How to integrate Metabase with Azure Synapse Data

Metabase is an open source data visualization tool that allows users to create interactive dashboards. When paired with CData Connect Cloud, users can easily create visualizations and dashboards linked to live Azure Synapse data. This article describes how to connect to Azure Synapse and build a simple visualization using Azure Synapse data.

CData Connect provides a pure cloud-to-cloud interface for Azure Synapse, allowing you to easily integrate with live Azure Synapse data in Metabase — without replicating the data. Connect looks exactly like a SQL Server database to Metabase and uses optimized data processing out of the box to push all supported SQL operations (filters, JOINs, etc) directly to Azure Synapse, leveraging server-side processing to quickly return Azure Synapse data.

Configure Azure Synapse Connectivity for Metabase

Connectivity to Azure Synapse from Metabase is made possible through CData Connect Cloud. To work with Azure Synapse data from Metabase, we start by creating and configuring a Azure Synapse connection.

1. Log into Connect Cloud, click Connections and click Add Connection
2. Select "Azure Synapse" from the Add Connection panel
3. Enter the necessary authentication properties to connect to Azure Synapse.

   Connecting to Azure Synapse

   In addition to providing authentication (see below), set the following properties to connect to a Azure Synapse database:

   • Server: The server running Azure. You can find this by logging into the Azure portal and navigating to Azure Synapse Analytics -> Select your database -> Overview -> Server name.
   • Database: The name of the database, as seen in the Azure portal on the Azure Synapse Analytics page.

   Authenticating to Azure Synapse

   Connect to Azure Synapse using the following properties:

   • User: The username provided for authentication with Azure.
   • Password: The password associated with the authenticating user.
4. Click Create & Test
5. Navigate to the Permissions tab in the Add Azure Synapse Connection page and update the User-based permissions.

Add a Personal Access Token

If you are connecting from a service, application, platform, or framework that does not support OAuth authentication, you can create a Personal Access Token (PAT) to use for authentication. Best practices would dictate that you create a separate PAT for each service, to maintain granularity of access.

1. Click on your username at the top right of the Connect Cloud app and click User Profile.
2. On the User Profile page, scroll down to the Personal Access Tokens section and click Create PAT.
3. Give your PAT a name and click Create.
4. The personal access token is only visible at creation, so be sure to copy it and store it securely for future use.

With the connection configured, you are ready to connect to Azure Synapse data from Metabase.

Connect to CData Connect from Metabase

After creating the virtual database, navigate to your Metabase instance. Use the SQL Server interface to connect to Connect Cloud.

1. Navigate to the administration screen (Settings -> Admin) and click "Add Database" from the "Databases" tab
2. Configure the connection to Connect Cloud and click "Save"
   • Database type: Select "SQL Server"
   • Name: Name the connection (e.g. "Azure Synapse (Connect Cloud)")
   • Host: tds.cdata.com
   • Port: 14333
   • Database name: The name of the connection you just created (e.g. AzureSynapse1)
   • Username: A Connect Cloud username (e.g. user@mydomain.com)
   • Password: The PAT for the above Connect Cloud user
   • Click to Use a secure connection (SSL)

Execute Azure Synapse Data with Metabase

Once you configure the connection to Connect Cloud, you can query Azure Synapse and build visualizations.

1. Use the "Write SQL" tool to retrieve the Azure Synapse data
2. Write a SQL query based on the Azure Synapse connection in CData Connect Cloud, e.g.
   
   

   SELECT Id, ProductName FROM Products WHERE ProductName = 'Konbu'

3. Navigate to the "Visualization" screen, choose a visualization, and configure the visualization

More Information & Free Trial

At this point, you have built a simple visualization from Azure Synapse data in Metabase. You can continue to work with live Azure Synapse data in Metabase just like you would any SQL Server database. For more information on creating a live connection to Azure Synapse (and more than 100 other data sources), visit the Connect Cloud page. Sign up for a free trial and start working with live Azure Synapse data in Metabase today.