURITE_ACCOUNT_KEY_DEFAULT + "\"),\n" + "(\"blobEndpoint\"=\""
             + AZURE_BLOB_ENDPOINT_PLACEHOLDER + "\")";
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/common/TestExecutor.java b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/common/TestExecutor.java
index 00d1034..e202ddf 100644
--- a/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/common/TestExecutor.java
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/common/TestExecutor.java
@@ -2068,28 +2068,46 @@
     }
 
     protected String applyExternalDatasetSubstitution(String str, List<Placeholder> placeholders) {
+        // This replaces the full template of parameters depending on the adapter type
         for (Placeholder placeholder : placeholders) {
+            // For adapter placeholder, it means we have a template to replace
             if (placeholder.getName().equals("adapter")) {
                 str = str.replace("%adapter%", placeholder.getValue());
 
                 // Early terminate if there are no template place holders to replace
                 if (noTemplateRequired(str)) {
-                    return str;
+                    continue;
                 }
 
                 if (placeholder.getValue().equalsIgnoreCase("S3")) {
-                    return applyS3Substitution(str, placeholders);
+                    str = applyS3Substitution(str, placeholders);
                 } else if (placeholder.getValue().equalsIgnoreCase("AzureBlob")) {
-                    return applyAzureSubstitution(str, placeholders);
-                } else {
-                    return str;
+                    str = applyAzureSubstitution(str, placeholders);
                 }
+            } else {
+                // Any other place holders, just replace with the value
+                str = str.replace("%" + placeholder.getName() + "%", placeholder.getValue());
             }
         }
 
+        // This replaces specific external dataset placeholders
+        str = str.replace(TestConstants.AZURE_CONNECTION_STRING_ACCOUNT_KEY_PLACEHOLDER,
+                TestConstants.AZURE_CONNECTION_STRING_ACCOUNT_KEY);
+        str = str.replace(TestConstants.AZURE_CONNECTION_STRING_SAS_TOKEN_PLACEHOLDER,
+                TestConstants.AZURE_CONNECTION_STRING_SAS_TOKEN);
+        str = str.replace(TestConstants.AZURE_ACCOUNT_NAME_PLACEHOLDER,
+                TestConstants.AZURE_AZURITE_ACCOUNT_NAME_DEFAULT);
+        str = str.replace(TestConstants.AZURE_ACCOUNT_KEY_PLACEHOLDER, TestConstants.AZURE_AZURITE_ACCOUNT_KEY_DEFAULT);
+        str = str.replace(TestConstants.AZURE_SAS_TOKEN_PLACEHOLDER, TestConstants.sasToken);
+        str = replaceExternalEndpoint(str);
+
         return str;
     }
 
+    protected String replaceExternalEndpoint(String str) {
+        return str.replace(TestConstants.AZURE_BLOB_ENDPOINT_PLACEHOLDER, TestConstants.AZURE_BLOB_ENDPOINT_DEFAULT);
+    }
+
     protected boolean noTemplateRequired(String str) {
         return !str.contains("%template%");
     }
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/external_dataset/microsoft/AzureBlobStorageExternalDatasetTest.java b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/external_dataset/microsoft/AzureBlobStorageExternalDatasetTest.java
index da9f912..27a46c1 100644
--- a/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/external_dataset/microsoft/AzureBlobStorageExternalDatasetTest.java
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/java/org/apache/asterix/test/external_dataset/microsoft/AzureBlobStorageExternalDatasetTest.java
@@ -29,6 +29,8 @@
 import java.nio.file.Files;
 import java.nio.file.Path;
 import java.nio.file.Paths;
+import java.time.OffsetDateTime;
+import java.time.temporal.ChronoUnit;
 import java.util.BitSet;
 import java.util.Collection;
 import java.util.HashMap;
@@ -39,6 +41,7 @@
 import java.util.zip.GZIPOutputStream;
 
 import org.apache.asterix.common.api.INcApplicationContext;
+import org.apache.asterix.test.common.TestConstants;
 import org.apache.asterix.test.common.TestExecutor;
 import org.apache.asterix.test.runtime.ExecutionTestUtil;
 import org.apache.asterix.test.runtime.LangExecutionUtil;
@@ -64,6 +67,10 @@
 import com.azure.storage.blob.BlobContainerClient;
 import com.azure.storage.blob.BlobServiceClient;
 import com.azure.storage.blob.BlobServiceClientBuilder;
+import com.azure.storage.common.sas.AccountSasPermission;
+import com.azure.storage.common.sas.AccountSasResourceType;
+import com.azure.storage.common.sas.AccountSasService;
+import com.azure.storage.common.sas.AccountSasSignatureValues;
 
