How to integrate Metabase with Elasticsearch Data

Metabase is an open source data visualization tool that allows users to create interactive dashboards. When paired with CData Connect Cloud, users can easily create visualizations and dashboards linked to live Elasticsearch data. This article describes how to connect to Elasticsearch and build a simple visualization using Elasticsearch data.

CData Connect provides a pure cloud-to-cloud interface for Elasticsearch, allowing you to easily integrate with live Elasticsearch data in Metabase — without replicating the data. Connect looks exactly like a SQL Server database to Metabase and uses optimized data processing out of the box to push all supported SQL operations (filters, JOINs, etc) directly to Elasticsearch, leveraging server-side processing to quickly return Elasticsearch data.

Configure Elasticsearch Connectivity for Metabase

Connectivity to Elasticsearch from Metabase is made possible through CData Connect Cloud. To work with Elasticsearch data from Metabase, we start by creating and configuring a Elasticsearch connection.

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

   Set the Server and Port connection properties to connect. To authenticate, set the User and Password properties, PKI (public key infrastructure) properties, or both. To use PKI, set the SSLClientCert, SSLClientCertType, SSLClientCertSubject, and SSLClientCertPassword properties.

   The data provider uses X-Pack Security for TLS/SSL and authentication. To connect over TLS/SSL, prefix the Server value with 'https://'. Note: TLS/SSL and client authentication must be enabled on X-Pack to use PKI.

   Once the data provider is connected, X-Pack will then perform user authentication and grant role permissions based on the realms you have configured.

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

Add a Personal Access Token

If you are connecting from a service, application, platform, or framework that does not support OAuth authentication, you can create a Personal Access Token (PAT) to use for authentication. Best practices would dictate that you create a separate PAT for each service, to maintain granularity of access.

1. Click on your username at the top right of the Connect Cloud app and click User Profile.
2. On the User Profile page, scroll down to the Personal Access Tokens section and click Create PAT.
3. Give your PAT a name and click Create.
4. The personal access token is only visible at creation, so be sure to copy it and store it securely for future use.

With the connection configured, you are ready to connect to Elasticsearch data from Metabase.

Connect to CData Connect from Metabase

After creating the virtual database, navigate to your Metabase instance. Use the SQL Server interface to connect to Connect Cloud.

1. Navigate to the administration screen (Settings -> Admin) and click "Add Database" from the "Databases" tab
2. Configure the connection to Connect Cloud and click "Save"
   • Database type: Select "SQL Server"
   • Name: Name the connection (e.g. "Elasticsearch (Connect Cloud)")
   • Host: tds.cdata.com
   • Port: 14333
   • Database name: The name of the connection you just created (e.g. Elasticsearch1)
   • Username: A Connect Cloud username (e.g. user@mydomain.com)
   • Password: The PAT for the above Connect Cloud user
   • Click to Use a secure connection (SSL)

Execute Elasticsearch Data with Metabase

Once you configure the connection to Connect Cloud, you can query Elasticsearch and build visualizations.

1. Use the "Write SQL" tool to retrieve the Elasticsearch data
2. Write a SQL query based on the Elasticsearch connection in CData Connect Cloud, e.g.
   
   

   SELECT Orders.Freight, Customers.ContactName FROM Customers INNER JOIN Orders ON Customers.CustomerId=Orders.CustomerId

3. Navigate to the "Visualization" screen, choose a visualization, and configure the visualization

More Information & Free Trial

At this point, you have built a simple visualization from Elasticsearch data in Metabase. You can continue to work with live Elasticsearch data in Metabase just like you would any SQL Server database. For more information on creating a live connection to Elasticsearch (and more than 100 other data sources), visit the Connect Cloud page. Sign up for a free trial and start working with live Elasticsearch data in Metabase today.