We are proud to share our inclusion in the 2024 Gartner Magic Quadrant for Data Integration Tools. We believe this recognition reflects the differentiated business outcomes CData delivers to our customers.
Get the Report →Build Apps with Live Salesforce data in Adalo using CData Connect Cloud
Use CData Connect Cloud to integrate live Salesforce data into the Adalo platform and build custom mobile and web applications with real-time Salesforce data.
Adalo is a no-code platform used to build custom mobile and web applications without needing programming skills. It allows users to design interfaces, manage databases, and integrate functionality through simple drag-and-drop tools, making app development accessible and efficient. When combined with CData Connect Cloud, it provides access to Salesforce data to build custom applications and more.
This article explains how to use CData Connect Cloud to create a live connection to Salesforce and how to connect and access live Salesforce data from the Adalo platform.
About Salesforce Data Integration
Accessing and integrating live data from Salesforce has never been easier with CData. Customers rely on CData connectivity to:
- Access to custom entities and fields means Salesforce users get access to all of Salesforce.
- Create atomic and batch update operations.
- Read, write, update, and delete their Salesforce data.
- Leverage the latest Salesforce features and functionalities with support for SOAP API versions 30.0.
- See improved performance based on SOQL support to push complex queries down to Salesforce servers.
- Use SQL stored procedures to perform actions like creating, retrieving, aborting, and deleting jobs, uploading and downloading attachments and documents, and more.
Users frequently integrate Salesforce data with:
- other ERPs, marketing automation, HCMs, and more.
- preferred data tools like Power BI, Tableau, Looker, and more.
- databases and data warehouses.
For more information on how CData solutions work with Salesforce, check out our Salesforce integration page.
Getting Started
Configure Salesforce connectivity for Adalo in CData Connect Cloud
To work with Salesforce data in Adalo, you need to connect to Salesforce from Connect Cloud, provide user access to the connection, and create an OData endpoint for Salesforce data.
Additionally, you need to generate a Personal Access Token (PAT) on the Settings page. Be sure to copy it down, as it serves as your password during authentication.
Follow the steps below to configure Salesforce connectivity for Adalo. For more information, see the Connections section of the Help documentation.
- Log into Connect Cloud, click Connections and click Add Connection
- Select "Salesforce" from the Add Connection panel
-
Enter the necessary authentication properties to connect to Salesforce.
There are several authentication methods available for connecting to Salesforce: Login, OAuth, and SSO. The Login method requires you to have the username, password, and security token of the user.
If you do not have access to the username and password or do not wish to require them, you can use OAuth authentication.
SSO (single sign-on) can be used by setting the SSOProperties, SSOLoginUrl, and TokenUrl connection properties, which allow you to authenticate to an identity provider. See the "Getting Started" chapter in the help documentation for more information.
- Click Create & Test
- Navigate to the Permissions tab in the Add Salesforce Connection page and update the User-based permissions.
Add a Salesforce OData endpoint to CData Connect Cloud
Once you're connected to Salesforce, create an OData endpoint for the desired table.
- Go to the OData page from the left panel. Click Add and select Connections from the Add Entity Set window.
- Select your Salesforce connection (for example, Salesforce1) and click Next.
- Select the table you want to use and click Confirm to create a new OData endpoint.
- Save the endpoint to connect Salesforce with Adalo in the next section.
With the connection and OData endpoint configured, you can connect to Salesforce data from Adalo.

NOTE: You can also do the same using the Virtual Datasets functionality in CData Connect Cloud. Refer to this YouTube link or our product documentation to learn more about the Virtual Datasets.
Build a custom app with Adalo
After configuring CData Connect Cloud, you can begin developing the Adalo app using Salesforce data.
- Click on CREATE NEW APP.
- Select Desktop Web App and click on Next.
- You can choose any template, but for testing purposes, we've chosen a Blank template.
- Finally, add an app name and choose a color scheme, and your app is ready to go!
Registering external collections
Adalo uses a data structure called Collection to manage app data and offers a feature called External Collections with APIs, which lets you seamlessly integrate Collection with external APIs. Use this feature to connect to Connect Cloud.
- After creating an app, you first need to register a Collection, which is a definition for handling data within the Adalo app. There are two types of Collections: Database Collections, which are like Adalo's own internal database, and External Collections, which allow access to external APIs. In this case, we will access an external API, registering it as an External Collection.
- On the External Collections registration screen, click on ADD COLLECTION to enter the collection name (any name of your choice), and provide the API base URL endpoint (OData endpoint registered on Connect Cloud). Make sure to add "/(table)" to the OData URL to access the specific endpoint. (Refer to the image given for reference)
- In order to authenticate, you need a base64 authorization header comprising your username and PAT, joined by a colon. For example, [email protected]:MY_PAT. You can use a scripting tool, web tool, or other application to create this header.
Using Postman to generate the Authorization header
- Open the Postman application. Enter the OData URL mentioned in the previous step for a GET request on Postman. Click on the Authorization tab and select Auth Type as "Basic Auth". Enter the Username and Password as follows and click on Send:
- Username: Connect Cloud Username
- Password: PAT generated on Connect Cloud
- Go to the Headers tab and copy/save the value of the Authorization key.
- Open the Postman application. Enter the OData URL mentioned in the previous step for a GET request on Postman. Click on the Authorization tab and select Auth Type as "Basic Auth". Enter the Username and Password as follows and click on Send:
- Back in Adalo, click on ADD ITEM and select Header.
- Enter the details in the Header section as follows:
- Name: "Authorization"
- Value: Authorization key value copied in the previous step
- Select Done and click on Next.
- Select Get All and enter "value" in the Results Key section. Click on Done and Next.
- Now, to test the API setup, click on RUN TEST. If you finally see the message and response shown below, the creation of External Collections is complete.
Creating a list screen
After configuring CData Connect Cloud, you can now begin developing the app on Adalo using Salesforce data.
- First, click the + button in the upper right corner of the Adalo screen to display the list screen, then drag and drop "Simple List" onto the screen.
- Once the layout is complete as shown below, link the External Collections definition you created earlier to What is this a list of?
- Click on "Add Magic Text" button (as shown) to add the "Title" and "Subtitle" to the data items you want to obtain.
- Now, click on View App in the top right corner of the screen and select Staging Preview.
- You can now view the Salesforce data in the app created on Adalo.
Live connections to Salesforce data from cloud applications
Adalo now allows you to connect to live Salesforce data directly, allowing you to create more connections and apps without duplicating Salesforce data.
To get real-time data access to over 100 SaaS, big data, and NoSQL sources directly from your cloud applications, visit CData Connect Cloud.