Query Excel Online Data in ColdFusion



Write standard ColdFusion data access code to connect to Excel Online data.

The CData JDBC Driver for Excel Online seamlessly integrates connectivity to Excel Online data with the rapid development tools in ColdFusion. This article shows how to connect to Excel Online data in ColdFusion and query Excel Online tables.

Create a JDBC Data Source for Excel Online in ColdFusion

The JDBC data source enables you to execute SQL from standard ColdFusion tags like cfquery and CFScript like executeQuery.

  1. Copy the driver JAR and .lic file from the installation directory onto the ColdFusion classpath. For example, copy the files into C:\MyColdFusionDirectory\cfusion\wwwroot\WEB-INF\lib. Or, open the Java and JVM page in the ColdFusion Administrator and enter the path to the files in the ColdFusion Class Path box.

    The JAR and license for the driver are located in the lib subfolder of the installation directory.

    Restart the server after this step.

  2. Add the driver as a data source:

    From the ColdFusion administrator interface, expand the Data & Services node and click Data Sources. In the Add New Data Source section, enter a name for the data source and select Other in the Driver menu.

  3. Populate the driver properties:

    • JDBC URL: Enter connection properties in the JDBC URL. The JDBC URL begins with jdbc:excelonline: and is followed by the connection properties in a semicolon-separated list of name=value pairs.

      You can connect to a workbook by providing authentication to Excel Online and then setting the following properties:

      • Workbook: Set this to the name or Id of the workbook.

        If you want to view a list of information about the available workbooks, execute a query to the Workbooks view after you authenticate.

      • UseSandbox: Set this to true if you are connecting to a workbook in a sandbox account. Otherwise, leave this blank to connect to a production account.

      You use the OAuth authentication standard to authenticate to Excel Online. See the Getting Started section in the help documentation for a guide. Getting Started also guides you through executing SQL to worksheets and ranges.

      Built-in Connection String Designer

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

      java -jar cdata.jdbc.excelonline.jar

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

      A typical JDBC URL is below:

      jdbc:excelonline:InitiateOAuth=GETANDREFRESH
    • Driver Class: Enter the driver class. The driver class is cdata.jdbc.excelonline.ExcelOnlineDriver.
    • Driver Name: Enter a user-defined name for the driver.
    • Username: Enter the username used to authenticate.
    • Password: Enter the password used to authenticate.

You can now test the connection by enabling the CData Excel Online data source in the Actions column. After reporting a status of OK, the Excel Online data source is ready for use.

Execute Queries

The cfquery tag can pass SQL statements to Excel Online, including INSERT, UPDATE, and DELETE.. Use the cfqueryparam tag to create parameterized queries and prevent SQL injection through the query string.

Note: To use the cfquery and cfscript, create a .cfm file. Inside the .cfm file, write the code to execute the query (see below). Place the file directly in the root directory of your web server (e.g., wwwroot in Adobe ColdFusion). Restart the service after placing the file for the changes to take effect.

<cfquery name="ExcelOnlineQuery" dataSource="CDataExcelOnline"> SELECT * FROM Test_xlsx_Sheet1 WHERE Column2 = <cfqueryparam value="#Column2#" cfsqltype="cf_sql_varchar"> </cfquery> <cfdump var="#ExcelOnlineQuery#">

Below is the equivalent in CFScript:


<cfscript>
result = queryExecute(
  "SELECT * FROM Test_xlsx_Sheet1 WHERE Column2 = ?", 
  [
    { value="Bob", cfsqltype="cf_sql_varchar" }
  ],
  { datasource="CDataExcelOnline" }
);

writeDump( var= result );
</cfscript> 

You can then make requests to your .cfm like the following:

http://MyServer:8500/query.cfm?Column2=Bob

Ready to get started?

Download a free trial of the Excel Online Driver to get started:

 Download Now

Learn more:

Excel Online Icon Excel Online JDBC Driver

Rapidly create and deploy powerful Java applications that integrate with live Excel Online Spreadsheet data!