 @Ignore
 @RunWith(Parameterized.class)
@@ -164,12 +171,23 @@
         blobServiceClient = new BlobServiceClientBuilder().connectionString(connectionString).buildClient();
         LOGGER.info("Azurite Blob Service client created successfully");
 
+        // Generate the SAS token for the SAS test cases
+        TestConstants.sasToken = generateSasToken();
+
         // Create the container and upload some json files
         PREPARE_PLAYGROUND_CONTAINER.run();
         PREPARE_FIXED_DATA_CONTAINER.run();
         PREPARE_MIXED_DATA_CONTAINER.run();
     }
 
+    private static String generateSasToken() {
+        OffsetDateTime expiry = OffsetDateTime.now().plus(1, ChronoUnit.YEARS);
+        AccountSasService service = AccountSasService.parse("b");
+        AccountSasPermission permission = AccountSasPermission.parse("acdlpruw");
+        AccountSasResourceType type = AccountSasResourceType.parse("cos");
+        return blobServiceClient.generateAccountSas(new AccountSasSignatureValues(expiry, permission, service, type));
+    }
+
     /**
      * Creates a container and fills it with some files for testing purpose.
      */
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/queries_sqlpp/external-dataset/azure_blob_storage/auth-methods/invalid-auth-methods/test.000.ddl.sqlpp b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/queries_sqlpp/external-dataset/azure_blob_storage/auth-methods/invalid-auth-methods/test.000.ddl.sqlpp
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c4ae026
--- /dev/null
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/queries_sqlpp/external-dataset/azure_blob_storage/auth-methods/invalid-auth-methods/test.000.ddl.sqlpp
@@ -0,0 +1,38 @@
+/*
+ * Licensed to the Apache Software Foundation (ASF) under one
+ * or more contributor license agreements.  See the NOTICE file
+ * distributed with this work for additional information
+ * regarding copyright ownership.  The ASF licenses this file
+ * to you under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the
+ * "License"); you may not use this file except in compliance
+ * with the License.  You may obtain a copy of the License at
+ *
+ *   http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ *
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing,
+ * software distributed under the License is distributed on an
+ * "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY
+ * KIND, either express or implied.  See the License for the
+ * specific language governing permissions and limitations
+ * under the License.
+ */
+
+drop dataverse test if exists;
+create dataverse test;
+use test;
+
+drop type test if exists;
+create type test as open {
+};
+
+// bad case: more than one authentication method is provided at once
+drop dataset test if exists;
+CREATE EXTERNAL DATASET test(test) USING AZUREBLOB (
+("accountName"="%azureblob-accountname%"),
+("%azureblob-credentialsname-1%"="%azureblob-credentialsvalue-1%"),
+("%azureblob-credentialsname-2%"="%azureblob-credentialsvalue-2%"),
+("blobEndpoint"="%azureblob-blobendpoint%"),
+("container"="playground"),
+("definition"="json-data/reviews/single-line/json"),
+("format"="json")
+);
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/queries_sqlpp/external-dataset/azure_blob_storage/auth-methods/invalid-auth-methods/test.099.ddl.sqlpp b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/queries_sqlpp/external-dataset/azure_blob_storage/auth-methods/invalid-auth-methods/test.099.ddl.sqlpp
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..548e632
--- /dev/null
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/queries_sqlpp/external-dataset/azure_blob_storage/auth-methods/invalid-auth-methods/test.099.ddl.sqlpp
@@ -0,0 +1,20 @@
+/*
+ * Licensed to the Apache Software Foundation (ASF) under one
+ * or more contributor license agreements.  See the NOTICE file
+ * distributed with this work for additional information
+ * regarding copyright ownership.  The ASF licenses this file
+ * to you under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the
+ * "License"); you may not use this file except in compliance
+ * with the License.  You may obtain a copy of the License at
+ *
+ *   http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ *
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing,
+ * software distributed under the License is distributed on an
+ * "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY
+ * KIND, either express or implied.  See the License for the
+ * specific language governing permissions and limitations
+ * under the License.
+ */
+
+drop dataverse test if exists;
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/queries_sqlpp/external-dataset/azure_blob_storage/auth-methods/invalid-no-auth/test.000.ddl.sqlpp b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/queries_sqlpp/external-dataset/azure_blob_storage/auth-methods/invalid-no-auth/test.000.ddl.sqlpp
