How to integrate Metabase with Aha! Data

Metabase is an open source data visualization tool that allows users to create interactive dashboards. When paired with CData Connect AI, users can easily create visualizations and dashboards linked to live Aha! data. This article describes how to connect to Aha! and build a simple visualization using Aha! data.

CData Connect provides a pure cloud-to-cloud interface for Aha!, allowing you to easily integrate with live Aha! data in Metabase — without replicating the data. Connect looks exactly like a SQL Server database to Metabase and uses optimized data processing out of the box to push all supported SQL operations (filters, JOINs, etc) directly to Aha!, leveraging server-side processing to quickly return Aha! data.

Configure Aha! Connectivity for Metabase

Connectivity to Aha! from Metabase is made possible through CData Connect AI. To work with Aha! data from Metabase, we start by creating and configuring a Aha! connection.

1. Log into Connect AI, click Sources, and then click Add Connection

2. Select "Aha!" from the Add Connection panel

3. Enter the necessary authentication properties to connect to Aha!.

   Start by setting the Profile connection property to the location of the Aha! Profile on disk (e.g. C:\profiles\aha.apip). Next, set the ProfileSettings connection property to the connection string for Aha! (see below).

   Aha! API Profile Settings

   The Aha! API uses OAuth-based authentication.

   You will first need to register an OAuth app with Aha!. This can be done from your Aha! account under 'Settings' > 'Personal' > 'Developer' > 'OAuth Applications'. Additionally, set the Domain, found in the domain name of your Aha account. For example if your Aha account is acmeinc.aha.io, then the Domain should be 'acmeinc'.

   After setting the following in the connection string, you are ready to connect:

   • AuthScheme: Set this to OAuth.
   • InitiateOAuth: Set this to GETANDREFRESH. You can use InitiateOAuth to manage the process to obtain the OAuthAccessToken.
   • OAuthClientId: Set this to the client_id that is specified in you app settings.
   • OAuthClientSecret: Set this to the client_secret that is specified in you app settings.
   • CallbackURL: Set this to the Redirect URI you specified in your app settings.
   • Domain: Set this in the ProfileSettings to your Aha domain.
   
4. Click Save & Test
5. Navigate to the Permissions tab in the Add Aha! Connection page and update the User-based permissions.

Add a Personal Access Token

When connecting to Connect AI through the REST API, the OData API, or the Virtual SQL Server, a Personal Access Token (PAT) is used to authenticate the connection to Connect AI. It is best practice to create a separate PAT for each service to maintain granularity of access.

1. Click on the Gear icon () at the top right of the Connect AI app to open the settings page.
2. On the Settings page, go to the Access Tokens section and click Create PAT.
3. Give the PAT a name and click Create.
4. The personal access token is only visible at creation, so be sure to copy it and store it securely for future use.

With the connection configured and a PAT generated, you are ready to connect to Aha! data from Metabase.

Connect to CData Connect AI from Metabase

After creating the connection in Connect AI, navigate to your Metabase instance. Use the SQL Server interface to connect to Connect AI.

1. Navigate to the administration screen (Settings -> Admin) and click "Add Database" from the "Databases" tab
2. Configure the connection to Connect AI and click "Save"
   • Database type: Select "SQL Server"
   • Name: Name the connection (e.g. "Aha! (Connect AI)")
   • Host: tds.cdata.com
   • Port: 14333
   • Database name: The name of the connection you just created (e.g. API1)
   • Username: A Connect AI username (e.g. [email protected])
   • Password: The PAT previously created
   • Click to Use a secure connection (SSL)
   

Execute Aha! Data with Metabase

Once you configure the connection to Connect AI, you can query Aha! and build visualizations.

1. Use the "Write SQL" tool to retrieve the Aha! data
2. Write a SQL query based on the Aha! connection in CData Connect AI, e.g.
   
   

   SELECT Id, Name FROM Ideas WHERE AssignedToUserId = 'my_user_id'

   
3. Navigate to the "Visualization" screen, choose a visualization, and configure the visualization

More Information & Free Trial

At this point, you have built a simple visualization from Aha! data in Metabase. You can continue to work with live Aha! data in Metabase just like you would any SQL Server database. For more information on creating a live connection to Aha! (and more than 100 other data sources), visit the Connect AI page. Sign up for a free trial and start working with live Aha! data in Metabase today.