Query Neo4J Data as a SQL Server Database in Node.js

You can use CData Connect AI to query Neo4J data through a SQL Server interface. Follow the procedure below to create a virtual database for Neo4J in Connect AI and start querying using Node.js.

CData Connect AI provides a pure MySQL, cloud-to-cloud interface for Neo4J, allowing you to easily query live Neo4J data in Node.js — without replicating the data to a natively supported database. As you query data in Node.js, CData Connect AI pushes all supported SQL operations (filters, JOINs, etc) directly to Neo4J, leveraging server-side processing to quickly return Neo4J data.

Configure Neo4J Connectivity for NodeJS

Connectivity to Neo4J from NodeJS is made possible through CData Connect AI. To work with Neo4J data from NodeJS, we start by creating and configuring a Neo4J connection.

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

2. Select "Neo4J" from the Add Connection panel

3. Enter the necessary authentication properties to connect to Neo4J.

   To connect to Neo4j, set the following connection properties:

   • Server: The server hosting the Neo4j instance.
   • Port: The port on which the Neo4j service is running. The provider connects to port 7474 by default.
   • User: The username of the user using the Neo4j instance.
   • Password: The password of the user using the Neo4j instance.
   
4. Click Save & Test
5. Navigate to the Permissions tab in the Add Neo4J Connection page and update the User-based permissions.

Add a Personal Access Token

When connecting to Connect AI 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 AI. It is best practice to create a separate PAT for each service to maintain granularity of access.

1. Click on the Gear icon () at the top right of the Connect AI app to open the settings page.
2. On the Settings page, go to the Access Tokens section and click Create PAT.
3. Give the PAT a name and click Create.
4. The personal access token is only visible at creation, so be sure to copy it and store it securely for future use.

With the connection configured and a PAT generated, you are ready to connect to Neo4J data from Node.js.

Query Neo4J from Node.js

The following example shows how to define a connection and execute queries to Neo4J with the SQL Server module. You will need the following information:

• server: tds.cdata.com
• port: 14333
• user: a Connect AI user (e.g. [email protected])
• password: the PAT for the above user
• database: The connection you configured for Neo4J (Neo4j1)

Connect to Neo4J data and start executing queries with the code below:

var sql = require('mssql')
var config = {
	server: 'tds.cdata.com',
	port: 14333, 
	user: '[email protected]', //update me
	password: 'CONNECT_USER_PAT', //update me	
	options: {
		encrypt: true,
		database: 'Neo4j1'
	}
}

sql.connect(config, err => { 
    if(err){
        throw err ;
    }
    new sql.Request().query('SELECT * FROM ProductCategory', (err, result) => {
        console.dir(result)
    })
        
});

sql.on('error', err => {
    console.log("SQL Error: " ,err);
})