No peering location list when creating an expressroute

Question

No peering location list when creating an expressroute

Bruce Shue 0

First time attempting to create an expressroute. After I select resource, I am not able to select a peering location. Also, I am told by our service provider (Lumen) that there should be an option to select providers but I am not seeing that either.

Michele Ariis 2,520 Reputation points MVP

2025-08-07T08:13:02.1233333+00:00

Hi, if the location and provider drop-downs are empty when creating an ExpressRoute circuit, it’s simply because the Port type is set to “Direct” by default. This is used only if you’re buying an ExpressRoute Direct port, not when going through a provider like Lumen. In that mode, Azure doesn’t expect you to select a provider, so the fields stay greyed out, which can be confusing.

To fix it, just switch the Port type to “Provider” in the Configuration tab. As soon as you do, the Peering location drop-down becomes active. Pick the city where Lumen connects to Microsoft (e.g., Chicago, London), and the Provider list will auto-populate, Lumen will show up if available in that city. Once selected, complete the wizard and copy the service key to share with Lumen for circuit provisioning.

If you still don’t see Lumen or the right city, double-check with them what type of connection they sold you, whether it’s a standard handoff, ExpressRoute Direct, or a Metro setup. Also, make sure the Microsoft.Network resource provider is registered in your subscription, and that you have the right permissions (e.g., ExpressRoute Contributor).

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Michele Ariis 2,520 Reputation points MVP

2025-08-07T08:13:02.1233333+00:00

Hi, if the location and provider drop-downs are empty when creating an ExpressRoute circuit, it’s simply because the Port type is set to “Direct” by default. This is used only if you’re buying an ExpressRoute Direct port, not when going through a provider like Lumen. In that mode, Azure doesn’t expect you to select a provider, so the fields stay greyed out, which can be confusing.

To fix it, just switch the Port type to “Provider” in the Configuration tab. As soon as you do, the Peering location drop-down becomes active. Pick the city where Lumen connects to Microsoft (e.g., Chicago, London), and the Provider list will auto-populate, Lumen will show up if available in that city. Once selected, complete the wizard and copy the service key to share with Lumen for circuit provisioning.

If you still don’t see Lumen or the right city, double-check with them what type of connection they sold you, whether it’s a standard handoff, ExpressRoute Direct, or a Metro setup. Also, make sure the Microsoft.Network resource provider is registered in your subscription, and that you have the right permissions (e.g., ExpressRoute Contributor).

Answer 1

Hi @Bruce Shue,

Thank you for reaching out on Microsoft Q&A forum.

We understand that you're attempting to create an ExpressRoute circuit for the first time and are unable to see the Peering Location and Provider Options in the Azure portal, even though your service provider (Lumen) has indicated these should be available. This is a common point of confusion, and it's usually related to the specific configuration steps chosen during the creation process.

As mentioned by @Michele Ariis, when configuring an ExpressRoute circuit, the visibility of the peering location and service provider options depends on the selected resiliency model and how the port is being provisioned.

If you choose Standard or High resiliency, you will see the options to select both the peering location and service provider. Standard resiliency provisions a single circuit in one location, while High resiliency provisions two circuits in the same peering location for added redundancy.
If you select Maximum resiliency, the visibility of the peering location depends on how the port is configured. When you choose “Create new” and set the port type to “Provider”, you will be able to select a peering location and provider even with Maximum resiliency. This is required because Azure needs you to specify where the new provider-managed port should be deployed.

However, if you are using existing ports or selecting Direct port type, the peering location will not appear, as Azure automatically provisions the circuits across two diverse peering locations within the same metro area to meet the requirements of maximum resiliency.

