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DataBind Charts to SAP Concur Data


Use the standard ADO.NET procedures for databinding to provide bidirectional access to SAP Concur data from controls in the Visual Studio toolbox. This article demonstrates a graphical approach using wizards in Visual Studio, as well as how to databind with only a few lines of code.

DataBinding facilitates two-way interaction with data through UI controls. Using the CData ADO.NET Provider for SAP Concur streamlines the process of binding SAP Concur data to Windows Forms and Web controls within Visual Studio. In this article, we will demonstrate using wizards to establish a binding between SAP Concur data and a chart that dynamically updates. Additionally, the code walk-through section will guide you through the creation of a chart using just 10 lines of code.

Binding Data to a Chart

DataBinding to a Chart consists of three steps: Instantiate the control, configure the data source, and databind.

Configure the Connection and Select Database Objects

To create a chart control and establish a connection to SAP Concur, follow the steps outlined below using the Data Source Configuration Wizard. Within the wizard, you'll have the option to choose the specific SAP Concur entities you wish to bind to.

  1. In a Windows Forms project, drag and drop a Chart control from the toolbox to the form. In the Data section of the Chart properties, select DataSource and then select Add Project Data Source from the menu.
  2. In the Data Source Configuration Wizard that appears, select Database -> Dataset.
  3. In the Choose Your Data Connection step, click New Connection.

  4. In the Add Connection dialog, click Change to select the CData SAP Concur Data Source.

    Below is a typical connection string:

    OAuthClientId=MyOAuthClientId;OAuthClientSecret=MyOAuthClientSecret;InitiateOAuth=GETANDREFRESH

    SAP Concur uses the OAuth 2 authentication standard. You will need to obtain the OAuthClientId and OAuthClientSecret by registering an app with SAP Concur. See the Getting Started section of the help documentation for an authentication guide.

    When you configure the connection, you may also want to set the Max Rows connection property. This will limit the number of rows returned, which is especially helpful for improving performance when designing reports and visualizations.

  5. Choose the database objects you want to work with. This example uses the Departments table.

DataBind

After adding the data source and selecting database objects, you can bind the objects to the chart. This example assigns the x-axis to Id and the y-axis to OfficeId.

  1. In the Chart properties, click the button in the Series property to open the Series Collection Editor.
  2. In the Series properties, select the columns you want for the x- and y-axes: Select columns from the menu in the XValueMember and YValueMember properties.

The chart is now databound to the SAP Concur data. Run the chart to display the current data.

Code Walk-through

DataBinding to SAP Concur data requires only a few lines of code and can be completed in three easy steps.

  1. Connect to SAP Concur.
  2. Create the SAPConcurDataAdapter to execute the query and create a DataSet to be filled with its results.
  3. DataBind the result set to the chart.

Below is the complete code:

SAPConcurConnection conn = new SAPConcurConnection("OAuthClientId=MyOAuthClientId;OAuthClientSecret=MyOAuthClientSecret;InitiateOAuth=GETANDREFRESH"); SAPConcurCommand comm = new SAPConcurCommand("SELECT Id, OfficeId FROM Departments", conn); SAPConcurDataAdapter da = new SAPConcurDataAdapter(comm); DataSet dataset = new DataSet(); da.Fill(dataset); chart1.DataSource = dataset; chart1.Series[0].XValueMember = "Id"; chart1.Series[0].YValueMembers = "OfficeId"; // Insert code for additional chart formatting here. chart1.DataBind();

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