Integrate CSV Data in Pentaho Data Integration

The CData JDBC Driver for CSV enables access to live data from data pipelines. Pentaho Data Integration is an Extraction, Transformation, and Loading (ETL) engine that data, cleanses the data, and stores data using a uniform format that is accessible.This article shows how to connect to CSV data as a JDBC data source and build jobs and transformations based on CSV data in Pentaho Data Integration.

Configure to CSV Connectivity

The DataSource property must be set to a valid local folder name.

Also, specify the IncludeFiles property to work with text files having extensions that differ from .csv, .tab, or .txt. Specify multiple file extensions in a comma-separated list. You can also set Extended Properties compatible with the Microsoft Jet OLE DB 4.0 driver. Alternatively, you can provide the format of text files in a Schema.ini file.

Set UseRowNumbers to true if you are deleting or updating in CSV. This will create a new column with the name RowNumber which will be used as key for that table.

Built-in Connection String Designer

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

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

When you configure the JDBC URL, 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.

Below is a typical JDBC URL:

Save your connection string for use in Pentaho Data Integration.

Connect to CSV from Pentaho DI

Open Pentaho Data Integration and select "Database Connection" to configure a connection to the CData JDBC Driver for CSV

1. Click "General"
2. Set Connection name (e.g. CSV Connection)
3. Set Connection type to "Generic database"
4. Set Access to "Native (JDBC)"
5. Set Custom connection URL to your CSV connection string (e.g.
   jdbc:csv:DataSource=MyCSVFilesFolder;
6. Set Custom driver class name to "cdata.jdbc.csv.CSVDriver"
7. Test the connection and click "OK" to save.

Create a Data Pipeline for CSV

Once the connection to CSV is configured using the CData JDBC Driver, you are ready to create a new transformation or job.

1. Click "File" >> "New" >> "Transformation/job"
2. Drag a "Table input" object into the workflow panel and select your CSV connection.
3. Click "Get SQL select statement" and use the Database Explorer to view the available tables and views.
4. Select a table and optionally preview the data for verification.

At this point, you can continue your transformation or jb by selecting a suitable destination and adding any transformations to modify, filter, or otherwise alter the data during replication.

Free Trial & More Information

Download a free, 30-day trial of the CData JDBC Driver for CSV and start working with your live CSV data in Pentaho Data Integration today.