Create SAP Ariba Source Dataflows on PowerBI.com

The CData Power BI Connector for SAP Ariba Source seamlessly integrates with the tools and wizards in Power BI, including the real-time data workflows on PowerBI.com. Follow the steps below to pull data directly into DataFlows on PowerBI.com and use the Power BI Gateway to configure automatic refresh.

Create a DSN

Installing the Power BI Connector creates a DSN (data source name) called CData Power BI SAP Ariba Source. This the name of the DSN that Power BI uses to request a connection to the data source. Configure the DSN by filling in the required connection properties.

You can use the Microsoft ODBC Data Source Administrator to create a new DSN or configure (and rename) an existing DSN: From the Start menu, enter "ODBC Data Sources." Ensure that you run the version of the ODBC Administrator that corresponds to the bitness of your Power BI Desktop installation (32-bit or 64-bit).

In order to connect with SAP Ariba Source, set the following:

• API: Specify which API you would like the provider to retrieve SAP Ariba data from. Select the Supplier, Sourcing Project Management, or Contract API based on your business role (possible values are SupplierDataAPIWithPaginationV4, SourcingProjectManagementAPIV2, or ContractAPIV1).
• DataCenter: The data center where your account's data is hosted.
• Realm: The name of the site you want to access.
• Environment: Indicate whether you are connecting to a test or production environment (possible values are TEST or PRODUCTION).

If you are connecting to the Supplier Data API or the Contract API, additionally set the following:

• User: Id of the user on whose behalf API calls are invoked.
• PasswordAdapter: The password associated with the authenticating User.

If you're connecting to the Supplier API, set ProjectId to the Id of the sourcing project you want to retrieve data from.

Authenticating with OAuth

After setting connection properties, you need to configure OAuth connectivity to authenticate.

• Set AuthScheme to OAuthClient.
• Register an application with the service to obtain the APIKey, OAuthClientId and OAuthClientSecret.

  For more information on creating an OAuth application, refer to the Help documentation.

Automatic OAuth

After setting the following, you are ready to connect:

APIKey: The Application key in your app settings. OAuthClientId: The OAuth Client Id in your app settings. OAuthClientSecret: The OAuth Secret in your app settings.

When you connect, the provider automatically completes the OAuth process:

1. The provider obtains an access token from SAP Ariba and uses it to request data.
2. The provider refreshes the access token automatically when it expires.
3. The OAuth values are saved in memory relative to the location specified in OAuthSettingsLocation.

Pulling SAP Ariba Source Data Directly Into Your Dataflow

With the data source configured, follow the steps below to load data from SAP Ariba Source tables into your DataFlow.

Set Up the Power BI Gateway

Follow the steps below to configure the gateway on your machine:

1. Run the CData Power BI Connector installer. If you have not already done so, download the Power BI Gateway.
2. Select the on-premises data gateway (recommended) option.
3. Sign into the gateway.
4. Name the gateway and specify a recovery key.

5. In the Connectors step, choose a folder where the gateway will look for the CData Power BI Connector. This article uses C:\Users\PBIEgwService\Documents\Power BI Desktop\Custom Connectors\. Copy the .pqx files for the CData Connector (found in C:\Users\USERNAME\Documents\Power BI Desktop\Custom Connectors\) to the folder you configured.

   NOTE: The account configured for the service (NT SERVICE\PBIEgwService) needs to be able to access the folder chosen for the gateway. If needed, you can change the service account in the Service Settings section of the gateway installer.

6. Confirm that the entry CData.PowerBI.SAPAribaSource is displayed in the list in the Connectors section.

Set up Power BI Online for a Dataflow

1. In Power BI Online, create a new workspace, which is also known as an app, if you do not already have one. Note that this is only available with Power BI Pro or higher.
2. Set up your On-Premises Gateway. The steps for this are in the Configuring the Gateway section of this article.
3. Go back to Power BI Online. In settings, go to 'Manage Gateways', and add a new data source to your Gateway
   • Enter the Data Source Name, the name that the data source will be referred to within Power BI Online
   • Select the Data Source Type, (e.g. CData Power BI Connector for SAP Ariba Source) and set the Data Source Name (e.g. CData Power BI SAP Ariba Source)
   • Set Authentication Method to "Anonymous"
   • Set Privacy Level as needed
4. Click Add to finish the configuration (do not skip the test connection as it is important to know if a successful connection was made).
   
   If you would like to manage the users that have access to this data source, you can go to the Users tab.

Set up your Dataflow and pull the SAP Ariba Source data

1. In the new workspace, go to Create > Dataflow > Add New Entities.
2. Choose the ODBC data source and enter the correct connection properties.
   Enter your DSN name in the ODBC connection string section, dsn=CData Power BI SAPAribaSource. Choose your gateway and set the authentication type to Anonymous.
3. Choose the table(s) you want to work with and click Transform data.
   If you want to make any changes to the query, you can right click on the query and click on Advanced Editor.

Configure Data Refresh on PowerBI.com

Refresh your dataflow to have the most up to date data.

• To refresh manually, open the dataflow options menu from your workspace -> Dataflows and click Refresh Now.
• To schedule refreshes, open the dataflow options menu from your workspace -> Dataflows and click Schedule Refresh. Enable the option to keep your data up to date. Specify the refresh frequency in the menus.

At this point, you will have a Dataflow built on top of live SAP Ariba Source data. Learn more about the CData Power BI Connectors for SAP Ariba Source and download a free trial from the CData Power BI Connector for SAP Ariba Source page. Let our Support Team know if you have any questions.