You can find further details about this behaviour in the official Microsoft documentation here:

Create an ExpressRoute circuit using the Azure portal

Resiliency models in Azure ExpressRoute

If you’ve selected Standard or High resiliency and still cannot see the provider or peering location options, you can follow the below troubleshooting steps:

Step 1: Verify You're Using the Correct Creation Path

Navigate to the Azure Portal correctly:

Go to Azure Portal > Create a resource
Search for "ExpressRoute circuits" (not just "ExpressRoute")
Select ExpressRoute circuits from Microsoft
Click Create
Alternative navigation method:
From the Azure portal search bar, type "ExpressRoute circuits"
Select the service directly
Click + Create

Step 2: Clear Browser Issues

Browser troubleshooting:

Clear your browser cache and cookies completely
Try using an incognito/private browsing window
Test with a different browser (Chrome, Edge, Firefox)
Disable all browser extensions temporarily

Step 3: Check Prerequisites and Permissions

Make sure your user account has Contributor role or higher on the subscription and resource group.

Step 4: Configure ExpressRoute Settings in Correct Order

When the creation wizard opens properly, follow this exact sequence:

Basics Tab: Subscription: [Select your subscription] Resource Group: [Create new or select existing] Region: [Choose region - this should be close to your location] Name: [Provide meaningful name like "CompanyName-ER-Circuit"]
Configuration Tab (Critical Settings): Port Type: Provider (NOT ExpressRoute Direct) Create new or import from classic: Create new Provider: [This dropdown should populate with providers including Lumen] Peering Location: [Should populate AFTER selecting provider] Bandwidth: [Select appropriate bandwidth - start with what Lumen quoted] SKU: Standard (can upgrade later) Billing Model: Metered (typical choice)

Step 5: Specific Steps for Lumen Provider Selection

Look for these provider names in the dropdown:

"CenturyLink Cloud Connect" (legacy name)
"Lumen" (current company name)
"Level 3 Communications" (older legacy name)

Common Lumen peering locations include:

Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Los Angeles, New York, Seattle, Silicon Valley, Washington DC

ExpressRoute connectivity partners and peering locations

Step 6: Alternative Creation Methods (If Portal Continues to Fail)

CLI / PowerShell Workaround:

As a workaround, you can provision the ExpressRoute circuit via Azure CLI or Azure PowerShell which offers more control and avoids portal UI limitations.

Create and modify an ExpressRoute circuit: Azure CLI | Microsoft Learn

Create and modify an ExpressRoute circuit: Azure PowerShell | Microsoft Learn

Step 7: Coordinate with Lumen

Contact your Lumen representative to confirm:

Your service order is active and ready
The specific peering location they recommend for your setup
The bandwidth that matches your order
Any service key requirements from their end

Kindly let us know if the above helps or you need further assistance on this issue.

Please "Accept the answer" if the information helped you. This will help us and others in the community as well.

Bruce Shue 0 Reputation points

2025-08-07T14:08:55.1266667+00:00

Thank you for the assistance. Please see below. I am selecting the provider option (not and not direct but there isn't an option to select a provider and peering location drop down has no options. This is for standard resiliency.
Thanmayi Godithi 230 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-08-08T06:26:41.2266667+00:00

Hi @Bruce Shue,

Thank you for confirming you’ve selected Standard resiliency, Port Type: Provider, and the East US2 region.

Since the Provider and Peering Location dropdowns are still empty, to help diagnose this issue, could you please confirm the following:

Subscription Permissions: Do you have at least the Contributor role on the subscription and resource group? Insufficient permissions can prevent these options from loading correctly.

Browser & Portal: Have you tried using a different browser or opening the Azure portal in incognito/private mode to rule out any caching or UI rendering issues?

Resource Group & Circuit Name: Are you creating this circuit in a new resource group, and is the circuit name unique within your subscription?

Provider Availability: Could you please run the following Azure CLI command and share the output? This will list the providers matching Lumen’s legacy and current names, along with their available peering locations. Please check if there are peering locations listed near or in East US2 (for example, Ashburn or Washington DC).

Command:

az network express-route list-service-providers --query "[?contains(name, 'Lumen') || contains(name, 'CenturyLink') || contains(name, 'Level 3')].[name, peeringLocations[].name]" -o table

Kindly let us know your findings so we can assist you further.

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No peering location list when creating an expressroute

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