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CData Connect Server

Build Interactive Dashboards from Microsoft Planner Data in Amazon QuickSight



Create a virtual SQL Server database for Microsoft Planner data in CData Connect Server and import Microsoft Planner data into Amazon QuickSight SPICE to build interactive dashboards.

Amazon QuickSight allows users to build interactive dashboards in the cloud. When paired with CData Connect Server, you get direct access to Microsoft Planner data for visualizations, dashboards, and more. This article shows how to create a virtual database for Microsoft Planner in Connect Server and build dashboards in Amazon QuickSight with access to Microsoft Planner data.

CData Connect Server provides a pure SQL Server interface for Microsoft Planner, allowing you to easily build reports from live Microsoft Planner data in Quicksight — without replicating the data to a natively supported database. As you build visualizations, Quicksight generates SQL queries to gather data. Using optimized data processing out of the box, CData Connect Server pushes all supported SQL operations (filters, JOINs, etc) directly to Microsoft Planner, leveraging server-side processing to quickly return the requested Microsoft Planner data.

Create a Virtual SQL Server Database for Microsoft Planner Data

CData Connect Server uses a straightforward, point-and-click interface to connect to data sources and generate APIs.

  1. Login to Connect Server and click Connections.
  2. Select "Microsoft Planner" from Available Data Sources.
  3. Enter the necessary authentication properties to connect to Microsoft Planner.

    You can connect without setting any connection properties for your user credentials. Below are the minimum connection properties required to connect.

    • InitiateOAuth: Set this to GETANDREFRESH. You can use InitiateOAuth to avoid repeating the OAuth exchange and manually setting the OAuthAccessToken.
    • Tenant (optional): Set this if you wish to authenticate to a different tenant than your default. This is required to work with an organization not on your default Tenant.

    When you connect the Driver opens the MS Planner OAuth endpoint in your default browser. Log in and grant permissions to the Driver. The Driver then completes the OAuth process.

    1. Extracts the access token from the callback URL and authenticates requests.
    2. Obtains a new access token when the old one expires.
    3. Saves OAuth values in OAuthSettingsLocation to be persisted across connections.
  4. Click Save Changes
  5. Click Privileges -> Add and add the new user (or an existing user) with the appropriate permissions.

With the virtual database created, you are ready to connect to Microsoft Planner data from Quicksight.

Import Microsoft Planner Data into SPICE and Create Interactive Dashboards

The steps below outline creating a new data set based on the virtual Microsoft Planner database in Connect Server, importing the dataset into SPICE, and building a simple visualization from the data.

  1. Log into Amazon QuickSight and on the left panel click "Datasets"
  2. Click "New dataset," select SQL Server as the data source, configure the connection to your Connect Server instance, and click "Create data source"
  3. Select a table to visualize (or submit a custom SQL query for your data) and click Select.
  4. Select "Import to SPICE for quicker analytics" and click "Visualize."
  5. Select fields to visualize as well as a visual type.

Schedule Refreshes for SPICE Data Sets

QuickSight users can schedule refreshes for data sets that are imported into SPICE, ensuring that data being analyzed is only as old as the most recent refresh.

  1. Navigate to the QuickSight home page.
  2. Click "Manage data."
  3. Select the data set you wish to refresh.
  4. Click "Schedule refresh."
  5. Click Create, configure the refresh settings (time zone, repeat frequency, and starting datetime), and click Create.

SQL Access to Microsoft Planner Data from Applications

At this point, you have a direct connection to Microsoft Planner data from your Amazon QuickSight dashboard. You can create new visualizations, build interactive dashboards, and more. For more information on gaining SQL access to data from more than 250 SaaS, Big Data, and NoSQL sources from applications like Amazon QuickSight, refer to our Connect Server page.