Visualize Excel Data in TIBCO Spotfire through OData

OData is a major protocol enabling real-time communication among cloud-based, mobile, and other online applications. The CData Connect Server provides Excel data to OData consumers like TIBCO Spotfire. This article shows how to use the Connect Server and Spotfire's built-in support for OData to access Excel data in real time.

Configuring Connect Server

To work with live Excel data in TIBCO Spotfire, we need to connect to Excel from Connect Server, provide user access to the new virtual database, and create OData endpoints for the Excel data.

Add a Connect Server User

Create a User to connect to Excel from TIBCO Spotfire through Connect Server.

1. Click Users -> Add
2. Configure a User
3. Click Save Changes and make note of the Authtoken for the new user

Connect to Excel from Connect Server

CData Connect Server uses a straightforward, point-and-click interface to connect to data sources and generate APIs.

1. Open Connect Server and click Connections
2. Select "Excel" from Available Data Sources
3. Enter the necessary authentication properties to connect to Excel.

   The ExcelFile, under the Authentication section, must be set to a valid Excel File.

4. Click Save Changes
5. Click Privileges -> Add and add the new user (or an existing user) with the appropriate permissions (SELECT is all that is required for Reveal).

Add Excel OData Endpoints in Connect Server

After connecting to Excel, create OData Endpoints for the desired table(s).

1. Click OData -> Tables -> Add Tables
2. Select the Excel database
3. Select the table(s) you wish to work with and click Next
4. (Optional) Edit the resource to select specific fields and more
5. Save the settings

(Optional) Configure Cross-Origin Resource Sharing (CORS)

When accessing and connecting to multiple domains from an application such as Ajax, there is a possibility of violating the limitations of cross-site scripting. In that case, configure the CORS settings in OData -> Settings.

• Enable cross-origin resource sharing (CORS): ON
• Allow all domains without '*': ON
• Access-Control-Allow-Methods: GET, PUT, POST, OPTIONS
• Access-Control-Allow-Headers: Authorization

Save the changes to the settings.

Create Data Visualizations on External Excel Data

1. Open Spotfire and click Data -> Add data...
2. Then, click "Connect to" -> OData -> New Connection. In the OData Connection dialog, enter the following information:
   • Service URL: Enter the Connect Server's OData endpoint. For example: http://localhost:8080/odata.rsc
   • Authentication Method: Select Username and Password.
   • Username: Enter the username of a Connect Server user. You can create API users on the Security tab of the administration console.
   • Password: Enter the authtoken of a Connect Server user.
3. Select the tables and columns you want to add to the dashboard. This example uses Sheet.

4. If you want to work with the live data, click the Keep Data Table External option. This option enables your dashboards to reflect changes to the data in real time.

   If you want to load the data into memory and process the data locally, click the Import Data Table option. This option is better for offline use or if a slow network connection is making your dashboard less interactive.

5. After you have selected a table, Spotfire uses the data to detect number, time, and other categories. You are now on your way to creating new visualizations for analytics, reporting, and more.

Free Trial & More Information

If you are interested in connecting to your Excel data (or data from any of our other supported data sources) from TIBCO Spotfire, sign up for a free trial of CData Connect Server today! For more information on Connect Server and to see what other data sources we support, refer to our CData Connect page.