Validate Airtable Data with QuerySurge

QuerySurge is a smart data testing solution that automates data validation and testing. When paired with the CData JDBC Driver for Airtable, QuerySurge can work with live Airtable data. This article walks through connecting to Airtable data from QuerySurge.

With built-in optimized data processing, the CData JDBC Driver offers unmatched performance for interacting with live Airtable data. When you issue complex SQL queries to Airtable, the driver pushes supported SQL operations, like filters and aggregations, directly to Airtable and utilizes the embedded SQL engine to process unsupported operations client-side (often SQL functions and JOIN operations). Its built-in dynamic metadata querying allows you to work with and analyze Airtable data using native data types.

Connecting to Airtable Data in QuerySurge

To connect to live Airtable data from QuerySurge, you need to deploy the JDBC Driver JAR file to your QuerySurge Agent(s) and add a new connection from the QuerySurge Admin view.

Deploy the JDBC Driver

1. Download the CData JDBC Driver for Airtable installer, unzip the package, and run the JAR file to install the driver.
2. Once the driver is installed, stop the Agent Service.
3. Copy the JAR File (and license file if it exists) from the installation location (typically C:\Program Files\CData\CData JDBC Driver for Airtable\lib\) to your Agent(s) (QuerySurge_install_dir\agent\jdbc).
4. Restart the Agent Service.

For more information on deploying JDBC drivers for QuerySurge, refer to the QuerySurge Knowledge Base.

Configure a New Connection to Airtable

1. Log into QuerySurge and navigate to the Admin view.
2. Click Configuration -> Connections in the Administration Tree.
3. Click Add to create a new connection.
4. In the QuerySurge Connection Wizard, click Next.
5. Name the connection (e.g. CData JDBC Connection to Airtable).
6. Set the Data Source to "All Other JDBC Connections (Connection Extensibility)" and click Next.
7. Set the Driver Class to cdata.jdbc.airtable.AirtableDriver and click Next.

8. Set the Connection URL using the necessary connection properties to authenticate with Airtable. Your Connection URL will look something like the following:

   jdbc:airtable:APIKey=keymz3adb53RqsU;BaseId=appxxN2fe34r3rjdG7;TableNames=Table1,...;ViewNames=Table1.View1,...;

   Built-in Connection String Designer

   For assistance in constructing the JDBC URL, use the connection string designer built into the Airtable JDBC Driver. Either double-click the JAR file or execute the jar file from the command-line.

   java -jar cdata.jdbc.airtable.jar

   Fill in the connection properties and copy the connection string to the clipboard.

   APIKey, BaseId and TableNames parameters are required to connect to Airtable. ViewNames is an optional parameter where views of the tables may be specified.

   • APIKey : API Key of your account. To obtain this value, after logging in go to Account. In API section click Generate API key.
   • BaseId : Id of your base. To obtain this value, it is in the same section as the APIKey. Click on Airtable API, or navigate to https://airtable.com/api and select a base. In the introduction section you can find "The ID of this base is appxxN2ftedc0nEG7."
   • TableNames : A comma separated list of table names for the selected base. These are the same names of tables as found in the UI.
   • ViewNames : A comma separated list of views in the format of (table.view) names. These are the same names of the views as found in the UI.
9. Set the Test Query to enable the Test Connection button for the Connection (e.g. SELECT * FROM SampleTable_1 LIMIT 1) and click Next.
10. Click Test Connection to ensure the connection is configured properly and click Save to add the connection.

Once the connection is added, you can write SQL queries against your Airtable data in QuerySurge.

Compare Airtable Data Queries with a QueryPair

With the connection configured, you can follow the steps below to compare querying Airtable data with a QueryPair.

1. Select "Design Library" from the Design Menu
2. Click QueryPairs under QuerySurge Design
3. Click "Create New QueryPair"
4. Name the QueryPair and click Save
5. In either the Source or Target panes, select the connection created above (select the same connection to query Airtable twice or another connection to perform a comparison)
6. Write queries in the Editor for each pane, e.g. SELECT * FROM SampleTable_1
7. Click the "Design-Time Run" tab to execute the queries
8. When the query execution is finished, click "View Query Results" to see the Airtable data returned by the query

Download a free, 30-day trial of the CData JDBC Driver for Airtable and start working with your live Airtable data in QuerySurge. Reach out to our Support Team if you have any questions.