Build SAS Data Sets Visualizations in Tableau Cloud

Tableau Cloud is an analytics platform fully hosted in the cloud. When paired with CData Connect Server, you get instant, cloud-to-cloud access to SAS Data Sets data for visualizations, dashboards, and more. This article shows how to create a virtual database for SAS Data Sets and build visualizations from SAS Data Sets data in Tableau Cloud.

CData Connect Server provides a pure SQL Server interface for SAS Data Sets, allowing you to easily build visualizations from live SAS Data Sets data in Tableau Cloud without installing connectors or publishing worksheets and data sources from Tableau Desktop. As you build visualizations, Tableau Cloud 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 SAS Data Sets, leveraging server-side processing to quickly return SAS Data Sets data.

Create a Virtual SQL Server Database for SAS Data Sets 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 "SAS Data Sets" from Available Data Sources.
3. Enter the necessary authentication properties to connect to SAS Data Sets.

   Set the following connection properties to connect to your SAS DataSet files:

   Connecting to Local Files

   • Set the Connection Type to "Local." Local files support SELECT, INSERT, and DELETE commands.
   • Set the URI to a folder containing SAS files, e.g. C:\PATH\TO\FOLDER\.

   Connecting to Cloud-Hosted SAS DataSet Files

   While the driver is capable of pulling data from SAS DataSet files hosted on a variety of cloud data stores, INSERT, UPDATE, and DELETE are not supported outside of local files in this driver.

   Set the Connection Type to the service hosting your SAS DataSet files. A unique prefix at the beginning of the URI connection property is used to identify the cloud data store and the remainder of the path is a relative path to the desired folder (one table per file) or single file (a single table). For more information, refer to the Getting Started section of the Help documentation.

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 build visualizations in Tableau Cloud.

Visualize Live SAS Data Sets Data in Tableau Cloud

The steps below outline creating a new data source in Tableau Cloud based on the virtual SAS Data Sets database in Connect Server and building a simple visualization from the data.

1. Log into Tableau Cloud, select a project, and create a new workbook.
2. In the new workbook, choose the Microsoft SQL Server Connector from the data wizard and fill in the values for your Connect Server instance.
   NOTE: Be sure to check the "Require SSL" checkbox.
3. Select your newly created database and the table(s) you wish to visualize (defining relationships for JOINed tables as needed).
4. Select Dimensions and Measures and configure your visualization.

SQL Access to SAS Data Sets Data from Applications

At this point, you have a direct connection to live SAS Data Sets data from your Tableau Cloud workbook. You can create new visualizations, build dashboards, and more, with no need to publish data sources and workbooks from Tableau Desktop. For more information on gaining SQL access to data from more than 100 SaaS, Big Data, and NoSQL sources from cloud applications like Tableau Cloud, refer to our Connect Server page.