How to create an RPA flow for Gmail Data in UiPath Studio

UiPath is a Robotic Process Automation (RPA) platform with rich features and an easy-to-use UI that enables non-developers to create process automation. By using UiPath Studio, you can build an RPA program just like drawing a diagram. With the CData ODBC Driver for Gmail, users can embed Gmail data in the workflow.

This article walks through using the Gmail ODBC Driver in UiPath Studio to create an RPA program that accesses Gmail data.

Configure the Connection to Gmail

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

There are two ways to authenticate to Gmail. Before selecting one, first ensure that you have enabled IMAP access in your Gmail account settings. See the "Connecting to Gmail" section under "Getting Started" in the installed documentation for a guide.

The User and Password properties, under the Authentication section, can be set to valid Gmail user credentials.

Alternatively, instead of providing the Password, you can use the OAuth authentication standard. To access Google APIs on behalf on individual users, you can use the embedded credentials or you can register your own OAuth app.

OAuth also enables you to use a service account to connect on behalf of users in a Google Apps domain. To authenticate with a service account, you will need to register an application to obtain the OAuth JWT values.

In addition to the OAuth values, you will need to provide the User. See the "Getting Started" chapter in the help documentation for a guide to using OAuth.

Connect UiPath Studio to Gmail Data

Now you are ready to use Gmail data ODBC DSN in UiPath Studio with the following steps.

1. From the Start page, click Blank to create a New Project.
2. Click Manage Packages then search for and install UiPath.Database.Activities.
3. Navigate to the Activities and drop a Flowchart (Workflow -> Flowchart -> Flowchart) onto the process.
4. Drop a database Connect activity (App Integration -> Datbase -> Connect) after the Start activity.
5. Double-click the Connect activity and configure the Connection.
   1. Click the Connection Wizard
   2. Select "Microsoft ODBC Data Source"
   3. In Connection Properties, select your DSN (CData Gmail Source) and click OK
6. To store Connection info, create a variable and bind to Output in the Properties section. Choose DatabaseConnection in Output.
   

Create an Execute Query Activity

With the connection configured, we are ready to query Gmail data in our RPA.

1. From the Activities navigation, select Execute Query and drop it on the Flowchart.
2. Double-click the Execute Query activity and set the properties as follows:
   • ExistingDbConnection: Your Connection variable
   • Sql: SELECT statement like SELECT Subject, Size FROM Inbox
   • DataTable: Create and use a variable with the Type System.Data.DataTable

Create Write CSV Activity

With the Connection and Execute Query activities configured, we are ready to add a Write CSV activity to the Flowchart to replicate the Gmail data.

1. From the Activities navigation, select Write CSV and drop it after the Execute Query activity.
2. Double-click the Write CSV activity and set the properties as follows:
   • FilePath: Set to a file (new or existing) on disk (i.e.: C:\UiPath[id]-data.csv
   • DataTable: Set to the DataTable variable you created earlier

Connect the Activities and Run the Flowchart

If they are not already connected, connect each Activity that you created to complete the RPA project for extracting Gmail data and exporting it to CSV.

Click Run to extract Gmail data and create a CSV file.

In this article, we used the CData ODBC Driver for Gmail to create an automation flow that accesses Gmail data in UiPath Studio. Download a free, 30-day trial of the ODBC Driver and start working with live Gmail data in UiPath Studio today!