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..29fd14b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/queries_sqlpp/external-dataset/azure_blob_storage/auth-methods/invalid-no-auth/test.000.ddl.sqlpp
@@ -0,0 +1,35 @@
+/*
+ * Licensed to the Apache Software Foundation (ASF) under one
+ * or more contributor license agreements.  See the NOTICE file
+ * distributed with this work for additional information
+ * regarding copyright ownership.  The ASF licenses this file
+ * to you under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the
+ * "License"); you may not use this file except in compliance
+ * with the License.  You may obtain a copy of the License at
+ *
+ *   http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ *
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing,
+ * software distributed under the License is distributed on an
+ * "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY
+ * KIND, either express or implied.  See the License for the
+ * specific language governing permissions and limitations
+ * under the License.
+ */
+
+drop dataverse test if exists;
+create dataverse test;
+use test;
+
+drop type test if exists;
+create type test as open {
+};
+
+// bad case: no auth method is provided
+drop dataset test if exists;
+CREATE EXTERNAL DATASET test(test) USING AZUREBLOB (
+("blobEndpoint"="%azureblob-blobendpoint%"),
+("container"="playground"),
+("definition"="json-data/reviews/single-line/json"),
+("format"="json")
+);
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/queries_sqlpp/external-dataset/azure_blob_storage/auth-methods/invalid-no-auth/test.099.ddl.sqlpp b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/queries_sqlpp/external-dataset/azure_blob_storage/auth-methods/invalid-no-auth/test.099.ddl.sqlpp
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..548e632
--- /dev/null
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/queries_sqlpp/external-dataset/azure_blob_storage/auth-methods/invalid-no-auth/test.099.ddl.sqlpp
@@ -0,0 +1,20 @@
+/*
+ * Licensed to the Apache Software Foundation (ASF) under one
+ * or more contributor license agreements.  See the NOTICE file
+ * distributed with this work for additional information
+ * regarding copyright ownership.  The ASF licenses this file
+ * to you under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the
+ * "License"); you may not use this file except in compliance
+ * with the License.  You may obtain a copy of the License at
+ *
+ *   http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ *
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing,
+ * software distributed under the License is distributed on an
+ * "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY
+ * KIND, either express or implied.  See the License for the
+ * specific language governing permissions and limitations
+ * under the License.
+ */
+
+drop dataverse test if exists;
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/queries_sqlpp/external-dataset/azure_blob_storage/auth-methods/valid-auth-methods/test.000.ddl.sqlpp b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/queries_sqlpp/external-dataset/azure_blob_storage/auth-methods/valid-auth-methods/test.000.ddl.sqlpp
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..2a7eadd
--- /dev/null
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/queries_sqlpp/external-dataset/azure_blob_storage/auth-methods/valid-auth-methods/test.000.ddl.sqlpp
@@ -0,0 +1,36 @@
+/*
+ * Licensed to the Apache Software Foundation (ASF) under one
+ * or more contributor license agreements.  See the NOTICE file
+ * distributed with this work for additional information
+ * regarding copyright ownership.  The ASF licenses this file
+ * to you under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the
+ * "License"); you may not use this file except in compliance
+ * with the License.  You may obtain a copy of the License at
+ *
+ *   http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ *
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing,
+ * software distributed under the License is distributed on an
+ * "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY
+ * KIND, either express or implied.  See the License for the
+ * specific language governing permissions and limitations
+ * under the License.
+ */
+
+drop dataverse test if exists;
+create dataverse test;
+use test;
+
+drop type test if exists;
+create type test as open {
+};
+
+drop dataset test if exists;
+CREATE EXTERNAL DATASET test(test) USING AZUREBLOB (
+("accountName"="%azureblob-accountname%"),
+("%azureblob-credentialsname%"="%azureblob-credentialsvalue%"),
+("blobEndpoint"="%azureblob-blobendpoint%"),
+("container"="playground"),
