Visualize PCA Sales Data in Tableau Desktop (through CData Connect)

Tableau is a visual analytics platform transforming the way businesses use data to solve problems. When paired with CData Connect (or Connect Server), you can easily get access to live PCA Sales data within Tableau.

CData Connect Server provides a pure SQL Server interface for PCA Sales, allowing you to easily build reports from live PCA Sales data in Tableau Desktop — without replicating the data to a natively supported database. As you build visualizations, Tableau Desktop generates SQL queries to gather data. Using optimized data processing out of the box, CData Connect Server pushes all supported SQL operations (filters, JOINs, etc) directly to PCA Sales, leveraging server-side processing to quickly return the requested PCA Sales data.

This article shows how to create a virtual SQL Server database for PCA Sales, connect to the virtual database in Tableau, and build a simple chart.

Create a Virtual SQL Server Database for PCA Sales Data

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

1. Login to Connect Server and click Connections.
2. Select "PCA Sales" from Available Data Sources.
3. Enter the necessary authentication properties to connect to PCA Sales.

   In order to authenticate using the OAuth, specify the following:

   • AuthScheme: Set to OAuth.

   In order to authenticate using the OAuth Password, specify the following:

   • AuthScheme: Set to OAuthPassword.
   • User: Enter the PCA Sales username.
   • Password: Enter the PCA Sales password.
   • ServiceId: Enter the Service ID used to connect tot he PCA API server.
   • ServicePassword: Enter the Service Password for the above Service ID.

   For both authentication methods, specify the following:

   • Data Center: Enter the name for the PCA API Server.
   • Default Data Area: Enter the data area to which you want to connect.
   • Product Code: Enter "Kon20" or "Acc20."

   For more information, refer to the Help documentation.

4. Click Save Changes
5. Click Privileges -> Add and add the new user (or an existing user) with the appropriate permissions.

With the virtual database created, you are ready to connect to PCA Sales data from Tableau Desktop.

Visualize Live PCA Sales Data in Tableau Desktop

The steps below outline connecting to the virtual PCA Sales database in CData Connect and building a simple visualization from the data.

1. Open Tableau and click "Microsoft SQL Server" under Connect -> To a Server.
2. In the connection wizard, enter the values for your CData Connect instance and click "Sign In"
   • Server: the address of your Connect instance and port of the TDS endpoint, separated by a comma (default port is: 1433)
   • Database: the virtual database you configured for the PCA Sales data
   • Username & Password: the credentials for a CData Connect user
3. Select your newly created database and the table(s) you wish to visualize (defining relationships for JOINed tables as needed).
4. Select Dimensions and Measures and configure your visualization.

SQL Access to PCA Sales Data from On-Premise Applications

At this point, you have a direct connection to live PCA Sales data from your Tableau Desktop workbook. You can create new visualizations, build dashboards, and more. For more information on gaining SQL access to data from more than 200 SaaS, Big Data, and NoSQL sources (including PCA Sales) from desktop applications like Tableau refer to our CData Connect page or download a free trial.