Validate BigCommerce Data with QuerySurge

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

With built-in optimized data processing, the CData JDBC Driver offers unmatched performance for interacting with live BigCommerce data. When you issue complex SQL queries to BigCommerce, the driver pushes supported SQL operations, like filters and aggregations, directly to BigCommerce 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 BigCommerce data using native data types.

Connecting to BigCommerce Data in QuerySurge

To connect to live BigCommerce 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 BigCommerce 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 BigCommerce\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 BigCommerce

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 BigCommerce).
6. Set the Data Source to "All Other JDBC Connections (Connection Extensibility)" and click Next.
7. Set the Driver Class to cdata.jdbc.bigcommerce.BigCommerceDriver and click Next.

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

   jdbc:bigcommerce:OAuthClientId=YourClientId; OAuthClientSecret=YourClientSecret; StoreId='YourStoreID'; CallbackURL='http://localhost:33333'InitiateOAuth=GETANDREFRESH

   Built-in Connection String Designer

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

   java -jar cdata.jdbc.bigcommerce.jar

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

   BigCommerce authentication is based on the standard OAuth flow. To authenticate, you must initially create an app via the Big Commerce developer platform where you can obtain an OAuthClientId, OAuthClientSecret, and CallbackURL. These three parameters will be set as connection properties to your driver.

   Additionally, in order to connect to your BigCommerce Store, you will need your StoreId. To find your Store Id please follow these steps:

   1. Log in to your BigCommerce account.
   2. From the Home Page, select Advanced Settings > API Accounts.
   3. Click Create API Account.
   4. A text box named API Path will appear on your screen.
   5. Inside you can see a URL of the following structure: https://api.bigcommerce.com/stores/{Store Id}/v3.
   6. As demonstrated above, your Store Id will be between the 'stores/' and '/v3' path paramters.
   7. Once you have retrieved your Store Id you can either click Cancel or proceed in creating an API Account in case you do not have one already.
9. Set the Test Query to enable the Test Connection button for the Connection (e.g. SELECT * FROM Customers 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 BigCommerce data in QuerySurge.

Compare BigCommerce Data Queries with a QueryPair

With the connection configured, you can follow the steps below to compare querying BigCommerce 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 BigCommerce twice or another connection to perform a comparison)
6. Write queries in the Editor for each pane, e.g. SELECT * FROM Customers
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 BigCommerce data returned by the query

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