+("definition"="json-data/reviews/single-line/json"),
+("format"="json")
+);
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/queries_sqlpp/external-dataset/azure_blob_storage/auth-methods/valid-auth-methods/test.001.query.sqlpp b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/queries_sqlpp/external-dataset/azure_blob_storage/auth-methods/valid-auth-methods/test.001.query.sqlpp
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..8ec9cc0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/queries_sqlpp/external-dataset/azure_blob_storage/auth-methods/valid-auth-methods/test.001.query.sqlpp
@@ -0,0 +1,21 @@
+/*
+ * Licensed to the Apache Software Foundation (ASF) under one
+ * or more contributor license agreements.  See the NOTICE file
+ * distributed with this work for additional information
+ * regarding copyright ownership.  The ASF licenses this file
+ * to you under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the
+ * "License"); you may not use this file except in compliance
+ * with the License.  You may obtain a copy of the License at
+ *
+ *   http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ *
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing,
+ * software distributed under the License is distributed on an
+ * "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY
+ * KIND, either express or implied.  See the License for the
+ * specific language governing permissions and limitations
+ * under the License.
+ */
+
+use test;
+select count(*) `count` from test;
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/queries_sqlpp/external-dataset/azure_blob_storage/auth-methods/valid-auth-methods/test.099.ddl.sqlpp b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/queries_sqlpp/external-dataset/azure_blob_storage/auth-methods/valid-auth-methods/test.099.ddl.sqlpp
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..548e632
--- /dev/null
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/queries_sqlpp/external-dataset/azure_blob_storage/auth-methods/valid-auth-methods/test.099.ddl.sqlpp
@@ -0,0 +1,20 @@
+/*
+ * Licensed to the Apache Software Foundation (ASF) under one
+ * or more contributor license agreements.  See the NOTICE file
+ * distributed with this work for additional information
+ * regarding copyright ownership.  The ASF licenses this file
+ * to you under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the
+ * "License"); you may not use this file except in compliance
+ * with the License.  You may obtain a copy of the License at
+ *
+ *   http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ *
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing,
+ * software distributed under the License is distributed on an
+ * "AS IS" BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY
+ * KIND, either express or implied.  See the License for the
+ * specific language governing permissions and limitations
+ * under the License.
+ */
+
+drop dataverse test if exists;
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/results/external-dataset/azure_blob_storage/auth-methods/valid-auth-methods/result.001.adm b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/results/external-dataset/azure_blob_storage/auth-methods/valid-auth-methods/result.001.adm
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..187a8cb
--- /dev/null
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/results/external-dataset/azure_blob_storage/auth-methods/valid-auth-methods/result.001.adm
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+{ "count": 100 }
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/testsuite_external_dataset_azure_blob_storage.xml b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/testsuite_external_dataset_azure_blob_storage.xml
index a715e7e..df60e60 100644
--- a/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/testsuite_external_dataset_azure_blob_storage.xml
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-app/src/test/resources/runtimets/testsuite_external_dataset_azure_blob_storage.xml
@@ -18,6 +18,62 @@
  ! under the License.
  !-->
 <test-suite xmlns="urn:xml.testframework.asterix.apache.org" ResultOffsetPath="results" QueryOffsetPath="queries_sqlpp" QueryFileExtension=".sqlpp">
+  <test-group name="authentication">
+    <test-case FilePath="external-dataset/azure_blob_storage/auth-methods">
+      <compilation-unit name="valid-auth-methods">
+        <placeholder name="azureblob-credentialsname" value="accountKey" />
+        <placeholder name="azureblob-credentialsvalue" value="%azureblob-accountkey%" />
+        <output-dir compare="Text">valid-auth-methods</output-dir>
+      </compilation-unit>
+    </test-case>
+    <test-case FilePath="external-dataset/azure_blob_storage/auth-methods">
+      <compilation-unit name="valid-auth-methods">
+        <placeholder name="azureblob-credentialsname" value="sharedAccessSignature" />
