Build Visualizations of Live Azure Data Catalog Data in Power BI (through CData Connect)

Power BI transforms your company's data into rich visuals for you to collect and organize so you can focus on what matters to you. When paired with CData Connect (on-premise or in the cloud), you get access to Azure Data Catalog data for visualizations, dashboards, and more. This article shows how to use CData Connect to create a virtual database for Azure Data Catalog, connect to Azure Data Catalog data into Power BI and then create reports on Azure Data Catalog data in Power BI.

Create a Virtual SQL Database for Azure Data Catalog Data

CData Connect Server uses a straightforward, point-and-click interface to connect to data sources and generate APIs.

1. Login to Connect Server and click Connections.
2. Select "Azure Data Catalog" from Available Data Sources.
3. Enter the necessary authentication properties to connect to Azure Data Catalog.

   You can optionally set the following to read the different catalog data returned from Azure Data Catalog.

   CatalogName: Set this to the CatalogName associated with your Azure Data Catalog. To get your Catalog name, navigate to your Azure Portal home page > Data Catalog > Catalog Name

   Connect Using OAuth Authentication

   You must use OAuth to authenticate with Azure Data Catalog. OAuth requires the authenticating user to interact with Azure Data Catalog using the browser. For more information, refer to the OAuth section in the help documentation.

4. Click Save Changes
5. Click Privileges -> Add and add the new user (or an existing user) with the appropriate permissions.

With the virtual database created, you are ready to connect to and visualize Azure Data Catalog from Power BI.

Query Azure Data Catalog Tables

Follow the steps below to build a query to pull Azure Data Catalog data into the report:

1. Open Power BI Desktop and click Get Data -> Other -> SQL Server and click "Connect"
2. Set Server to the address and port of your CData Connect instance (localhost:8033 by default) and set Database to the name of the virtual database you just created (AzureDataCatalog1)
3. Use "Database" authentication, enter the credentials for a CData Connect user and click "Connect"
4. Select tables in the Navigator dialog
5. Click Load to import the data into Power BI

Create Azure Data Catalog Data Visualizations

After connecting to the data into Power BI, you can create data visualizations in the Report view by dragging fields from the Fields pane onto the canvas. Select the dimensions and measures you wish to visualize along with the chart type.

Click Refresh to synchronize your report with any changes to the data.

SQL Access to Azure Data Catalog Data from Data Applications

With CData Connect you have a direct connection to Azure Data Catalog data from Power BI. You can import more data, create new visualizations, build reports, and more — all without replicating Azure Data Catalog data.

To get SQL data access to 200+ SaaS, Big Data, and NoSQL sources (including Azure Data Catalog) directly from your on-premise BI, reporting, ETL and other data applications, visit the CData Connect page and download a free trial.