Connect to ApprovalMax Data in RapidMiner

This article shows how you can easily integrate the CData JDBC driver for ApprovalMax into your processes in RapidMiner. This article uses the CData JDBC Driver for ApprovalMax to transfer ApprovalMax data to a process in RapidMiner.

Connect to ApprovalMax in RapidMiner as a JDBC Data Source

You can follow the procedure below to establish a JDBC connection to ApprovalMax:

1. Add a new database driver for ApprovalMax: Click Connections -> Manage Database Drivers.
2. In the resulting wizard, click the Add button and enter a name for the connection.
3. Enter the prefix for the JDBC URL:

   
   jdbc:api:
   

4. Enter the path to the cdata.jdbc.api.jar file, located in the lib subfolder of the installation directory.
5. Enter the driver class:

   
   cdata.jdbc.api.APIDriver
   

   
6. Create a new ApprovalMax connection: Click Connections -> Manage Database Connections.
7. Enter a name for your connection.
8. For Database System, select the ApprovalMax driver you configured previously.
9. Enter your connection string in the Host box.

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

   ApprovalMax API Profile Settings

   To authenticate to ApprovalMax and connect to your own data or to allow other users to connect to their data, the ApprovalMax Public API requires the OAuth 2.0 authorization code flow.

   First, you will need to register an OAuth application with ApprovalMax. Sign in to the ApprovalMax Developer Portal (https://developer.approvalmax.com/applications) and create a new application. Your OAuth application will be assigned a Client ID and a Client Secret, and you must register at least one Redirect URI (Callback URL).

   A Premium ApprovalMax subscription (or active trial) is required to use the Public API.

   After setting the following connection properties, 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 shown in your application settings on the ApprovalMax Developer Portal.
   • OAuthClientSecret: Set this to the Client Secret that is shown in your application settings on the ApprovalMax Developer Portal.
   • CallbackURL: Set this to the Redirect URI that is registered in your application settings.
   • Scope: (Optional) Override the default OAuth scopes. The default value openid offline_access https://www.approvalmax.com/scopes/public_api/read grants read-only access to all tables in this profile and enables refresh tokens. Use the principle of least privilege when narrowing this scope.

   The OAuth Authorization URL is https://identity.approvalmax.com/connect/authorize and the Token URL is https://identity.approvalmax.com/connect/token. Both authorization_code and refresh_token grant types are supported.

   Built-in Connection String Designer

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

   
   java -jar cdata.jdbc.api.jar
   

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

   

   A typical connection string is below:

   
   Profile=C:\profiles\ApprovalMax.apip;AuthScheme=OAuth;InitiateOAuth=GETANDREFRESH;OAuthClientId=your_client_id;OAuthClientSecret=your_client_secret;CallbackURL=your_callback_url;
   

10. Enter your username and password if necessary.

You can now use your ApprovalMax connection with the various RapidMiner operators in your process. To retrieve ApprovalMax data, drag the Retrieve operator from the Operators view. With the Retrieve operator selected, you can then define which table to retrieve in the Parameters view by clicking the folder icon next to the "repository entry." In the resulting Repository Browser, you can expand your connection node to select the desired example set.

Finally, wire the output to the Retrieve process to a result, and run the process to see the ApprovalMax data.