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Use CData Connect Cloud to Access Google Contacts Data in Microsoft Power Pivot
Use CData Connect Cloud to connect to live Google Contacts data in the Power Pivot business intelligence tool.
This article will explain how to use CData Connect Cloud to present Google Contacts data as OData services and then consume the data in Microsoft Excel's Power Pivot business intelligence tool. Follow the steps below to retrieve and edit Google Contacts data in Power Pivot.
Connect to Google Contacts from Power Pivot
To work with Google Contacts data from Power Pivot, we need to connect to Google Contacts from Connect Cloud, provide user access to the connection, and create a Workspace for the Google Contacts data.
Connect to Google Contacts from Connect Cloud
CData Connect Cloud uses a straightforward, point-and-click interface to connect to data sources.
- Log into Connect Cloud, click Sources, and then click Add Connection
- Select "Google Contacts" from the Add Connection panel
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Enter the necessary authentication properties to connect to Google Contacts.
You can connect to Google APIs on behalf of individual users or on behalf of a domain. Google uses the OAuth authentication standard. See the "Getting Started" section of the help documentation for a guide.
- Click Create & Test
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Navigate to the Permissions tab in the Add Google Contacts Connection page and update the User-based permissions.
Add a Personal Access Token
When connecting to Connect Cloud through the REST API, the OData API, or the Virtual SQL Server, a Personal Access Token (PAT) is used to authenticate the connection to Connect Cloud. It is best practice to create a separate PAT for each service to maintain granularity of access.
- Click on the Gear icon () at the top right of the Connect Cloud app to open the settings page.
- On the Settings page, go to the Access Tokens section and click Create PAT.
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Give the PAT a name and click Create.
- The personal access token is only visible at creation, so be sure to copy it and store it securely for future use.
Configure Google Contacts Endpoints for Power Pivot
After connecting to Google Contacts, create a workspace for your desired table(s).
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Navigate to the Workspaces page and click Add to create a new Workspace (or select an existing workspace).
- Click Add to add new assets to the Workspace.
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Select the Google Contacts connection (e.g. GoogleContacts1) and click Next.
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Select the table(s) you wish to work with and click Confirm.
- Make note of the OData Service URL for your workspace, e.g. https://cloud.cdata.com/api/odata/{workspace_name}
With the connection, PAT, and Workspace configured, you are ready to connect to Google Contacts data from Power Pivot.
Import Google Contacts Tables in Power Pivot
Follow the steps below to import tables that can be refreshed on demand:
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In Excel, click Data -> Get Data -> From Other Sources -> From OData Feed
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Fill out the OData feed URL (e.g. https://cloud.cdata.com/api/odata/{workspace_name})
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On the next screen, select Basic and configure the username and password. Password will be your PAT.
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Select the tables that you would like to import into Excel
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After selecting your table(s) and clicking Load, you should see the data appear in an Excel spreadsheet
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Now, click the Power Pivot tab on the ribbon, and then select Add to Data Model.
This can now work with your Google Contacts data in Power Pivot.
Free Trial & More Information
If you are interested in connecting to your Google Contacts data (or data from any of our other supported data sources) from Power Pivot, sign up for a free trial of CData Connect Cloud today! For more information on Connect Cloud and to see what other data sources we support, refer to our CData Connect Cloud page.
