How to integrate Metabase with Salesforce Data 360 Data

Metabase is an open source data visualization tool that allows users to create interactive dashboards. When paired with CData Connect AI, users can easily create visualizations and dashboards linked to live Salesforce Data 360 data. This article describes how to connect to Salesforce Data 360 and build a simple visualization using Salesforce Data 360 data.

CData Connect provides a pure cloud-to-cloud interface for Salesforce Data 360, allowing you to easily integrate with live Salesforce Data 360 data in Metabase — without replicating the data. Connect looks exactly like a SQL Server database to Metabase and uses optimized data processing out of the box to push all supported SQL operations (filters, JOINs, etc) directly to Salesforce Data 360, leveraging server-side processing to quickly return Salesforce Data 360 data.

Configure Salesforce Data 360 Connectivity for Metabase

Connectivity to Salesforce Data 360 from Metabase is made possible through CData Connect AI. To work with Salesforce Data 360 data from Metabase, we start by creating and configuring a Salesforce Data 360 connection.

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

2. Select "Salesforce Data 360" from the Add Connection panel

3. Salesforce Data 360 uses OAuth to authenticate. Click "Sign in" to authenticate with Salesforce Data 360.
4. Navigate to the Permissions tab in the Add Salesforce Data 360 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 Salesforce Data 360 data from Metabase.

Connect to CData Connect AI from Metabase

After creating the connection in Connect AI, navigate to your Metabase instance. Use the SQL Server interface to connect to Connect AI.

1. Navigate to the administration screen (Settings -> Admin) and click "Add Database" from the "Databases" tab
2. Configure the connection to Connect AI and click "Save"
   • Database type: Select "SQL Server"
   • Name: Name the connection (e.g. "Salesforce Data 360 (Connect AI)")
   • Host: tds.cdata.com
   • Port: 14333
   • Database name: The name of the connection you just created (e.g. SalesforceDataCloud1)
   • Username: A Connect AI username (e.g. [email protected])
   • Password: The PAT previously created
   • Click to Use a secure connection (SSL)
   

Execute Salesforce Data 360 Data with Metabase

Once you configure the connection to Connect AI, you can query Salesforce Data 360 and build visualizations.

1. Use the "Write SQL" tool to retrieve the Salesforce Data 360 data
2. Write a SQL query based on the Salesforce Data 360 connection in CData Connect AI, e.g.
   
   

   SELECT [Account ID], [Account Name] FROM Account WHERE EmployeeCount > 250

   
3. Navigate to the "Visualization" screen, choose a visualization, and configure the visualization

More Information & Free Trial

At this point, you have built a simple visualization from Salesforce Data 360 data in Metabase. You can continue to work with live Salesforce Data 360 data in Metabase just like you would any SQL Server database. For more information on creating a live connection to Salesforce Data 360 (and more than 100 other data sources), visit the Connect AI page. Sign up for a free trial and start working with live Salesforce Data 360 data in Metabase today.