Import Real-Time eBay Data in ColdFusion to Build Applications



Use CData ODBC drivers to import and use eBay data in ColdFusion.

Adobe ColdFusion is a web and mobile application development platform. It uses its own scripting language, ColdFusion Markup Language (CFML), to create data-driven websites as well as generate remote services, such as REST. When ColdFusion is paired with the CData ODBC Driver for eBay, you can link your ColdFusion web and mobile applications to operational eBay data. This allows for your applications to be more robust and complete. This article details how to use the ODBC driver to create a table populated with eBay data from within a ColdFusion markup file.

To follow along with this tutorial, you need to install the CData ODBC Driver for eBay and Adobe ColdFusion.

Configuring the Connection

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 process. You can use the Microsoft ODBC Data Source Administrator to create and configure ODBC DSNs.

If you will be accessing your own account, you can generate an OAuthAccessToken from your developer account dashboard. You can also allow other users to securely access their own accounts.

Both of these methods require you to create an application key set to obtain values for the following connection properties: AppId, CertId, DevId, and SiteId.

The user consent flow additionally requires the RuName and CallbackURL.

See the "Getting Started" chapter in the help documentation for a guide to using OAuth.

Adding a Data Source and Creating a Table

After creating a DSN, follow the steps below to add a new data source, test our connection to it, create a ColdFusion markup file, and, finally, import eBay eBay data and display it in a table in ColdFusion:

  1. From the ColdFusion administrator interface, choose Data & Services.
  2. Here, click "Add New Data Source". The data source name can be any name, provided it conforms to the ColdFusion variable naming conventions. For our ODBC driver, choose "ODBC Socket", then click the "Add" button.
  3. From the ODBC DSN Dropdown menu select CData eBay Sys. Under the Advanced Settings section, leave the Connection String blank. Note that any properties specified in this input field will override the ones specified in the DSN Configuration.
  4. Now, test the connection by pressing the check mark to the left of the CDataeBayODBC data source you just created. When the data source reports an "OK" status, it is ready for use.
  5. Next, create a new ColdFusion Markup file (.cfm) and place it in the wwwroot directory ("C:\ColdFusion2021\cfusion\wwwroot") for ColdFusion.

    The following code queries the data source:

                
            <cfquery name="eBayQuery" dataSource="CDataeBayODBC"> 
              SELECT * FROM ItemListing 
            </cfquery> 
        
    And a CFTable can be used to quickly output the table in HTML:
                
              <cftable  
              query = "eBayQuery" 
              border = "1" 
              colHeaders 
              colSpacing = "2" 
              headerLines = "2" 
              HTMLTable 
              maxRows = "500" 
              startRow = "1"> 
    
              <cfcol header="<b>Title</b>" align="Left" width=2 text="Title"/> 
    
              <cfcol header="<b>HitCount</b>" align="Left" width=15 text="HitCount"/> 
    
              ...
    
            </cftable> 
        
    Full code, including the HTML portion is available below:
                
            <html> 
            <head><title>CData Software | eBay ItemListing Table Demo </title></head> 
            <body> 
            <cfoutput>#ucase("eBay ItemListing Table Demo")#</cfoutput> 
            <cfquery name="eBayQuery" dataSource="CDataeBayODBC"> 
    
              SELECT * FROM ItemListing 
    
            </cfquery> 
            <cftable  
              query = "eBayQuery" 
              border = "1" 
              colHeaders 
              colSpacing = "2" 
              headerLines = "2" 
              HTMLTable 
              maxRows = "500" 
              startRow = "1"> 
              <cfcol header="<b>Title</b>" align="Left" width=2 text="Title"/> 
    
              <cfcol header="<b>HitCount</b>" align="Left" width=15 text="HitCount"/> 
    
              ...
    
            </cftable> 
            </body> 
    
            </html>  
        
  6. Finally, run the code in a browser. It produces a table populated with eBay data!

As a note, the CData ODBC Drivers also support parameterized queries using the cfqueryparam element. For example: SELECT * FROM Account WHERE name =

Get Started Today

Download a free, 30-day trial of the CData ODBC Driver for eBay and start building eBay-connected applications with Adobe ColdFusion. Reach out to our Support Team if you have any questions.

Ready to get started?

Download a free trial of the eBay ODBC Driver to get started:

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Learn more:

eBay Icon eBay ODBC Driver

The eBay ODBC Driver is a powerful tool that allows you to connect with live eBay auction platform data, directly from any applications that support ODBC connectivity.

Access eBay data like you would a database - read, write, and update Items, Bidders, Transactions, etc. through a standard ODBC Driver interface.