Stream Google Cloud Storage Data into Apache Kafka Topics

Apache Kafka is an open-source stream processing platform that is primarily used for building real-time data pipelines and event-driven applications. When paired with the CData JDBC Driver for Google Cloud Storage, Kafka can work with live Google Cloud Storage data. This article describes how to connect, access and stream Google Cloud Storage data into Apache Kafka Topics and to start Confluent Control Center to help users secure, manage, and monitor the Google Cloud Storage data received using Kafka infrastructure in the Confluent Platform.

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

Prerequisites

Before connecting the CData JDBC Driver for streaming Google Cloud Storage data in Apache Kafka Topics, install and configure the following in the client Linux-based system.

1. Confluent Platform for Apache Kafka
2. Confluent Hub CLI Installation
3. Self-Managed Kafka JDBC Source Connector for Confluent Platform

Define a New JDBC Connection to Google Cloud Storage data

1. Download CData JDBC Driver for Google Cloud Storage on a Linux-based system
2. Follow the given instructions to create a new directory extract all the driver contents into it:
   1. Create a new directory named Google Cloud Storage mkdir GoogleCloudStorage
   2. Move the downloaded driver file (.zip) into this new directory mv GoogleCloudStorageJDBCDriver.zip GoogleCloudStorage/
   3. Unzip the CData GoogleCloudStorageJDBCDriver contents into this new directory unzip GoogleCloudStorageJDBCDriver.zip
3. Open the Google Cloud Storage directory and navigate to the lib folder ls cd lib/
4. Copy the contents of the lib folder of Google Cloud Storage into the lib folder of Kafka Connect JDBC. Check the Kafka Connect JDBC folder contents to confirm that the cdata.jdbc.googlecloudstorage.jar file is successfully copied into the lib folder cp * ../../confluent-7.5.0/share/confluent-hub-components/confluentinc-kafka-connect-jdbc/lib/ cd ../../confluent-7.5.0/share/confluent-hub-components/confluentinc-kafka-connect-jdbc/lib/
5. Install the CData Google Cloud Storage JDBC driver license using the given command, followed by your Name and Email ID java -jar cdata.jdbc.googlecloudstorage.jar -l
6. Enter the product key or "TRIAL" (In the scenarios of license expiry, please contact our CData Support team)
7. Start the Confluent local services using the command: confluent local services start

   This starts all the Confluent Services like Zookeeper, Kafka, Schema Registry, Kafka REST, Kafka CONNECT, ksqlDB and Control Center. You are now ready to use the CData JDBC driver for Google Cloud Storage to stream messages using Kafka Connect Driver into Kafka Topics on ksqlDB.

8. Create the Kafka topics manually using a POST HTTP API Request: curl --location 'server_address:8083/connectors' --header 'Content-Type: application/json' --data '{ "name": "jdbc_source_cdata_googlecloudstorage_01", "config": { "connector.class": "io.confluent.connect.jdbc.JdbcSourceConnector", "connection.url": "jdbc:googlecloudstorage:ProjectId='project1';; InitiateOAuth=GETANDREFRESH", "topic.prefix": "googlecloudstorage-01-", "mode": "bulk" } }'

   Let us understand the fields used in the HTTP POST body (shown above):

   • connector.class: Specifies the Java class of the Kafka Connect connector to be used.
   • connection.url: The JDBC connection URL to connect with Google Cloud Storage data.

     Built-in Connection String Designer

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

     java -jar cdata.jdbc.googlecloudstorage.jar

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

     Authenticate with a User Account

     You can connect without setting any connection properties for your user credentials. After setting InitiateOAuth to GETANDREFRESH, you are ready to connect.

     When you connect, the Google Cloud Storage OAuth endpoint opens in your default browser. Log in and grant permissions, then the OAuth process completes

     Authenticate with a Service Account

     Service accounts have silent authentication, without user authentication in the browser. You can also use a service account to delegate enterprise-wide access scopes.

     You need to create an OAuth application in this flow. See the Help documentation for more information. After setting the following connection properties, you are ready to connect:

     • InitiateOAuth: Set this to GETANDREFRESH.
     • OAuthJWTCertType: Set this to "PFXFILE".
     • OAuthJWTCert: Set this to the path to the .p12 file you generated.
     • OAuthJWTCertPassword: Set this to the password of the .p12 file.
     • OAuthJWTCertSubject: Set this to "*" to pick the first certificate in the certificate store.
     • OAuthJWTIssuer: In the service accounts section, click Manage Service Accounts and set this field to the email address displayed in the service account Id field.
     • OAuthJWTSubject: Set this to your enterprise Id if your subject type is set to "enterprise" or your app user Id if your subject type is set to "user".
     • ProjectId: Set this to the Id of the project you want to connect to.

     The OAuth flow for a service account then completes.

   • topic.prefix: A prefix that will be added to the Kafka topics created by the connector. It's set to "googlecloudstorage-01-".
   • mode: Specifies the mode in which the connector operates. In this case, it's set to "bulk", which suggests that the connector is configured to perform bulk data transfer.

   This request adds all the tables/contents from Google Cloud Storage as Kafka Topics.

   Note: The IP Address (server) to POST the request (shown above) is the Linux Network IP Address.

9. Run ksqlDB and list the topics. Use the commands: ksql list topics;
10. To view the data inside the topics, type the SQL Statement: PRINT topic FROM BEGINNING;

Connecting with the Confluent Control Center

To access the Confluent Control Center user interface, ensure to run the "confluent local services" as described in the above section and type http://<server address>:9021/clusters/ on your local browser.

Get Started Today

Download a free, 30-day trial of the CData JDBC Driver for Google Cloud Storage and start streaming Google Cloud Storage data into Apache Kafka. Reach out to our Support Team if you have any questions.