Build Visualizations of Live SAP BusinessObjects BI Data in Power BI (through CData Connect)

Power BI transforms your company's data into rich visuals for you to collect and organize so you can focus on what matters to you. When paired with CData Connect (on-premise or in the cloud), you get access to SAP BusinessObjects BI data for visualizations, dashboards, and more. This article shows how to use CData Connect to create a virtual database for SAP BusinessObjects BI, connect to SAP BusinessObjects BI data into Power BI and then create reports on SAP BusinessObjects BI data in Power BI.

Create a Virtual SQL Database for SAP BusinessObjects BI 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 "SAP BusinessObjects BI" from Available Data Sources.
3. Enter the necessary authentication properties to connect to SAP BusinessObjects BI.

   To connect to your SAP Business Objects BI instance, you must set the following connection properties:

   • Url: set this to the rest API URL. After logging into the Central Management Console, choose 'Applications' from the combo box. Double-click on 'RESTful Web Service' and you'll see the access URL. By default it is, http://{Server-Name}:6405/biprws.
   • User: set this to the username of your instance.
   • Password: set this to the password of your instance.
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 and visualize SAP BusinessObjects BI from Power BI.

Query SAP BusinessObjects BI Tables

Follow the steps below to build a query to pull SAP BusinessObjects BI data into the report:

1. Open Power BI Desktop and click Get Data -> Other -> SQL Server and click "Connect"
2. Set Server to the address and port of your CData Connect instance (localhost:8033 by default) and set Database to the name of the virtual database you just created (SAPBusinessObjectsBI1)
3. Use "Database" authentication, enter the credentials for a CData Connect user and click "Connect"
4. Select tables in the Navigator dialog
5. Click Load to import the data into Power BI

Create SAP BusinessObjects BI Data Visualizations

After connecting to the data into Power BI, you can create data visualizations in the Report view by dragging fields from the Fields pane onto the canvas. Select the dimensions and measures you wish to visualize along with the chart type.

Click Refresh to synchronize your report with any changes to the data.

SQL Access to SAP BusinessObjects BI Data from Data Applications

With CData Connect you have a direct connection to SAP BusinessObjects BI data from Power BI. You can import more data, create new visualizations, build reports, and more — all without replicating SAP BusinessObjects BI data.

To get SQL data access to 200+ SaaS, Big Data, and NoSQL sources (including SAP BusinessObjects BI) directly from your on-premise BI, reporting, ETL and other data applications, visit the CData Connect page and download a free trial.