Integrate Avalara AvaTax with External Services using SnapLogic

SnapLogic is an integration platform-as-a-service (iPaaS) that allows users to create data integration flows with no code. When paired with the CData JDBC Drivers, users get access to live data from more than 250+ SaaS, Big Data and NoSQL sources, including Avalara AvaTax, in their SnapLogic workflows.

With built-in optimized data processing, the CData JDBC Driver offers unmatched performance for interacting with live Avalara AvaTax data. When platforms issue complex SQL queries to Avalara AvaTax, the driver pushes supported SQL operations, like filters and aggregations, directly to Avalara AvaTax and utilizes the embedded SQL engine to process unsupported operations client-side (often SQL functions and JOIN operations). Its built-in dynamic metadata querying lets you work with Avalara AvaTax data using native data types.

Connect to Avalara AvaTax in SnapLogic

To connect to Avalara AvaTax data in SnapLogic, download and install the CData Avalara AvaTax JDBC Driver. Follow the installation dialog. When the installation is complete, the JAR file can be found in the installation directory (C:/Program Files/CData/CData JDBC Driver for Avalara/lib by default).

Upload the Avalara AvaTax JDBC Driver

After installation, upload the JDBC JAR file to a location in SnapLogic (for example, projects/Jerod Johnson) from the Manager tab.

Configure the Connection

Once the JDBC Driver is uploaded, we can create the connection to Avalara AvaTax.

1. Navigate to the Designer tab
2. Expand "JDBC" from Snaps and drag a "Generic JDBC - Select" snap onto the designer
3. Click Add Account (or select an existing one) and click "Continue"
4. In the next form, configure the JDBC connection properties:
   • Under JDBC JARs, add the JAR file we previously uploaded
   • Set JDBC Driver Class to cdata.jdbc.avalaraavatax.AvalaraAvataxDriver

   • Set JDBC URL to a JDBC connection string for the Avalara AvaTax JDBC Driver, for example:

     jdbc:avalaraavatax:User=MyUser;Password=MyPassword;RTK=XXXXXX;

     NOTE: RTK is a trial or full key. Contact our Support team for more information.

     Built-In Connection String Designer

     For assistance in constructing the JDBC URL, use the connection string designer built into the Avalara AvaTax JDBC Driver. Either double-click the JAR file or execute the jar file from the command-line.

     java -jar cdata.jdbc.avalaraavatax.jar

     Fill in the connection properties and copy the connection string to the clipboard.

     The primary method for performing basic authentication is to provide your login credentials, as follows:

     • User: Set this to your username.
     • Password: Set this to your password.

     Optionally, if you are making use of a sandbox environment, set the following:

     • UseSandbox: Set this to true if you are authenticating with a sandbox account.

     Authenticating Using Account Number and License Key

     Alternatively, you can authenticate using your account number and license key. Connect to data using the following:

     • AccountId: Set this to your Account Id. The Account Id is listed in the upper right hand corner of the admin console.
     • LicenseKey: Set this to your Avalara Avatax license key. You can generate a license key by logging into Avalara Avatax as an account administrator and navigating to Settings -> Reset License Key.
5. After entering the connection properties, click "Validate" and "Apply"

Read Avalara AvaTax Data

In the form that opens after validating and applying the connection, configure your query.

• Set Schema name to "AvalaraAvatax"
• Set Table name to a table for Avalara AvaTax using the schema name, for example: "AvalaraAvatax"."Transactions" (use the drop-down to see the full list of available tables)
• Add Output fields for each item you wish to work with from the table

Save the Generic JDBC - Select snap.

With connection and query configured, click the end of the snap to preview the data (highlighted below).

Once you confirm the results are what you expect, you can add additional snaps to funnel your Avalara AvaTax data to another endpoint.

Piping Avalara AvaTax Data to External Services

For this article, we will load data in a Google Spreadsheet. You can use any of the supported snaps, or even use a Generic JDBC snap with another CData JDBC Driver, to move data into an external service.

1. Start by dropping a "Worksheet Writer" snap onto the end of the "Generic JDBC - Select" snap.
2. Add an account to connect to Google Sheets
3. Configure the Worksheet Writer snap to write your Avalara AvaTax data to a Google Spreadsheet

You can now execute the fully configured pipeline to extract data from Avalara AvaTax and push it into a Google Spreadsheet.

Piping External Data to Avalara AvaTax

As mentioned above, you can also use the JDBC Driver for Avalara AvaTax in SnapLogic to write data to Avalara AvaTax. Start by adding a Generic JDBC - Insert or Generic JDBC - Update snap to the dashboard.

1. Select the existing "Account" (connection) or create a new one
2. Configure the query:
   • Set Schema name to "AvalaraAvatax"
   • Set Table name to a table for Avalara AvaTax using the schema name, for example: "AvalaraAvatax"."Transactions" (use the drop-down to see the full list of available tables)
3. Save the Generic JDBC - Insert/Update snap

At this point, you have configured a snap to write data to Avalara AvaTax, inserting new records or updating existing ones.

More Information & Free Trial

Using the CData JDBC Driver for Avalara you can create a pipeline in SnapLogic for integrating Avalara AvaTax data with external services. For more information about connecting to Avalara AvaTax, check at our CData JDBC Driver for Avalara page. Download a free, 30 day trial of the CData JDBC Driver for Avalara and get started today.