Build a Simple VCL Application for Nuclia Data

Embarcadero RAD Studio provides a development environment for Delphi and C++Builder applications. With the CData ODBC Driver for Nuclia, you gain access to live Nuclia data within RAD Studio, abstracting the data into tables, views, and stored procedures that can be used to retrieve Nuclia data. This article will walk through connecting to Nuclia and creating a simple VCL application with the Form Designer.

Create a Connection to Nuclia Data

If you have not already, first specify connection properties in an ODBC DSN (data source name). This is the last step of the driver installation. You can use the Microsoft ODBC Data Source Administrator to create and configure ODBC DSNs.

Using API Key Authentication

Nuclia uses API key authentication for accessing Knowledge Box data. To obtain an API key:

1. Log in to the Nuclia Cloud Dashboard at https://nuclia.cloud
2. Navigate to your Knowledge Box settings
3. Go to the Service Accounts section
4. Create a new service account or copy an existing API key

After obtaining your API key, set the following connection properties:

• AuthScheme: Set this to APIKey.
• APIKey: Set this to your Nuclia service account API key.
• KbId: Set this to your Knowledge Box UUID.
• Zone: Set this to your Nuclia deployment zone (e.g., aws-us-east-2-1).

Example Connection String

Profile=C:\profiles\Nuclia.apip;AuthScheme=APIKey;APIKey=your_service_account_key;KbId=your_kb_uuid;Zone=aws-us-east-2-1;

Connecting to Nuclia

Once the authentication is configured, you can connect to Nuclia and query data from any of the available tables such as Resources, KnowledgeBox, LabelSets, and ProcessingStatus.

You can then follow the steps below to use the Data Explorer to create a FireDAC connection to Nuclia data.

1. In a new VCL Forms application, expand the FireDAC node in the Data Explorer.
2. Right-click the ODBC Data Source node in the Data Explorer.
3. Click Add New Connection.
4. Enter a name for the connection.
5. In the FireDAC Connection Editor that appears, set the DataSource property to the name of the ODBC DSN for Nuclia.

Create VCL Applications with Connectivity to Nuclia Data

Follow the procedure below to start executing queries to Nuclia data from a simple VCL application that displays the results of a query in a grid.

1. Drop a TFDConnection component onto the form and set the following properties:

   • ConnectionDefName: Select the FireDAC connection to Nuclia data.
   • Connected: Select True from the menu and, in the dialog that appears, enter your credentials.

2. Drop a TFDQuery component onto the form and set the properties below:

   • Connection: Set this property to the TFDConnection component, if this component is not already specified.

   • SQL: Click the button in the SQL property and enter a query. For example:

     SELECT ,  FROM KnowledgeBox WHERE  = ''
     

   • Active: Set this property to true.

3. Drop a TDataSource component onto the form and set the following property:

   • DataSet: In the menu for this property, select the name of the TFDQuery component.

4. Drop a TDBGrid control onto the form and set the following property:

   • DataSource: Select the name of the TDataSource.
5. Drop a TFDGUIxWaitCursor onto the form — this is required to avoid a run-time error.

You now have an executable application that displays the results of the SQL Query set in the TFDQuery object.

Related Articles

Below you can find other articles for using the CData ODBC Driver with RAD Studio, Delphi, and C++ Builder.

• DataBind Controls to Nuclia Data in C++Builder
• DataBind Controls to Nuclia Data in Delphi
• Viewing Nuclia Data in RAD Studio Data Explorer