Access Live Google Cloud Storage Data in Excel (Desktop) through Connect Spreadsheets

Cameron Leblanc
Cameron Leblanc
Senior Technology Evangelist
Use Connect Spreadsheets by CData to gain access to live Google Cloud Storage data from your Excel spreadsheets.

Looking for Connect AI instructions?

Your Connect AI account includes Connect Spreadsheets, so you can use the instructions below. You can expect minor differences when referencing the Connect Spreadsheet platform, but the principles still apply!


Microsoft Excel is a widely used spreadsheet software application, primarily used for tasks related to data management, analysis, and visualization. When combined with Connect Spreadsheets by CData, you gain immediate access to Google Cloud Storage data directly within Excel, facilitating data analysis, collaboration, calculations, and more. This article shows how to connect to Google Cloud Storage in Connect Spreadsheets and access live Google Cloud Storage data in Excel spreadsheets.

Connect Spreadsheets is the easiest way to get all your live data into Microsoft Excel and Google Sheets - no more downloading, wrangling, and uploading files again. Just connect to your data, select the dataset you'd like to see, and import it into your spreadsheet.

This setup requires a Connect Spreadsheets account and the Connect Spreadsheets Add-In for Excel. To get started, sign up a free trial of Connect Spreadsheets and install the free Connect Spreadsheets Excel Add-In.


Configure Google Cloud Storage Connectivity for Excel

Connectivity to Google Cloud Storage from Excel is made possible through Connect Spreadsheets. To work with Google Cloud Storage data from Excel, we start by creating and configuring a Google Cloud Storage connection.

  1. Log into Connect Spreadsheets, click Connections and click Add Connection Adding a Connection
  2. Select "Google Cloud Storage" from the Add Connection panel Selecting a data source
  3. Enter the necessary authentication properties to connect to Google Cloud Storage.

    Authenticate with a User Account

    You can connect without setting any connection properties for your user credentials. After setting InitiateOAuth to GETANDREFRESH, you are ready to connect.

    When you connect, the Google Cloud Storage OAuth endpoint opens in your default browser. Log in and grant permissions, then the OAuth process completes

    Authenticate with a Service Account

    Service accounts have silent authentication, without user authentication in the browser. You can also use a service account to delegate enterprise-wide access scopes.

    You need to create an OAuth application in this flow. See the Help documentation for more information. After setting the following connection properties, you are ready to connect:

    • InitiateOAuth: Set this to GETANDREFRESH.
    • OAuthJWTCertType: Set this to "PFXFILE".
    • OAuthJWTCert: Set this to the path to the .p12 file you generated.
    • OAuthJWTCertPassword: Set this to the password of the .p12 file.
    • OAuthJWTCertSubject: Set this to "*" to pick the first certificate in the certificate store.
    • OAuthJWTIssuer: In the service accounts section, click Manage Service Accounts and set this field to the email address displayed in the service account Id field.
    • OAuthJWTSubject: Set this to your enterprise Id if your subject type is set to "enterprise" or your app user Id if your subject type is set to "user".
    • ProjectId: Set this to the Id of the project you want to connect to.

    The OAuth flow for a service account then completes.

    Configuring a connection (Salesforce is shown)
  4. Click Create & Test
  5. Navigate to the Permissions tab in the Add Google Cloud Storage Connection page and update the User-based permissions. Updating permissions

With the connection configured, you are ready to connect to Google Cloud Storage data from Excel.

Access Live Google Cloud Storage Data in Excel

The steps below outline connecting to Connect Spreadsheets from Excel to access live Google Cloud Storage data.

  1. Open Excel, create a new sheet (or open an existing one).
  2. Click Insert and click Get Add-ins. (if you have already installed the Add-In, jump to step 4).
  3. Search for Connect Spreadsheets and install the Add-in. Install the Add-In
  4. Click Data and open the CData Connect Spreadsheets Add-In.
  5. In the Add-In panel, click "Log in" to authenticate with your Connect Spreadsheets account Authorizing the Add-In
  6. In the Connect Spreadsheets panel in Excel, click Import Connect Spreadsheets panel in Excel
  7. Choose a Connection (e.g. GoogleCloudStorage1), Table (e.g. Buckets), and Columns to import Connect Spreadsheets panel in Excel
  8. Optionally add Filters, Sorting, and a Limit Choosing a Connection, Table, and Columns
  9. Click Execute to import the data and opt to overwrite the existing sheet or create a new one. Executing the Query

Live Access to Google Cloud Storage Data from Spreadsheet Apps

New, you have a direct, cloud-to-cloud connection to live Google Cloud Storage data from your Excel workbook. You can add more data to your workbook for calculations, aggregations, collaboration, and more.

Imported data (Salesforce is shown)

Try Connect Spreadsheets and get real-time data access to hundreds of SaaS, Big Data, and NoSQL sources directly from Microsoft Excel.

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