Create Reports from Azure Synapse Data in Looker Studio

Looker Studio (formerly Google Data Studio) allows you to create branded reports with data visualizations to share with your clients. When paired with CData Connect Cloud, you get instant, cloud-to-cloud access to Azure Synapse data for visualizations, dashboards, and more. This article shows how to create a virtual database for Azure Synapse and build reports from Azure Synapse data in Looker Studio.

CData Connect Cloud provides a pure cloud-to-cloud interface for Azure Synapse, allowing you to easily build reports from live Azure Synapse data in Looker Studio — without replicating the data. As you build visualizations, Looker Studio generates queries to gather data. Using optimized data processing out of the box, CData Connect Cloud pushes all supported query operations (filters, JOINs, etc) directly to Azure Synapse, leveraging server-side processing to quickly return Azure Synapse data.

Connect to Azure Synapse in Connect Cloud

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

1. Log into Connect Cloud, click Connections and click Add Connection
2. Select "Azure Synapse" from the Add Connection panel
3. Enter the necessary authentication properties to connect to Azure Synapse.

   Connecting to Azure Synapse

   In addition to providing authentication (see below), set the following properties to connect to a Azure Synapse database:

   • Server: The server running Azure. You can find this by logging into the Azure portal and navigating to Azure Synapse Analytics -> Select your database -> Overview -> Server name.
   • Database: The name of the database, as seen in the Azure portal on the Azure Synapse Analytics page.

   Authenticating to Azure Synapse

   Connect to Azure Synapse using the following properties:

   • User: The username provided for authentication with Azure.
   • Password: The password associated with the authenticating user.
4. Click Create & Test
5. Navigate to the Permissions tab in the Add Azure Synapse Connection page and update the User-based permissions.

With the connection configured, you are ready to connect to Azure Synapse data from Looker Studio.

Visualize Live Azure Synapse Data in Looker Studio

The steps below outline connecting to CData Connect Cloud from Looker Studio to create a new Azure Synapse data source and build a simple visualization from the data.

1. Log into Looker Studio, click data sources, create a new data source, and choose CData Connect Cloud Connector.
2. Click Authorize and allow access to your Google account.
3. Click Authorize to authenticate with your CData Connect Cloud instance
4. In the CData Connect Cloud Connector in Looker Studio select a Connection (e.g. AzureSynapse1) and click Next
5. Select a Table (e.g. Products) or use a Custom Query and click Connect to continue
6. If needed, modify columns, click Create Report, and add the data source to the report.
7. Select a visualization style and add it to the report.
8. Select Dimensions and Measures to customize your visualization.

Live Access to Azure Synapse Data from Cloud Applications

Now you have a direct, cloud-to-cloud connection to live Azure Synapse data from your Looker Studio workbook. You can create more data sources and new visualizations, build reports, and more — all without replicating Azure Synapse data.

Try CData Connect Cloud and get real-time data access to 100+ SaaS, Big Data, and NoSQL sources directly from your cloud applications.