Use the CData ODBC Driver for Telegram in Microsoft Power Query
The CData ODBC Driver for Telegram enables you to link to Telegram data in Microsoft Power Query, ensuring that you see any updates. This article details how to use the ODBC driver to import Telegram data into Microsoft Power Query.
Connect to Telegram as an ODBC Data Source
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
Telegram uses Bot Tokens to authenticate API requests. You can obtain a Bot Token by creating a bot via BotFather on Telegram (https://t.me/BotFather). Once created, BotFather will provide a token in the format
123456789:ABCdefGhIJKlmNoPQRsTUVwxyZ.
After setting the following connection properties, you are ready to connect:
- AuthScheme: Set this to APIKey.
- APIKey: Set this to your Telegram Bot Token obtained from BotFather.
Example connection string
Profile=C:\profiles\Telegram.apip;ProfileSettings='APIKey=your_bot_token';
Import Telegram Data
Follow the steps below to import Telegram data using standard SQL:
-
From the ribbon in Excel, click Power Query -> From Other Data Sources -> From ODBC.
- Enter the ODBC connection string. Below is a connection string using the default DSN created when you install the driver:
Provider=MSDASQL.1;Persist Security Info=False;DSN=CData API Source
-
Enter the SELECT statement to import data with. For example:
SELECT , FROM AvailableGifts WHERE = ''
Enter credentials, if required, and click Connect. The results of the query are displayed in the Query Editor Preview. You can combine queries from other data sources or refine the data with Power Query formulas. To load the query to the worksheet, click the Close and Load button.
