Visualize Microsoft Planner Data in TIBCO Spotfire through OData

OData is a major protocol enabling real-time communication among cloud-based, mobile, and other online applications. The CData Connect Server provides Microsoft Planner data to OData consumers like TIBCO Spotfire. This article shows how to use the Connect Server and Spotfire's built-in support for OData to access Microsoft Planner data in real time.

Configuring Connect Server

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

Add a Connect Server User

Create a User to connect to Microsoft Planner from TIBCO Spotfire 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 Microsoft Planner 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 "Microsoft Planner" from Available Data Sources
3. Enter the necessary authentication properties to connect to Microsoft Planner.

   You can connect without setting any connection properties for your user credentials. Below are the minimum connection properties required to connect.

   • InitiateOAuth: Set this to GETANDREFRESH. You can use InitiateOAuth to avoid repeating the OAuth exchange and manually setting the OAuthAccessToken.
   • Tenant (optional): Set this if you wish to authenticate to a different tenant than your default. This is required to work with an organization not on your default Tenant.

   When you connect the Driver opens the MS Planner OAuth endpoint in your default browser. Log in and grant permissions to the Driver. The Driver then completes the OAuth process.

   1. Extracts the access token from the callback URL and authenticates requests.
   2. Obtains a new access token when the old one expires.
   3. Saves OAuth values in OAuthSettingsLocation to be persisted across connections.
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 Microsoft Planner OData Endpoints in Connect Server

After connecting to Microsoft Planner, create OData Endpoints for the desired table(s).

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

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

When accessing and connecting to multiple domains from an application such as Ajax, 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.

Create Data Visualizations on External Microsoft Planner Data

1. Open Spotfire and click Data -> Add data...
2. Then, click "Connect to" -> OData -> New Connection. In the OData Connection dialog, enter the following information:
   • Service URL: Enter the Connect Server's OData endpoint. For example: http://localhost:8080/odata.rsc
   • Authentication Method: Select Username and Password.
   • Username: Enter the username of a Connect Server user. You can create API users on the Security tab of the administration console.
   • Password: Enter the authtoken of a Connect Server user.
3. Select the tables and columns you want to add to the dashboard. This example uses Tasks.

4. If you want to work with the live data, click the Keep Data Table External option. This option enables your dashboards to reflect changes to the data in real time.

   If you want to load the data into memory and process the data locally, click the Import Data Table option. This option is better for offline use or if a slow network connection is making your dashboard less interactive.

5. After you have selected a table, Spotfire uses the data to detect number, time, and other categories. You are now on your way to creating new visualizations for analytics, reporting, and more.

Free Trial & More Information

If you are interested in connecting to your Microsoft Planner data (or data from any of our other supported data sources) from TIBCO Spotfire, sign up for a free trial of CData Connect Server today! For more information on Connect Server and to see what other data sources we support, refer to our CData Connect page.