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Import Real-Time Quickbase Data in ColdFusion to Build Applications


Use CData ODBC drivers to import and use Quickbase data in ColdFusion.

Adobe ColdFusion is a web and mobile application development platform. It uses its own scripting language, ColdFusion Markup Language (CFML), to create data-driven websites as well as generate remote services, such as REST. When ColdFusion is paired with the CData ODBC Driver for Quickbase, you can link your ColdFusion web and mobile applications to operational Quickbase data. This allows for your applications to be more robust and complete. This article details how to use the ODBC driver to create a table populated with Quickbase data from within a ColdFusion markup file.

To follow along with this tutorial, you need to install the CData ODBC Driver for Quickbase and Adobe ColdFusion.

Configuring the Connection

If you have not already, first specify connection properties in an ODBC DSN (Data Source Name). This is the last step of the driver installation process. You can use the Microsoft ODBC Data Source Administrator to create and configure ODBC DSNs.

User Authentication Method

To authenticate with user credentials, specify the following connection properties:

  1. Set the User and Password.
  2. If your application requires an ApplicationToken;, you must provide it otherwise an error will be thrown. You can find the ApplicationToken under SpecificApp > Settings > App management > App properties > Advanced settings > Security options > Manage Application Token.

User Token Authentication

To authenticate with a user token, specify the following connection properties:

  1. Set UserToken and you are ready to connect. You can find the UserToken under Quick Base > My Preferences > My User Information > Manage User Tokens.

Adding a Data Source and Creating a Table

After creating a DSN, follow the steps below to add a new data source, test our connection to it, create a ColdFusion markup file, and, finally, import Quickbase Quickbase data and display it in a table in ColdFusion:

  1. From the ColdFusion administrator interface, choose Data & Services.
  2. Here, click "Add New Data Source". The data source name can be any name, provided it conforms to the ColdFusion variable naming conventions. For our ODBC driver, choose "ODBC Socket", then click the "Add" button.
  3. From the ODBC DSN Dropdown menu select CData Quickbase Sys. Under the Advanced Settings section, leave the Connection String blank. Note that any properties specified in this input field will override the ones specified in the DSN Configuration.
  4. Now, test the connection by pressing the check mark to the left of the CDataQuickbaseODBC data source you just created. When the data source reports an "OK" status, it is ready for use.
  5. Next, create a new ColdFusion Markup file (.cfm) and place it in the wwwroot directory ("C:\ColdFusion2021\cfusion\wwwroot") for ColdFusion.

    The following code queries the data source: 

                
        <cfquery name="QuickbaseQuery" dataSource="CDataQuickbaseODBC"> 
          SELECT * FROM SampleTable_1 
        </cfquery>
    And a CFTable can be used to quickly output the table in HTML: 
                
          <cftable  
          query = "QuickbaseQuery" 
          border = "1" 
          colHeaders 
          colSpacing = "2" 
          headerLines = "2" 
          HTMLTable 
          maxRows = "500" 
          startRow = "1"> 

          <cfcol header="<b>Id</b>" align="Left" width=2 text="Id"/> 

          <cfcol header="<b>Column1</b>" align="Left" width=15 text="Column1"/> 

          ...

        </cftable>
    Full code, including the HTML portion is available below: 
                
        <html> 
        <head><title>CData Software | Quickbase SampleTable_1 Table Demo </title></head> 
        <body> 
        <cfoutput>#ucase("Quickbase SampleTable_1 Table Demo")#</cfoutput> 
        <cfquery name="QuickbaseQuery" dataSource="CDataQuickbaseODBC"> 

          SELECT * FROM SampleTable_1 

        </cfquery> 
        <cftable  
          query = "QuickbaseQuery" 
          border = "1" 
          colHeaders 
          colSpacing = "2" 
          headerLines = "2" 
          HTMLTable 
          maxRows = "500" 
          startRow = "1"> 
          <cfcol header="<b>Id</b>" align="Left" width=2 text="Id"/> 

          <cfcol header="<b>Column1</b>" align="Left" width=15 text="Column1"/> 

          ...

        </cftable> 
        </body> 

        </html>
  6. Finally, run the code in a browser. It produces a table populated with Quickbase data!

As a note, the CData ODBC Drivers also support parameterized queries using the cfqueryparam element. For example: SELECT * FROM Account WHERE name =

Get Started Today

Download a free, 30-day trial of the CData ODBC Driver for Quickbase and start building Quickbase-connected applications with Adobe ColdFusion. Reach out to our Support Team if you have any questions.

Ready to get started?

Download a free trial of the Quickbase ODBC Driver to get started:

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Learn more:

Quickbase Icon Quickbase ODBC Driver

The Quickbase ODBC Driver is a powerful tool that allows you to connect with live data from Quickbase, directly from any applications that support ODBC connectivity.

Access Quickbase data like you would a database - read, write, and update Quickbase Applications, etc. through a standard ODBC Driver interface.

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