+        <placeholder name="azureblob-credentialsvalue" value="%azureblob-sas%" />
+        <output-dir compare="Text">valid-auth-methods</output-dir>
+      </compilation-unit>
+    </test-case>
+    <test-case FilePath="external-dataset/azure_blob_storage/auth-methods">
+      <compilation-unit name="valid-auth-methods">
+        <placeholder name="azureblob-credentialsname" value="connectionString" />
+        <placeholder name="azureblob-credentialsvalue" value="%azureblob-connectionstringaccountkey%" />
+        <output-dir compare="Text">valid-auth-methods</output-dir>
+      </compilation-unit>
+    </test-case>
+    <test-case FilePath="external-dataset/azure_blob_storage/auth-methods">
+      <compilation-unit name="valid-auth-methods">
+        <placeholder name="azureblob-credentialsname" value="connectionString" />
+        <placeholder name="azureblob-credentialsvalue" value="%azureblob-connectionstringsas%" />
+        <output-dir compare="Text">valid-auth-methods</output-dir>
+      </compilation-unit>
+    </test-case>
+    <test-case FilePath="external-dataset/azure_blob_storage/auth-methods">
+      <compilation-unit name="invalid-auth-methods">
+        <placeholder name="azureblob-credentialsname-1" value="accountKey" />
+        <placeholder name="azureblob-credentialsvalue-1" value="%azureblob-accountkey%" />
+        <placeholder name="azureblob-credentialsname-2" value="connectionString" />
+        <placeholder name="azureblob-credentialsvalue-2" value="%azureblob-connectionstringaccountkey%" />
+        <output-dir compare="Text">invalid-auth-methods</output-dir>
+        <expected-error>ASX1133: Only a single authentication method is allowed: connectionString, accountName &amp; accountKey, or accountName &amp; sharedAccessSignature</expected-error>
+      </compilation-unit>
+    </test-case>
+    <test-case FilePath="external-dataset/azure_blob_storage/auth-methods">
+      <compilation-unit name="invalid-auth-methods">
+        <placeholder name="azureblob-credentialsname-1" value="sharedAccessSignature" />
+        <placeholder name="azureblob-credentialsvalue-1" value="%azureblob-sas%" />
+        <placeholder name="azureblob-credentialsname-2" value="connectionString" />
+        <placeholder name="azureblob-credentialsvalue-2" value="%azureblob-connectionstringaccountkey%" />
+        <output-dir compare="Text">invalid-auth-methods</output-dir>
+        <expected-error>ASX1133: Only a single authentication method is allowed: connectionString, accountName &amp; accountKey, or accountName &amp; sharedAccessSignature</expected-error>
+      </compilation-unit>
+    </test-case>
+    <test-case FilePath="external-dataset/azure_blob_storage/auth-methods">
+      <compilation-unit name="invalid-no-auth">
+        <output-dir compare="Text">invalid-no-auth</output-dir>
+        <expected-error>ASX1134: No authentication parameters provided</expected-error>
+      </compilation-unit>
+    </test-case>
+  </test-group>
   <test-group name="external-dataset">
     <test-case FilePath="external-dataset">
       <compilation-unit name="common/json/json">
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-common/src/main/java/org/apache/asterix/common/exceptions/ErrorCode.java b/asterixdb/asterix-common/src/main/java/org/apache/asterix/common/exceptions/ErrorCode.java
index 6dbb46b..d662c8d 100644
--- a/asterixdb/asterix-common/src/main/java/org/apache/asterix/common/exceptions/ErrorCode.java
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-common/src/main/java/org/apache/asterix/common/exceptions/ErrorCode.java
@@ -222,6 +222,8 @@
     public static final int ILLEGAL_RIGHT_OUTER_JOIN = 1130;
     public static final int SYNONYM_EXISTS = 1131;
     public static final int INVALID_HINT = 1132;
+    public static final int ONLY_SINGLE_AUTHENTICATION_IS_ALLOWED = 1133;
+    public static final int NO_AUTH_METHOD_PROVIDED = 1134;
     // Feed errors
     public static final int DATAFLOW_ILLEGAL_STATE = 3001;
     public static final int UTIL_DATAFLOW_UTILS_TUPLE_TOO_LARGE = 3002;
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-common/src/main/resources/asx_errormsg/en.properties b/asterixdb/asterix-common/src/main/resources/asx_errormsg/en.properties
index db8a70d..3eed1d8 100644
--- a/asterixdb/asterix-common/src/main/resources/asx_errormsg/en.properties
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-common/src/main/resources/asx_errormsg/en.properties
@@ -219,6 +219,8 @@
 1130 = Illegal use of RIGHT OUTER JOIN
 1131 = A synonym with this name %1$s already exists
 1132 = Invalid specification for hint %1$s. %2$s
+1133 = Only a single authentication method is allowed: connectionString, accountName & accountKey, or accountName & sharedAccessSignature
+1134 = No authentication parameters provided
 
