Connect to CloudConvert Data in Ruby

Jerod Johnson
Jerod Johnson
Director, Technology Evangelism
Connect to CloudConvert data in Ruby with ruby-dbi, dbd-odbc, and ruby-odbc.

The CData API Driver for ODBC makes it easy to integrate connectivity to live CloudConvert data in Ruby. This article shows how to create a simple Ruby app that connects to CloudConvert data, executes a query, and displays the results.

Create an ODBC Connection to CloudConvert Data

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.

CloudConvert uses API key authentication. Your CloudConvert API key is used to authenticate requests as a Bearer token. You can generate or view your keys at https://cloudconvert.com/dashboard/api/v2/keys.

Using API Key Authentication

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

  • AuthScheme: Set this to APIKey.
  • APIKey: Set this to your CloudConvert API key.

Example connection string:

Profile=C:\profiles\CloudConvert.apip;AuthScheme=APIKey;ProfileSettings="APIKey=your_api_key";

Installing Ruby and Necessary Gems

If you do not have Ruby installed, refer to the Ruby installation page. With Ruby installed, you will need to install the ruby-dbi, dbd-odbc, and ruby-odbc gems:

gem install dbi
gem install dbd-odbc
gem install ruby-odbc

Create a Ruby App with Connectivity to CloudConvert Data

Create a new Ruby file (for example: APISelect.rb) and open it in a text editor. Copy the following code into your file:

#connect to the DSN
require 'dbi'
cnxn = DBI.connect('DBI:ODBC:CData API Source','','')

#execute a SELECT query and store the result set
resultSet = cnxn.execute("SELECT ,  FROM Jobs WHERE  = ''")

#display the names of the columns
resultSet.column_names.each do |name|
  print name, "\t"
end
puts

#display the results
while row = resultSet.fetch do
  (0..resultSet.column_names.size - 1).each do |n|
    print row[n], "\t"
  end
  puts
end
resultSet.finish

#close the connection
cnxn.disconnect if cnxn

With the file completed, you are ready to display your CloudConvert data with Ruby. To do so, simply run your file from the command line:

ruby APISelect.rb
Writing SQL-92 queries to CloudConvert allows you to quickly and easily incorporate CloudConvert data into your own Ruby applications. Download a free trial today!

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