Use the CData ODBC Driver for ApprovalMax in MicroStrategy Desktop

MicroStrategy is an analytics and mobility platform that enables data-driven innovation. When paired with the CData ODBC Driver for ApprovalMax, you gain database-like access to live ApprovalMax data from MicroStrategy, expanding your reporting and analytics capabilities. In this article, we walk through adding ApprovalMax as a data source in MicroStrategy Desktop and creating a simple visualization of ApprovalMax data.

The CData ODBC Driver offers unmatched performance for interacting with live ApprovalMax data in MicroStrategy due to optimized data processing built into the driver. When you issue complex SQL queries from MicroStrategy to ApprovalMax, the driver pushes supported SQL operations, like filters and aggregations, directly to ApprovalMax and utilizes the embedded SQL Engine to process unsupported operations (often SQL functions and JOIN operations) client-side. With built-in dynamic metadata querying, you can visualize and analyze ApprovalMax data using native MicroStrategy data types.

Connect to ApprovalMax as an ODBC Data Source

Information for connecting to ApprovalMax follows, along with different instructions for configuring a DSN in Windows and Linux environments.

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.

When you configure the DSN, you may also want to set the Max Rows connection property. This will limit the number of rows returned, which is especially helpful for improving performance when designing reports and visualizations.

Windows

If you have not already, first specify connection properties in an ODBC DSN (data source name). This is the last step of the driver installation. You can use the Microsoft ODBC Data Source Administrator to create and configure ODBC DSNs.

Linux

If you are installing the CData ODBC Driver for ApprovalMax in a Linux environment, the driver installation predefines a system DSN. You can modify the DSN by editing the system data sources file (/etc/odbc.ini) and defining the required connection properties.

/etc/odbc.ini

[CData API Sys]
Driver = CData ODBC Driver for ApprovalMax
Description = My Description
Profile = C:\profiles\ApprovalMax.apip
AuthScheme = OAuth
InitiateOAuth = GETANDREFRESH
OAuthClientId = your_client_id
OAuthClientSecret = your_client_secret
CallbackURL = your_callback_url

For specific information on using these configuration files, please refer to the help documentation (installed and found online).

Connect to and Visualize ApprovalMax Data using MicroStrategy Desktop

In addition to connecting ApprovalMax in MicroStrategy enterprise products, you can connect to ApprovalMax in MicroStrategy Desktop. Follow the steps below to add ApprovalMax data as a dataset and create visualizations and reports of ApprovalMax data.

1. Open MicroStrategy Desktop and create a new dossier.
2. In the datasets panel, click New Data, select Databases, and select Type a Query as the Import Option.
3. Add a new data source and choose DSN data sources.
4. Choose the DSN you previously configured (likely CData API Sys) and select Generic DBMS in the Version menu.
5. Set the User and Password properties for the DSN (or use placeholder values) and name the data source.

6. Select the new database instance to view the tables. You may need to manually click the search icon in the Available Tables section to see the tables.
7. Create a SQL query for the ApprovalMax data (see below) and click Execute SQL to test the query.

   
   SELECT * FROM UserProfiles
   

   NOTE: Since we create a live connection, we can execute a SELECT * query and utilize the filtering and aggregation features native to the MicroStrategy products.
8. Click Finish and choose to connect live.
9. Choose a visualization, choose fields to display (data types are discovered automatically through dynamic metadata discovery) and apply any filters to create a new visualization of ApprovalMax data. Where possible, the complex queries generated by the filters and aggregations will be pushed down to ApprovalMax, while any unsupported operations (which can include SQL functions and JOIN operations) will be managed client-side by the CData SQL Engine embedded in the driver.
10. Once you are finished configuring the dossier, click File -> Save.

Using the CData ODBC Driver for ApprovalMax in MicroStrategy Desktop, you can easily create robust visualizations and reports on ApprovalMax data. Read our other articles on connecting to ApprovalMax in MicroStrategy and connecting to ApprovalMax in MicroStrategy Web for more examples.