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DataBind Charts to Google Sheets Data


Use the standard ADO.NET procedures for databinding to provide bidirectional access to Google Sheets data from controls in the Visual Studio toolbox. This article demonstrates a graphical approach using wizards in Visual Studio, as well as how to databind with only a few lines of code.

DataBinding facilitates two-way interaction with data through UI controls. Using the CData ADO.NET Provider for Google Sheets streamlines the process of binding Google Sheets data to Windows Forms and Web controls within Visual Studio. In this article, we will demonstrate using wizards to establish a binding between Google Sheets data and a chart that dynamically updates. Additionally, the code walk-through section will guide you through the creation of a chart using just 10 lines of code.

DataBind to a Chart

DataBinding consists of three steps: Instantiate the control, configure the data source, and databind.

Configure the Connection and Select Database Objects

To create a chart control and establish a connection to Google Sheets, follow the steps outlined below using the Data Source Configuration Wizard. Within the wizard, you'll have the option to choose the specific Google Sheets entities you wish to bind to.

  1. In a Windows Forms project, drag and drop a Chart control from the toolbox to the form. In the Data section of the Chart properties, select DataSource and then select Add Project Data Source from the menu.
  2. In the Data Source Configuration Wizard that appears, select Database -> Dataset.
  3. In the Choose Your Data Connection step, click New Connection.

  4. In the Add Connection dialog, click Change to select the CData Google Sheets Data Source.

    Below is a typical connection string:

    Spreadsheet=MySheet;InitiateOAuth=GETANDREFRESH

    You can connect to a spreadsheet by providing authentication to Google and then setting the Spreadsheet connection property to the name or feed link of the spreadsheet. If you want to view a list of information about the spreadsheets in your Google Drive, execute a query to the Spreadsheets view after you authenticate.

    ClientLogin (username/password authentication) has been officially deprecated since April 20, 2012 and is now no longer available. Instead, use the OAuth 2.0 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.

    See the Getting Started chapter in the help documentation to connect to Google Sheets from different types of accounts: Google accounts, Google Apps accounts, and accounts using two-step verification.

    When you configure the connection, you may also want to set the Max Rows connection property. This will limit the number of rows returned, which is especially helpful for improving performance when designing reports and visualizations.

  5. Choose the database objects you want to work with. This example uses the Orders table.

DataBind

After adding the data source and selecting database objects, you can bind the objects to the chart. This example assigns the x-axis to Shipcountry and the y-axis to OrderPrice.

  1. In the Chart properties, click the button in the Series property to open the Series Collection Editor.
  2. In the Series properties, select the columns you want for the x- and y-axes: Select columns from the menu in the XValueMember and YValueMember properties.

The chart is now databound to the Google Sheets data. Run the chart to display the current data.

Code Walk-through

DataBinding to Google Sheets data requires only a few lines of code and can be completed in three easy steps.

  1. Connect to Google Sheets.
  2. Create the GoogleSheetsDataAdapter to execute the query and create a DataSet to be filled with its results.
  3. DataBind the result set to the chart.

Below is the complete code:

GoogleSheetsConnection conn = new GoogleSheetsConnection("Spreadsheet=MySheet;InitiateOAuth=GETANDREFRESH"); GoogleSheetsCommand comm = new GoogleSheetsCommand("SELECT Shipcountry, SUM(OrderPrice) FROM Orders GROUP BY Shipcountry", conn); GoogleSheetsDataAdapter da = new GoogleSheetsDataAdapter(comm); DataSet dataset = new DataSet(); da.Fill(dataset); chart1.DataSource = dataset; chart1.Series[0].XValueMember = "Shipcountry"; chart1.Series[0].YValueMembers = "OrderPrice"; // Insert code for additional chart formatting here. chart1.DataBind();