Bridge Sybase Connectivity with Apache NiFi

Apache NiFi supports powerful and scalable directed graphs of data routing, transformation, and system mediation logic. When paired with the CData JDBC Driver for Sybase, NiFi can work with live Sybase data. This article describes how to connect to and query Sybase data from an Apache NiFi Flow.

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

Connecting to Sybase Data in Apache NiFi

1. Download the CData JDBC Driver for Sybase installer, unzip the package, and run the JAR file to install the driver.

2. Copy the CData JDBC Driver JAR file (and license file if it exists), cdata.jdbc.sybase.jar (and cdata.jdbc.sybase.lic), to the Apache NiFi lib subfolder, for example, C:\nifi-1.3.0-bin\nifi-1.3.0\lib.

   On Windows, the default location for the CData JDBC Driver is C:\Program Files\CData\CData JDBC Driver for Sybase.

3. Start Apache NiFi. For example:

   cd C:\nifi-1.3.0-bin\nifi-1.3.0\bin
   run-nifi.bat
   

4. Navigate to the Apache NiFi UI in your web browser: typically http://localhost:8080/nifi
5. Click the (Configuration) button from the Operate sidebar.
6. In the NiFi Flow Configuration page, navigate to the Controller Services tab.
7. Click the button to create a new controller service.
8. In the Add Controller Service page, select DBCPConnection Pool, and then click Add.
9. Click the gear button to configure the new DBCPConnection Pool.

10. In the Configure Controller Service page, navigate to the Properties tab. Fill in the properties:

    Property	Value
    Database Connection URL	jdbc:sybase:User=myuser;Password=mypassword;Server=localhost;Database=mydatabase;Charset=iso_1;
    Database Driver Class Name	cdata.jdbc.sybase.SybaseDriver

    Built-in Connection String Designer

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

    java -jar cdata.jdbc.sybase.jar

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

    To connect to Sybase, specify the following connection properties:

    • Server: Set this to the name or network address of the Sybase database instance.
    • Database: Set this to the name of the Sybase database running on the specified Server.

    Optionally, you can also secure your connections with TLS/SSL by setting UseSSL to true.

    Sybase supports several methods for authentication including Password and Kerberos.

    Connect Using Password Authentication

    Set the AuthScheme to Password and set the following connection properties to use Sybase authentication.

    • User: Set this to the username of the authenticating Sybase user.
    • Password: Set this to the username of the authenticating Sybase user.

    Connect using LDAP Authentication

    To connect with LDAP authentication, you will need to configure Sybase server-side to use the LDAP authentication mechanism.

    After configuring Sybase for LDAP, you can connect using the same credentials as Password authentication.

    Connect Using Kerberos Authentication

    To leverage Kerberos authentication, begin by enabling it setting AuthScheme to Kerberos. See the Using Kerberos section in the Help documentation for more information on using Kerberos authentication.

    You can find an example connection string below: Server=MyServer;Port=MyPort;User=SampleUser;Password=SamplePassword;Database=MyDB;Kerberos=true;KerberosKDC=MyKDC;KerberosRealm=MYREALM.COM;KerberosSPN=server-name

11. Click the button to enable the new DBCPConnection Pool.

Your Sybase data is now available for use in Apache NiFi. For example, you can use the DBCPConnection Pool as the source for a QueryDatabaseTable processor.

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