A PostgreSQL Interface for LinkedIn Data



Use the Remoting features of the LinkedIn JDBC Driver to create a PostgreSQL entry-point for data access.

There are a vast number of PostgreSQL clients available on the Internet. From standard Drivers to BI and Analytics tools, PostgreSQL is a popular interface for data access. Using our JDBC Drivers, you can now create PostgreSQL entry-points that you can connect to from any standard client.

To access LinkedIn data as a PostgreSQL database, use the CData JDBC Driver for LinkedIn and a JDBC foreign data wrapper (FDW). In this article, we compile the FDW, install it, and query LinkedIn data from PostgreSQL Server.

Connect to LinkedIn Data as a JDBC Data Source

To connect to LinkedIn as a JDBC data source, you will need the following:

  • Driver JAR path: The JAR is located in the lib subfolder of the installation directory.
  • Driver class: cdata.jdbc.linkedin.LinkedInDriver

  • JDBC URL: The URL must start with "jdbc:linkedin:" and can include any of the connection properties in name-value pairs separated with semicolons. LinkedIn uses the OAuth 2 authentication standard. You will need to obtain the OAuthClientId and OAuthClientSecret by registering an app with LinkedIn. For more information refer to our authentication guide.

    Built-in Connection String Designer

    For assistance in constructing the JDBC URL, use the connection string designer built into the LinkedIn JDBC Driver. Either double-click the JAR file or execute the jar file from the command-line.

    java -jar cdata.jdbc.linkedin.jar

    Fill in the connection properties and copy the connection string to the clipboard.

    A typical JDBC URL is below:

    jdbc:linkedin:OAuthClientId=MyOAuthClientId;OAuthClientSecret=MyOAuthClientSecret;CallbackURL=http://localhost:portNumber;CompanyId=XXXXXXXInitiateOAuth=GETANDREFRESH

Build the JDBC Foreign Data Wrapper

The Foreign Data Wrapper can be installed as an extension to PostgreSQL, without recompiling PostgreSQL. The jdbc2_fdw extension is used as an example (downloadable here).

  1. Add a symlink from the shared object for your version of the JRE to /usr/lib/libjvm.so. For example: ln -s /usr/lib/jvm/java-6-openjdk/jre/lib/amd64/server/libjvm.so /usr/lib/libjvm.so
  2. Start the build: make install USE_PGXS=1

Query LinkedIn Data as a PostgreSQL Database

After you have installed the extension, follow the steps below to start executing queries to LinkedIn data:

  1. Log into your database.
  2. Load the extension for the database: CREATE EXTENSION jdbc2_fdw;
  3. Create a server object for LinkedIn: CREATE SERVER LinkedIn FOREIGN DATA WRAPPER jdbc2_fdw OPTIONS ( drivername 'cdata.jdbc.linkedin.LinkedInDriver', url 'jdbc:linkedin:OAuthClientId=MyOAuthClientId;OAuthClientSecret=MyOAuthClientSecret;CallbackURL=http://localhost:portNumber;CompanyId=XXXXXXXInitiateOAuth=GETANDREFRESH', querytimeout '15', jarfile '/home/MyUser/CData/CData\ JDBC\ Driver\ for\ Salesforce MyDriverEdition/lib/cdata.jdbc.linkedin.jar');
  4. Create a user mapping for the username and password of a user known to the MySQL daemon. CREATE USER MAPPING for postgres SERVER LinkedIn OPTIONS ( username 'admin', password 'test');
  5. Create a foreign table in your local database: postgres=# CREATE FOREIGN TABLE companystatusupdates ( companystatusupdates_id text, companystatusupdates_VisibilityCode text, companystatusupdates_Comment numeric) SERVER LinkedIn OPTIONS ( table_name 'companystatusupdates');
You can now execute read/write commands to LinkedIn: postgres=# SELECT * FROM companystatusupdates;

Ready to get started?

Download a free trial of the LinkedIn Driver to get started:

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LinkedIn Icon LinkedIn JDBC Driver

A straightforward interface to connect any Java application with LinkedIn integration capabilities including People, Profiles, Companies, Groups, Jobs, and more!