Use the CData ODBC Driver for Elasticsearch in SAS for Real-Time Reporting and Analytics

SAS is a software suite developed for advanced analytics, multivariate analysis, business intelligence, data management, and predictive analytics. When you pair SAS with the CData ODBC Driver for Elasticsearch, you gain database-like access to live Elasticsearch data from SAS, expanding your reporting and analytics capabilities. This articles walks through creating a library for Elasticsearch in SAS and creating a simple report based on real-time Elasticsearch data.

The CData ODBC Driver offers unmatched performance for interacting with live Elasticsearch data in SAS due to optimized data processing built into the driver. When you issue complex SQL queries from SAS to Elasticsearch, the driver pushes supported SQL operations, like filters and aggregations, directly to Elasticsearch and utilizes the embedded SQL engine to process unsupported operations (often SQL functions and JOIN operations) client-side. With built-in dynamic metadata querying, you can easily visualize and analyze Elasticsearch data in SAS.

Getting Started

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Connect to Elasticsearch as an ODBC Data Source

Information for connecting to Elasticsearch follows, along with different instructions for configuring a DSN in Windows and Linux environments (the ODBC Driver for Elasticsearch must be installed on the machine hosting the SAS System).

Set the Server and Port connection properties to connect. To authenticate, set the User and Password properties, PKI (public key infrastructure) properties, or both. To use PKI, set the SSLClientCert, SSLClientCertType, SSLClientCertSubject, and SSLClientCertPassword properties.

The data provider uses X-Pack Security for TLS/SSL and authentication. To connect over TLS/SSL, prefix the Server value with 'https://'. Note: TLS/SSL and client authentication must be enabled on X-Pack to use PKI.

Once the data provider is connected, X-Pack will then perform user authentication and grant role permissions based on the realms you have configured.

When you configure the DSN, 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.

Windows

If you have not already, first specify connection properties in an ODBC DSN (data source name). This is the last step of the driver installation. You can use the Microsoft ODBC Data Source Administrator to create and configure ODBC DSNs.

Linux

If you are installing the CData ODBC Driver for Elasticsearch in a Linux environment, the driver installation predefines a system DSN. You can modify the DSN by editing the system data sources file (/etc/odbc.ini) and defining the required connection properties.

/etc/odbc.ini

For specific information on using these configuration files, please refer to the help documentation (installed and found online).

Create a Elasticsearch Library in SAS

Connect to Elasticsearch in SAS by adding a library based on the CData ODBC Driver for Elasticsearch.

1. Open SAS and expand Libraries in the Explorer pane.
2. In the Active Libraries window, right-click and select New.
3. Name your library (odbclib), select ODBC as the Engine, and click to Enable at startup (if you want the library to persist between sessions).
4. Set Data Source to the DSN you previously configured and click OK.

Create a View from a Elasticsearch Query

SAS natively supports querying data either using a low-code, point-and-click Query tool or programmatically with PROC SQL and a custom SQL query. When you create a View in SAS, the defining query is executed each time the view is queried. This means that you always query live Elasticsearch data for reports, charts, and analytics.

Using the Query Tool

1. In SAS, click Tools -> Query
2. Select the table sources and the table(s) you wish to pull data from. Then, click OK.
3. Select columns and right-click to add filtering, ordering, grouping, etc.
4. Create a local view to contain the query results by right-clicking the SQL Query Tool window, selecting Show Query, and clicking Create View. Name the View and click OK.

Using PROC SQL

1. In SAS, navigate to the Editor window.
2. Use PROC SQL to query the data and create a local view.
   NOTE: This procedure creates a view in the Work library. You can optionally specify a library in the create view statement.

   proc sql;
     create view orders_view as
     select 
       ordername, 
       freight 
     from 
       odbclib.orders 
     where 
       ShipCity = 'New York';
   quit;
   

3. Click Run -> Submit to execute the query and create a local view.

Report On or Visualize Elasticsearch Data in SAS

With a local view created, you can report, visualize, or otherwise analyze Elasticsearch data using the powerful SAS features. Print a simple report using PROC PRINT and create a basic graph based on the data using PROC GCHART.

Print an HTML Report

1. In SAS, navigate to the Editor window.
2. Use PROC PRINT to print an HTML report for the Elasticsearch Orders data.

   proc print data=orders;
     title "Elasticsearch Orders Data";
   run;
   

Print a Chart

1. In SAS, navigate to the Editor window.
2. Use PROC GCHART to create a chart for the Orders data.

   proc gchart data=orders;
     pie ordername / sumvar=freight
         value=arrow
         percent=arrow
         noheading
         percent=inside plabel=(height=12pt)
         slice=inside value=none
         name='OrdersChart';
   run;