Configuring a Connection
After Installing the Connector you can connect and create a Data Source for data in Epicor Kinetic.
Setting Up a Data Source
Complete the following steps to connect to the data:
- Under Connect | To a Server, click More....
- Select the data source called Epicor Kinetic by CData.
- Enter the information required for the connection.
- Click Sign In.
- If necessary, select a Database and Schema to discover what tables and views are available.
Using the Connection Builder
The connector makes the most common connection properties available directly in Tableau. However, it can be difficult to use if you need to use more advanced settings or need to troubleshoot connection issues. The connector includes a separate connection builder that allows you to create and test connections outside of Tableau.
There are two ways to access the connection builder:
- On Windows, use a shortcut called Connection Builder in the Start menu, under the CData Tableau Connector for Epicor Kinetic folder.
- You can also start the connection builder by going to the driver install directory and running the .jar file in the lib directory.
In the connection builder, you can set values for connection properties and click Test Connection to validate that they work. You can also use the Copy to Clipboard button to save the connection string. This connection string can be given to the Connection String option included in the connector connection window in Tableau.
Connecting to Epicor Kinetic
To successfully connect to your ERP instance, you must specify the following connection properties:- Url, set this to the url of the server hosting your ERP instance. For example, https://myserver.EpicorSaaS.com
- ERPInstance, set this to the name of your ERP instance.
- User, set this to the username of your account.
- Password, set this to the password of your account.
- Service, set this to the service you want to retrieve data from. For example, BaqSvc.
In addition, you may also set the optional connection properties:
- ApiKey, An optional key that may be required for connection to some services depending on your account configuration.
- ApiVersion, Defaults to v1. May be set to v2 to use the newer Epicor API.
- Company, Required if you set the ApiVersion to v2.
Authenticating to Epicor Kinetic
OpenID with AzureAD
OpenID Connect with Azure AD is a connection type that goes through OAuth. Set the AuthScheme to AzureADOpenID. The following sections assume that you have done so.Desktop Applications
Follow the steps below to authenticate with the credentials for a custom OAuth app. See Creating an Azure AD Application. Get an OAuth Access Token
You are ready to connect after setting one of the below connection properties groups depending on the authentication type.
- Authenticating using a Client Secret
- OAuthClientId: Set this to the Client Id in your app settings.
- OAuthClientSecret: Set this to the Client Secret in your app settings.
- CallbackURL: Set this to the Redirect URL in your app settings.
- InitiateOAuth: Set this to GETANDREFRESH. You can use InitiateOAuth to avoid repeating the OAuth exchange and manually setting the OAuthAccessToken. .
- Authenticating using a Certificate
- OAuthClientId: Set this to the Client Id in your app settings.
- OAuthJWTCert: Set this to the JWT Certificate store.
- OAuthJWTCertType: Set this to the type of the certificate store specified by OAuthJWTCert.
- CallbackURL: Set this to the Redirect URL in your app settings.
- InitiateOAuth: Set this to GETANDREFRESH. You can use InitiateOAuth to avoid repeating the OAuth exchange and manually setting the OAuthAccessToken. .
When you connect the connector opens the OAuth endpoint in your default browser. Log in and grant permissions to the application. The connector then completes the OAuth process:
- Extracts the access token from the callback URL and authenticates requests.
- Obtains a new access token when the old one expires.
- Saves OAuth values in OAuthSettingsLocation to be persisted across connections.
Next Step
See Using the Connector to create data visualizations.