Query Instagram Data as a SQL Server Database in Node.js

You can use CData Connect Cloud to query Instagram data through a SQL Server interface. Follow the procedure below to create a virtual database for Instagram in Connect Cloud and start querying using Node.js.

CData Connect Cloud provides a pure MySQL, cloud-to-cloud interface for Instagram, allowing you to easily query live Instagram data in Node.js — without replicating the data to a natively supported database. As you query data in Node.js, CData Connect Cloud pushes all supported SQL operations (filters, JOINs, etc) directly to Instagram, leveraging server-side processing to quickly return Instagram data.

Configure Instagram Connectivity for NodeJS

Connectivity to Instagram from NodeJS is made possible through CData Connect Cloud. To work with Instagram data from NodeJS, we start by creating and configuring a Instagram connection.

1. Log into Connect Cloud, click Connections and click Add Connection
2. Select "Instagram" from the Add Connection panel
3. Enter the necessary authentication properties to connect to Instagram.

   Instagram uses the OAuth 2 authentication standard. You will need to obtain the OAuthClientId, OAuthClientSecret, and CallbackURL by registering an app with Instagram. See the help documentation for a guide.

4. Click Create & Test
5. Navigate to the Permissions tab in the Add Instagram Connection page and update the User-based permissions.

Add a Personal Access Token

If you are connecting from a service, application, platform, or framework that does not support OAuth authentication, you can create a Personal Access Token (PAT) to use for authentication. Best practices would dictate that you create a separate PAT for each service, to maintain granularity of access.

1. Click on your username at the top right of the Connect Cloud app and click User Profile.
2. On the User Profile page, scroll down to the Personal Access Tokens section and click Create PAT.
3. Give your PAT a name and click Create.
4. The personal access token is only visible at creation, so be sure to copy it and store it securely for future use.

With the connection configured, you are ready to connect to Instagram data from Node.js.

Query Instagram from Node.js

The following example shows how to define a connection and execute queries to Instagram with the SQL Server module. You will need the following information:

• server: tds.cdata.com
• port: 14333
• user: a Connect Cloud user (e.g. [email protected])
• password: the PAT for the above user
• database: The connection you configured for Instagram (Instagram1)

Connect to Instagram data and start executing queries with the code below:

var sql = require('mssql')
var config = {
	server: 'tds.cdata.com',
	port: 14333, 
	user: '[email protected]', //update me
	password: 'CONNECT_USER_PAT', //update me	
	options: {
		encrypt: true,
		database: 'Instagram1'
	}
}

sql.connect(config, err => { 
    if(err){
        throw err ;
    }
    new sql.Request().query('SELECT * FROM Media', (err, result) => {
        console.dir(result)
    })
        
});

sql.on('error', err => {
    console.log("SQL Error: " ,err);
})