 # Feed Errors
 3001 = Illegal state.
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-external-data/src/main/java/org/apache/asterix/external/util/ExternalDataConstants.java b/asterixdb/asterix-external-data/src/main/java/org/apache/asterix/external/util/ExternalDataConstants.java
index 326f53d..6be694b 100644
--- a/asterixdb/asterix-external-data/src/main/java/org/apache/asterix/external/util/ExternalDataConstants.java
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-external-data/src/main/java/org/apache/asterix/external/util/ExternalDataConstants.java
@@ -304,15 +304,17 @@
             throw new AssertionError("do not instantiate");
         }
 
+        public static final String CONTAINER_NAME_FIELD_NAME = "container";
+        public static final String DEFINITION_FIELD_NAME = "definition";
+        public static final String CONNECTION_STRING_FIELD_NAME = "connectionString";
         public static final String ACCOUNT_NAME_FIELD_NAME = "accountName";
         public static final String ACCOUNT_KEY_FIELD_NAME = "accountKey";
         public static final String SHARED_ACCESS_SIGNATURE_FIELD_NAME = "sharedAccessSignature";
-        public static final String CONTAINER_NAME_FIELD_NAME = "container";
-        public static final String DEFINITION_FIELD_NAME = "definition";
         public static final String BLOB_ENDPOINT_FIELD_NAME = "blobEndpoint";
         public static final String ENDPOINT_SUFFIX_FIELD_NAME = "endpointSuffix";
 
