Power BI Connector for HubDB

Build 24.0.9060

Creating the Data Source Name

This section describes how to edit the DSN configuration and then authenticate and connect to HubDB APIs.

DSN Configuration

You can use the Microsoft ODBC Data Source Administrator to edit the DSN configuration. Note that the installation process creates a both a user DSN and a system DSN, as described in Installing the Connector.

Note: The connector stores connection information in the Windows registry. To ensure that the connector can write to the registry, either run Power BI as an administrator or use a User DSN for your connection instead of a System DSN.

User DSN

Complete the following steps to edit the DSN configuration:

  1. Select Start > Search, and enter ODBC Data Sources in the Search box.
  2. Choose the version of the ODBC Administrator that corresponds to the bitness of your Power BI Desktop installation (32-bit or 64-bit).
  3. Select the system data source and click Configure.
  4. Edit the information on the Connection tab and click OK.

System DSN

Configure the system DSN the same way as the user DSN, except you will need to switch to the System DSN tab before performing Step 3.

If you're using Power BI's On-Premises Data Gateway with Standard mode, you must use the system DSN.

You must also specify a valid location for OAuthSettingsLocation (a path where OAuth credentials are locally stored to avoid repeated OAuth prompts).

This is because the Standard mode runs on service mode and can only access permitted locations, such as C:\Windows\ServiceProfiles\PBIEgwService\AppData\Local\Microsoft\On-premises data gateway.

Connecting to HubDB

There are two authentication methods available for connecting to HubDB data source: OAuth Authentication with a public HubSpot application and authentication with a Private application token.

OAuth

AuthScheme must be set to OAuth in all OAuth flows. The following OAuth flows assume you have done so.

Desktop Applications

You must create a custom OAuth application to connect. See Creating a Custom OAuth App a procedure.

Get and Refresh the OAuth Access Token

After setting the following, you are ready to connect:

  • OAuthClientId: Set this to the client Id assigned when you registered your application.
  • OAuthClientSecret: Set this to the client secret assigned when you registered your application.
  • CallbackURL: Set this to the redirect URI defined when you registered your application.
When you connect, the connector opens HubDB's OAuth endpoint in your default browser. Log in and grant permissions to the application. The connector refreshes the access token automatically when it expires.

Headless Machines

To configure the driver to use OAuth with a user account on a headless machine, you need to authenticate on another device that has an internet browser.

  1. Choose one of two options:
    • Option 1: Obtain the OAuthVerifier value as described in "Obtain and Exchange a Verifier Code" below.
    • Option 2: Install the connector on a machine with an internet browser and transfer the OAuth authentication values after you authenticate through the usual browser-based flow, as described in "Transfer OAuth Settings" below.
  2. Then configure the connector to automatically refresh the access token on the headless machine.

Option 1: Obtain and Exchange a Verifier Code

To obtain a verifier code, you must authenticate at the OAuth authorization URL.

Follow the steps below to authenticate from the machine with an internet browser and obtain the OAuthVerifier connection property.

  1. Set the following properties:
    • InitiateOAuth: Set to OFF.
    • OAuthClientId: Set to the client Id assigned when you registered your application.
    • OAuthClientSecret: Set to the client secret assigned when you registered your application.
  2. Call the GetOAuthAuthorizationURL stored procedure with the appropriate CallbackURL. Open the URL returned by the stored procedure in a browser.
  3. Log in and grant permissions to the connector. You are then redirected to the redirect URI. There will be a parameter called code appended to the redirect URI. Note the value of this parameter. Later you will set this in the OAuthVerifier connection property.
Next, you need to exchange the OAuth verifier code for OAuth refresh and access tokens.

On the headless machine, set the following connection properties to obtain the OAuth authentication values:

  • InitiateOAuth: Set this to REFRESH.
  • OAuthVerifier: Set this to the noted verifier code (the value of the code parameter in the redirect URI).
  • OAuthClientId: Set this to the client Id in your OAuth application settings.
  • OAuthClientSecret: Set this to the client secret in the OAuth application settings.
  • OAuthSettingsLocation: Set this to persist the encrypted OAuth authentication values to the specified location.

Test the connection to generate the OAuth settings file, then re-set the following properties to connect:

  • InitiateOAuth: Set this to REFRESH.
  • OAuthClientId: Set this to the client Id assigned when you registered your application.
  • OAuthClientSecret: Set this to the client secret assigned when you registered your application.
  • OAuthSettingsLocation: Set this to the location containing the encrypted OAuth authentication values. Make sure this location gives read and write permissions to the connector to enable the automatic refreshing of the access token.

Option 2: Transfer OAuth Settings

Prior to connecting on a headless machine, you need to install and create a connection with the driver on a device that supports an internet browser. Set the connection properties as described in "Desktop Applications" above.

After completing the instructions in "Desktop Applications", the resulting authentication values are encrypted and written to the location specified by OAuthSettingsLocation. The default filename is OAuthSettings.txt.

Test the connection to generate the OAuth settings file, then copy the OAuth settings file to your headless machine.

On the headless machine, set the following connection properties to connect to data:

  • InitiateOAuth: Set this to REFRESH.
  • OAuthClientId: Set this to the client Id assigned when you registered your application.
  • OAuthClientSecret: Set this to the client secret assigned when you registered your application.
  • OAuthSettingsLocation: Set this to the location of the OAuth settings file you copied from the machine with the browser. Make sure this location gives read and write permissions to the connector to enable the automatic refreshing of the access token.

Private App

To connect using a Hubspot private application token, set the AuthScheme property to PrivateApp.

You can generate a private application token by following the steps below:

  1. In your HubDB account, click the settings icon (the gear) in the main navigation bar.
  2. In the left sidebar menu, navigate to Integrations > Private Apps.
  3. Click Create private app.
  4. On the Basic Info tab, configure the details of your application (name, logo, and description).
  5. On the Scopes tab, select Read or Write for each scope you want your private application to be able to access.
    • A minimum of hubdb and crm.objects.owners.read is required to access tables.
  6. After you are done configuring your application, click Create app in the top right.
  7. Review the info about your application's access token, click Continue creating, and then Show token.
  8. Click Copy to copy the private application token.

To connect, set PrivateAppToken to the private application token you retrieved.

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Build 24.0.9060