How to connect to Salesforce Data from IntelliJ

The CData JDBC Driver for Salesforce enables you to access Salesforce as a JDBC data source, providing integration with rapid development tools in IDEs. This article shows how to use the data source configuration wizard to connect to Salesforce data in IntelliJ.

Create a JBDC Data Source for Salesforce

Follow the steps below to add the driver JAR and define connection properties required to connect to Salesforce data.

1. In the Data Sources window, right-click and then click Add Data Source -> DB Data Source.

2. In the Data Source Properties dialog that appears, the following properties are required:

   • JDBC Driver Files: Click the button next to this menu to add the JDBC Driver file cdata.jdbc.salesforce.jar, located in the installation directory.
   • JDBC Driver Class: In this menu, select cdata.jdbc.salesforce.SalesforceDriver from the list.

   • Database URL: Enter the connection URL in the JDBC URL property. The URL must start with jdbc:salesforce: and includes connection properties separated with semicolons.

     There are several authentication methods available for connecting to Salesforce: Login, OAuth, and SSO. The Login method requires you to have the username, password, and security token of the user.

     If you do not have access to the username and password or do not wish to require them, you can use OAuth authentication.

     SSO (single sign-on) can be used by setting the SSOProperties, SSOLoginUrl, and TokenUrl connection properties, which allow you to authenticate to an identity provider. See the "Getting Started" chapter in the help documentation for more information.

     Built-in Connection String Designer

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

     java -jar cdata.jdbc.salesforce.jar

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

     A typical JDBC URL is the following:

     jdbc:salesforce:User=username;Password=password;SecurityToken=Your_Security_Token;

Edit and Save Salesforce Data

To discover schema information, right-click the data source you just created and click Refresh Tables. To query a table, right-click it and then click Open Tables Editor. You can also modify records in the Table Editor.