Ready to get started?

Learn more or sign up for a free trial:

CData Connect Server

Edit and Search External Salesforce Einstein Objects in Salesforce Connect



Use CData Connect Server to securely provide OData feeds of Salesforce Einstein data to smart devices and cloud-based applications. Use the CData Connect and Salesforce Connect to create Salesforce Einstein objects that you can access from apps and the dashboard.

CData Connect Server, enables you to access Salesforce Einstein data from cloud-based applications like the Salesforce console and mobile applications like the Salesforce1 Mobile App. In this article, you will use CData Connect Server and Salesforce Connect to access external Salesforce Einstein objects alongside standard Salesforce objects.

Configuring Connect Server

To work with live Salesforce Einstein data in Salesforce Connect, we need to connect to Salesforce Einstein from Connect Server, provide user access to the new virtual database, and create OData endpoints for the Salesforce Einstein data.

Add a Connect Server User

Create a User to connect to Salesforce Einstein from Reveal through Connect Server.

  1. Click Users -> Add
  2. Configure a User
  3. Click Save Changes and make note of the Authtoken for the new user

Connect to Salesforce Einstein from Connect Server

CData Connect Server uses a straightforward, point-and-click interface to connect to data sources and generate APIs.

  1. Open Connect Server and click Connections
  2. Select "Salesforce Einstein" from Available Data Sources
  3. Enter the necessary authentication properties to connect to Salesforce Einstein.

    Salesforce Einstein Analytics uses the OAuth 2 authentication standard. You will need to obtain the OAuthClientId and OAuthClientSecret by registering an app with Salesforce Einstein Analytics.

    See the Getting Started section of the CData data provider documentation for an authentication guide.

  4. Click Save Changes
  5. Click Privileges -> Add and add the new user (or an existing user) with the appropriate permissions (SELECT is all that is required for Reveal).

Add Salesforce Einstein OData Endpoints in Connect Server

After connecting to Salesforce Einstein, create OData Endpoints for the desired table(s).

  1. Click OData -> Tables -> Add Tables
  2. Select the Salesforce Einstein database
  3. Select the table(s) you wish to work with and click Next
  4. (Optional) Edit the table definition to select specific fields and more
  5. Save the settings

(Optional) Configure Cross-Origin Resource Sharing (CORS)

When accessing and connecting to multiple different domains, there is a possibility of violating the limitations of cross-site scripting. In that case, configure the CORS settings in OData -> Settings.

  • Enable cross-origin resource sharing (CORS): ON
  • Allow all domains without '*': ON
  • Access-Control-Allow-Methods: GET, PUT, POST, OPTIONS
  • Access-Control-Allow-Headers: Authorization

Save the changes to the settings.

Connect to Salesforce Einstein Data as an External Data Source

Follow the steps below to connect to the feed produced by the API Server.

  1. Log into Salesforce and click Setup -> Integrations -> External Data Sources.
  2. Click New External Data Source.
  3. Enter values for the following properties:
    • External Data Source: Enter a label to be used in list views and reports.
    • Name: Enter a unique identifier.
    • Type: Select the option "Salesforce Connect: OData 4.0".
    • URL: Enter the URL to the OData endpoint of the API Server. The format of the OData URL is CONNECT_SERVER_URL/api.rsc/

  4. Select the Writable External Objects option.
  5. Select JSON in the Format menu.

  6. In the Authentication section, set the following properties:
    • Identity Type: If all members of your organization will use the same credentials to access the API Server, select "Named Principal". If the members of your organization will connect with their own credentials, select "Per User".
    • Authentication Protocol: Select Password Authentication to use basic authentication.
    • Certificate: Enter or browse to the certificate to be used to encrypt and authenticate communications from Salesforce to your server.
    • Username: Enter the username for a user known to CData Connect Server.
    • Password: Enter the user's authtoken.

Synchronize Salesforce Einstein Objects

After you have created the external data source, follow the steps below to create Salesforce Einstein external objects that reflect any changes in the data source. You will synchronize the definitions for the Salesforce Einstein external objects with the definitions for Salesforce Einstein tables.

  1. Click the link for the external data source you created.
  2. Click Validate and Sync.
  3. Select the Salesforce Einstein tables you want to work with as external objects.

Access Salesforce Einstein Data as Salesforce Objects

After adding Salesforce Einstein data as an external data source and syncing Salesforce Einstein tables as external objects, you can use the external Salesforce Einstein objects just as you would standard Salesforce objects.

  • Create a new tab with a filter list view:

  • Create reports of external objects:

  • Create, update, and delete Salesforce Einstein objects from the Salesforce dashboard:

Simplified Access to Salesforce Einstein Data from Applications

At this point, you have a direct connection to live Salesforce Einstein data from Salesforce. For more information on gaining simplified access to data from more than 100 SaaS, Big Data, and NoSQL sources in applications like Salesforce, refer to our Connect Server page.