         // Connection string requires PascalCase (MyFieldFormat)
+        public static final String CONNECTION_STRING_CONNECTION_STRING = "ConnectionString";
         public static final String CONNECTION_STRING_ACCOUNT_NAME = "AccountName";
         public static final String CONNECTION_STRING_ACCOUNT_KEY = "AccountKey";
         public static final String CONNECTION_STRING_SHARED_ACCESS_SIGNATURE = "SharedAccessSignature";
diff --git a/asterixdb/asterix-external-data/src/main/java/org/apache/asterix/external/util/ExternalDataUtils.java b/asterixdb/asterix-external-data/src/main/java/org/apache/asterix/external/util/ExternalDataUtils.java
index 44ae25f..537933e 100644
--- a/asterixdb/asterix-external-data/src/main/java/org/apache/asterix/external/util/ExternalDataUtils.java
+++ b/asterixdb/asterix-external-data/src/main/java/org/apache/asterix/external/util/ExternalDataUtils.java
@@ -18,10 +18,17 @@
  */
 package org.apache.asterix.external.util;
 
+import static org.apache.asterix.external.util.ExternalDataConstants.AzureBlob.ACCOUNT_KEY_FIELD_NAME;
+import static org.apache.asterix.external.util.ExternalDataConstants.AzureBlob.ACCOUNT_NAME_FIELD_NAME;
+import static org.apache.asterix.external.util.ExternalDataConstants.AzureBlob.BLOB_ENDPOINT_FIELD_NAME;
 import static org.apache.asterix.external.util.ExternalDataConstants.AzureBlob.CONNECTION_STRING_ACCOUNT_KEY;
 import static org.apache.asterix.external.util.ExternalDataConstants.AzureBlob.CONNECTION_STRING_ACCOUNT_NAME;
 import static org.apache.asterix.external.util.ExternalDataConstants.AzureBlob.CONNECTION_STRING_BLOB_ENDPOINT;
 import static org.apache.asterix.external.util.ExternalDataConstants.AzureBlob.CONNECTION_STRING_ENDPOINT_SUFFIX;
+import static org.apache.asterix.external.util.ExternalDataConstants.AzureBlob.CONNECTION_STRING_FIELD_NAME;
+import static org.apache.asterix.external.util.ExternalDataConstants.AzureBlob.CONNECTION_STRING_SHARED_ACCESS_SIGNATURE;
+import static org.apache.asterix.external.util.ExternalDataConstants.AzureBlob.ENDPOINT_SUFFIX_FIELD_NAME;
+import static org.apache.asterix.external.util.ExternalDataConstants.AzureBlob.SHARED_ACCESS_SIGNATURE_FIELD_NAME;
 import static org.apache.asterix.external.util.ExternalDataConstants.KEY_DELIMITER;
 import static org.apache.asterix.external.util.ExternalDataConstants.KEY_ESCAPE;
 import static org.apache.asterix.external.util.ExternalDataConstants.KEY_QUOTE;
@@ -819,25 +826,70 @@
         public static BlobServiceClient buildAzureClient(Map<String, String> configuration)
                 throws CompilationException {
             // TODO(Hussain): Need to ensure that all required parameters are present in a previous step
-            String accountName = configuration.get(ExternalDataConstants.AzureBlob.ACCOUNT_NAME_FIELD_NAME);
-            String accountKey = configuration.get(ExternalDataConstants.AzureBlob.ACCOUNT_KEY_FIELD_NAME);
-            String blobEndpoint = configuration.get(ExternalDataConstants.AzureBlob.BLOB_ENDPOINT_FIELD_NAME);
-            String endpointSuffix = configuration.get(ExternalDataConstants.AzureBlob.ENDPOINT_SUFFIX_FIELD_NAME);
+            String connectionString = configuration.get(CONNECTION_STRING_FIELD_NAME);
+            String accountName = configuration.get(ACCOUNT_NAME_FIELD_NAME);
+            String accountKey = configuration.get(ACCOUNT_KEY_FIELD_NAME);
+            String sharedAccessSignature = configuration.get(SHARED_ACCESS_SIGNATURE_FIELD_NAME);
+            String blobEndpoint = configuration.get(BLOB_ENDPOINT_FIELD_NAME);
+            String endpointSuffix = configuration.get(ENDPOINT_SUFFIX_FIELD_NAME);
 
-            // format: name1=value1;name2=value2;....
-            // TODO(Hussain): This will be different when SAS (Shared Access Signature) is introduced
-            StringBuilder connectionString = new StringBuilder();
-            connectionString.append(CONNECTION_STRING_ACCOUNT_NAME).append("=").append(accountName).append(";");
-            connectionString.append(CONNECTION_STRING_ACCOUNT_KEY).append("=").append(accountKey).append(";");
-            connectionString.append(CONNECTION_STRING_BLOB_ENDPOINT).append("=").append(blobEndpoint).append(";");
+            // Constructor the connection string
+            // Connection string format: name1=value1;name2=value2;....
+            StringBuilder connectionStringBuilder = new StringBuilder();
+            BlobServiceClientBuilder builder = new BlobServiceClientBuilder();
 
-            if (endpointSuffix != null) {
-                connectionString.append(CONNECTION_STRING_ENDPOINT_SUFFIX).append("=").append(endpointSuffix)
+            boolean authMethodFound = false;
+
+            if (connectionString != null) {
+                // connection string
+                authMethodFound = true;
+                connectionStringBuilder.append(connectionString).append(";");
+            }
+
+            if (accountName != null && accountKey != null) {
+                if (authMethodFound) {
+                    throw new CompilationException(ErrorCode.ONLY_SINGLE_AUTHENTICATION_IS_ALLOWED);
+                }
+                authMethodFound = true;
+                // account name + account key
+                connectionStringBuilder.append(CONNECTION_STRING_ACCOUNT_NAME).append("=").append(accountName)
+                        .append(";").append(CONNECTION_STRING_ACCOUNT_KEY).append("=").append(accountKey).append(";");
+            }
+
+            if (accountName != null && sharedAccessSignature != null) {
+                if (authMethodFound) {
+                    throw new CompilationException(ErrorCode.ONLY_SINGLE_AUTHENTICATION_IS_ALLOWED);
+                }
+                authMethodFound = true;
+                // account name + shared access token
+                connectionStringBuilder.append(CONNECTION_STRING_ACCOUNT_NAME).append("=").append(accountName)
+                        .append(";").append(CONNECTION_STRING_SHARED_ACCESS_SIGNATURE).append("=")
+                        .append(sharedAccessSignature).append(";");
+            }
+
+            if (!authMethodFound) {
+                throw new CompilationException(ErrorCode.NO_AUTH_METHOD_PROVIDED);
+            }
+
+            // Add blobEndpoint and endpointSuffix if present, adjust any '/' as needed
+            if (blobEndpoint != null) {
+                connectionStringBuilder.append(CONNECTION_STRING_BLOB_ENDPOINT).append("=").append(blobEndpoint)
                         .append(";");
+                if (endpointSuffix != null) {
+                    String endpointSuffixUpdated;
+                    if (blobEndpoint.endsWith("/")) {
+                        endpointSuffixUpdated =
+                                endpointSuffix.startsWith("/") ? endpointSuffix.substring(1) : endpointSuffix;
+                    } else {
+                        endpointSuffixUpdated = endpointSuffix.startsWith("/") ? endpointSuffix : "/" + endpointSuffix;
+                    }
+                    connectionStringBuilder.append(CONNECTION_STRING_ENDPOINT_SUFFIX).append("=")
+                            .append(endpointSuffixUpdated).append(";");
+                }
             }
 
