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Get the Report →How to connect and process Exact Online Data from Azure Databricks
Use CData, Azure, and Databricks to perform data engineering and data science on live Exact Online Data
Databricks is a cloud-based service that provides data processing capabilities through Apache Spark. When paired with the CData JDBC Driver, customers can use Databricks to perform data engineering and data science on live Exact Online data. This article walks through hosting the CData JDBC Driver in Azure, as well as connecting to and processing live Exact Online data in Databricks.
With built-in optimized data processing, the CData JDBC Driver offers unmatched performance for interacting with live Exact Online data. When you issue complex SQL queries to Exact Online, the driver pushes supported SQL operations, like filters and aggregations, directly to Exact Online 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 Exact Online data using native data types.
Install the CData JDBC Driver in Azure
To work with live Exact Online data in Databricks, install the driver on your Azure cluster.
- Navigate to your Databricks administration screen and select the target cluster.
- On the Libraries tab, click "Install New."
- Select "Upload" as the Library Source and "Jar" as the Library Type.
- Upload the JDBC JAR file (cdata.jdbc.exactonline.jar) from the installation location (typically C:\Program Files\CData[product_name]\lib).
Connect to Exact Online from Databricks
With the JAR file installed, we are ready to work with live Exact Online data in Databricks. Start by creating a new notebook in your workspace. Name the notebook, select Python as the language (though Scala is available as well), and choose the cluster where you installed the JDBC driver. When the notebook launches, we can configure the connection, query Exact Online, and create a basic report.
Configure the Connection to Exact Online
Connect to Exact Online by referencing the class for the JDBC Driver and constructing a connection string to use in the JDBC URL. Additionally, you will need to set the RTK property in the JDBC URL (unless you are using a Beta driver). You can view the licensing file included in the installation for information on how to set this property.
driver = "cdata.jdbc.exactonline.ExactOnlineDriver" url = "jdbc:exactonline:RTK=5246...;Region='United States';Division=5512;InitiateOAuth=GETANDREFRESH"
Built-in Connection String Designer
For assistance in constructing the JDBC URL, use the connection string designer built into the Exact Online JDBC Driver. Either double-click the JAR file or execute the jar file from the command-line.
java -jar cdata.jdbc.exactonline.jar
Fill in the connection properties and copy the connection string to the clipboard.
Exact Online uses the OAuth authentication standard. The InitiateOAuth connection property facilitates the OAuth flow -- by default, this is set to GETANDREFRESH. You can also use the embedded OAuth credentials or you can register an OAuth app with Exact to obtain your own. In addition to the OAuth values, provide the Region. If Division is not set, the default Division is determined.
See the "Getting Started" chapter of the help documentation for more information.
Load Exact Online Data
Once the connection is configured, you can load Exact Online data as a dataframe using the CData JDBC Driver and the connection information.
remote_table = spark.read.format ( "jdbc" ) \ .option ( "driver" , driver) \ .option ( "url" , url) \ .option ( "dbtable" , "Accounts") \ .load ()
Display Exact Online Data
Check the loaded Exact Online data by calling the display function.
display (remote_table.select ("Name"))
Analyze Exact Online Data in Azure Databricks
If you want to process data with Databricks SparkSQL, register the loaded data as a Temp View.
remote_table.createOrReplaceTempView ( "SAMPLE_VIEW" )
The SparkSQL below retrieves the Exact Online data for analysis.
% sql SELECT Name, CreditLinePurchase FROM Accounts
The data from Exact Online is only available in the target notebook. If you want to use it with other users, save it as a table.
remote_table.write.format ( "parquet" ) .saveAsTable ( "SAMPLE_TABLE" )
Download a free, 30-day trial of the CData JDBC Driver for Exact Online and start working with your live Exact Online data in Azure Databricks. Reach out to our Support Team if you have any questions.