Access Live Linear Data in Excel 365 Online (Excel for the web)

Microsoft Excel for the web represents a cloud-native iteration of Microsoft Excel. When integrated with CData Connect AI, you gain immediate access to Linear data directly from within Excel. This access facilitates data analysis, collaborative work, calculations, and more. This article provides a step-by-step guide on connecting to Linear within your Connect AI instance and accessing live Linear data in Excel for the web spreadsheets, whether for viewing or updating purposes.

CData Connect AI provides a pure cloud-to-cloud interface for Linear, allowing you to easily access live Linear data in Excel for the web. Simply use the Connect AI Add-In to query live data (or write your own). Using optimized data processing out of the box, CData Connect AI pushes all supported query operations (filters, JOINs, etc) directly to Linear, leveraging server-side processing to quickly return Linear data.

Configure Linear Connectivity for Excel

Connectivity to Linear from Excel is made possible through CData Connect AI. To work with Linear data from Excel, we start by creating and configuring a Linear connection.

1. Log into Connect AI, click Sources, and then click Add Connection

2. Select "Linear" from the Add Connection panel

3. Enter the necessary authentication properties to connect to Linear.

   You can authenticate to Linear with a personal API key or with OAuth 2.0. The API key is the simplest option for connecting with your own Linear account.

   Authenticating with an API Key

   Set the following connection properties:

   • AuthScheme: Set this to APIKey.
   • APIKey: A Linear personal API key.

   To create a personal API key, log in to Linear, open Settings > Security & access > Personal API keys, select New API key, and create it. Copy the key immediately, because Linear shows it only once.

   Authenticating with OAuth

   OAuth requires a custom OAuth application registered in Linear (Settings > API > OAuth applications), which provides the OAuthClientId and OAuthClientSecret. Two flows are supported:

   • Authorization code: Set AuthScheme to OAuth, InitiateOAuth to GETANDREFRESH, and provide OAuthClientId, OAuthClientSecret, and the CallbackURL defined in your application (e.g., http://localhost:33333). The driver opens Linear in your browser so you can grant access.
   • Client credentials: Set AuthScheme to OAuthClient and provide OAuthClientId and OAuthClientSecret. This authenticates the application itself, with no browser interaction, and suits machine-to-machine integrations.

   By default, the driver requests the read,write scopes. The driver refreshes the access token automatically when it expires.

   
4. Click Save & Test
5. Navigate to the Permissions tab in the Add Linear Connection page and update the User-based permissions.

With the connection configured, you are ready to connect to Linear data from Excel for the web.

Access Live Linear Data in Excel for the web

The steps below outline connecting to CData Connect AI from Excel to access live Linear data.

1. Log into Excel, create a new sheet (or open an existing one).
2. Click Insert and click Office Add-ins. (if you have already installed the Add-In, jump to step 4).
3. Search for CData Connect Spreadsheets Add-In and install the Add-in.
4. Click Data and open the CData Connect Spreadsheets Add-In.
5. In the Add-In panel, click Login or Sign-up to authenticate with your CData Connect AI instance
6. In the CData Connect Spreadsheets panel in Excel, click Import
7. Choose a Connection (e.g. Linear1), Table (e.g. Team), and Columns to import
8. Optionally add Filters, Sorting, and a Limit
9. Click Execute to import the data

Live Access to Linear Data from Cloud Applications

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

Try CData Connect AI and get real-time data access to hundreds of SaaS, Big Data, and NoSQL sources directly from your cloud applications.