Visualize Live Dynamics NAV Data in Power BI (via CData Connect AI)

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 AI, you get access to Dynamics NAV data for visualizations, dashboards, and more. This article shows how to use CData Connect to create a live connection to Dynamics NAV, connect to Dynamics NAV data from Power BI and then create reports on Dynamics NAV data in Power BI.

Configure Dynamics NAV Connectivity for Power BI

Connectivity to Dynamics NAV from Power BI is made possible through CData Connect AI. To work with Dynamics NAV data from Power BI, we start by creating and configuring a Dynamics NAV connection.

1. Log into Connect AI, click Sources, and then click Add Connection

2. Select "Dynamics NAV" from the Add Connection panel

3. Enter the necessary authentication properties to connect to Dynamics NAV.

   Before you can connect, OData Services will need to be enabled on the server. Once OData Services are enabled, you will be able to query any Services that are published on the server.

   The User and Password properties, under the Authentication section, must be set to valid Dynamics NAV user credentials. In addition, specify a URL to a valid Dynamics NAV server organization root and a ServerInstance. If there is not a Service Default Company for the server, set the Company as well.

   
4. Click Save & Test
5. Navigate to the Permissions tab in the Add Dynamics NAV Connection page and update the User-based permissions.

With the connection configured, you are ready to connect to Dynamics NAV data from Power BI.

Query Dynamics NAV Tables

Follow the steps below to build a query to pull Dynamics NAV data into the report:

1. Open Power BI Desktop and click Get Data -> Online Services -> CData Connect AI and click "Connect"
2. Click "Sign in" and authenticate with your CData Connect AI account
3. After signing in, click "Connect"
4. Select tables in the Navigator dialog
5. Click Load to establish the connection to your Dynamics NAV data from Power BI

Create Dynamics NAV 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.

Live Access to Dynamics NAV Data from Data Applications

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

To get SQL data access to hundreds of SaaS, Big Data, and NoSQL sources (including Dynamics NAV) directly from your on-premise BI, reporting, ETL and other data applications, visit the CData Connect AI page and start a free trial.