Query Active Directory Data in DataGrip

DataGrip is a database IDE that allows SQL developers to query, create, and manage databases. When paired with the CData JDBC Driver for Active Directory, DataGrip can work with live Active Directory data. This article shows how to establish a connection to Active Directory data in DataGrip and use the table editor to load Active Directory data.

Create a New Driver Definition for Active Directory

The steps below describe how to create a new Data Source in DataGrip for Active Directory.

1. In DataGrip, click File -> New > Project and name the project
2. In the Database Explorer, click the plus icon () and select Driver.
3. In the Driver tab:
   • Set Name to a user-friendly name (e.g. "CData Active Directory Driver")
   • Set Driver Files to the appropriate JAR file. To add the file, click the plus (), select "Add Files," navigate to the "lib" folder in the driver's installation directory and select the JAR file (e.g. cdata.jdbc.activedirectory.jar).
   • Set Class to cdata.jdbc.activedirectory.ActiveDirectory.jar
   Additionally, in the advanced tab you can change driver properties and some other settings like VM Options, VM environment, VM home path, DBMS, etc
   • For most cases, change the DBMS type to "Unknown" in Expert options to avoid native SQL Server queries (Transact-SQL), which might result in an invalid function error
4. Click "Apply" then "OK" to save the Connection

Configure a Connection to Active Directory

1. Once the connection is saved, click the plus (), then "Data Source" then "CData Active Directory Driver" to create a new Active Directory Data Source.
2. In the new window, configure the connection to Active Directory with a JDBC URL.

   Built-in Connection String Designer

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

   java -jar cdata.jdbc.activedirectory.jar

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

   To establish a connection, set the following properties:

   • Valid User and Password credentials (e.g., Domain\BobF or cn=Bob F,ou=Employees,dc=Domain).
   • Server information, including the IP or host name of the Server, as well as the Port.

   • BaseDN: This will limit the scope of LDAP searches to the height of the distinguished name provided.

     Note: Specifying a narrow BaseDN may greatly increase performance; for example, cn=users,dc=domain will only return results contained within cn=users and its children.

3. Set URL to the connection string, e.g., jdbc:activedirectory:User=cn=Bob F,ou=Employees,dc=Domain;Password=bob123;Server=10.0.1.2;Port=389;
4. Click "Apply" and "OK" to save the connection string

At this point, you will see the data source in the Data Explorer.

Execute SQL Queries Against Active Directory

To browse through the Active Directory entities (available as tables) accessible through the JDBC Driver, expand the Data Source.

To execute queries, right click on any table and select "New" -> "Query Console."

In the Console, write the SQL query you wish to execute. For example: SELECT Id, LogonCount FROM User

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