             try {
-                return new BlobServiceClientBuilder().connectionString(connectionString.toString()).buildClient();
+                return builder.connectionString(connectionStringBuilder.toString()).buildClient();
             } catch (Exception ex) {
                 throw new CompilationException(ErrorCode.EXTERNAL_SOURCE_ERROR, ex.getMessage());
             }
@@ -876,6 +928,8 @@
                             WarningUtil.forAsterix(srcLoc, ErrorCode.EXTERNAL_SOURCE_CONFIGURATION_RETURNED_NO_FILES);
                     collector.warn(warning);
                 }
+            } catch (CompilationException ex) {
+                throw ex;
             } catch (Exception ex) {
                 throw new CompilationException(ErrorCode.EXTERNAL_SOURCE_ERROR, ex.getMessage());
             }
diff --git a/asterixdb/pom.xml b/asterixdb/pom.xml
index a6d4e7f..f8992d5 100644
--- a/asterixdb/pom.xml
+++ b/asterixdb/pom.xml
@@ -1542,6 +1542,53 @@
           </exclusion>
         </exclusions>
       </dependency>
+      <dependency>
+        <groupId>com.azure</groupId>
+        <artifactId>azure-storage-common</artifactId>
+        <version>${azurejavasdk.version}</version>
+        <exclusions>
+          <exclusion>
+            <groupId>io.netty</groupId>
+            <artifactId>netty-handler</artifactId>
+          </exclusion>
+          <exclusion>
+            <groupId>io.netty</groupId>
+            <artifactId>netty-handler-proxy</artifactId>
+          </exclusion>
+          <exclusion>
+            <groupId>io.netty</groupId>
+            <artifactId>netty-codec-http</artifactId>
+          </exclusion>
+          <exclusion>
+            <groupId>io.netty</groupId>
+            <artifactId>netty-codec-http2</artifactId>
+          </exclusion>
+          <exclusion>
+            <groupId>io.netty</groupId>
+            <artifactId>netty-buffer</artifactId>
+          </exclusion>
+          <exclusion>
+            <groupId>io.netty</groupId>
+            <artifactId>netty-common</artifactId>
+          </exclusion>
+          <exclusion>
+            <groupId>io.netty</groupId>
+            <artifactId>netty-transport</artifactId>
+          </exclusion>
+          <exclusion>
+            <groupId>io.netty</groupId>
+            <artifactId>netty-transport-native-epoll</artifactId>
+          </exclusion>
+          <exclusion>
+            <groupId>io.netty</groupId>
+            <artifactId>netty-transport-native-unix-common</artifactId>
+          </exclusion>
+          <exclusion>
+            <groupId>io.netty</groupId>
+            <artifactId>netty-tcnative-boringssl-static</artifactId>
+          </exclusion>
+        </exclusions>
+      </dependency>
       <!-- Azure Blob Storage end -->
       <dependency>
         <groupId>org.mindrot</groupId>
diff --git a/hyracks-fullstack/NOTICE b/hyracks-fullstack/NOTICE
index 95fe98a..57c58439 100644
--- a/hyracks-fullstack/NOTICE
+++ b/hyracks-fullstack/NOTICE
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 Apache Hyracks and Algebricks
-Copyright 2015-2020 The Apache Software Foundation
+Copyright 2015-2021 The Apache Software Foundation
 
 This product includes software developed at
 The Apache Software Foundation (http://www.apache.org/).