Tableau Connector for SAP ByDesign

Build 23.0.8839

Configuring a Connection

After Installing the Connector you can connect and create a Data Source for data in SAP ByDesign.

Setting Up a Data Source

Complete the following steps to connect to the data:

  1. Under Connect | To a Server, click More....
  2. Select the data source called SAP ByDesign by CData.
  3. Enter the information required for the connection.
  4. Click Sign In.
  5. 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 SAP ByDesign 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.

This section documents how to provide authentication for your account and service type and then connect.

Authenticate a SAPByDesign Account

Set the following connection properties to connect to SAP ByDesign.

Connect to a Analytical Service

  • Url: Set this to the Url of your SAP ByDesign site. For example, https://test.sapbydesign.com.
  • ServiceType: If you want to retrieve the reports of a analytical service, specify ServiceType=AnalyticsService;.
  • ServiceName: The name of the service you want to retrieve data from. Only none or one service must be specified. If you want to specify a list of services, see BrowsableSchemas.

    If you're not sure what service to specify, you can always query the sys_schemas to list available services.

  • User: Set this to the username of your account.
  • Password: Set this to the password of your account.

Analytical Service Connection String Example:

Url=https://test.sapbydesign.com;ServiceType=AnalyticsService;ServiceName=cc_home_analytics.svc;User=Test;Password=test;

Connect to a Custom Service

  • Url: Set this to the Url of your SAP ByDesign site. For example, https://test.sapbydesign.com.
  • ServiceType: If you have a custom service you want to retrieve data from, specify ServiceType=CustomService;.
  • ServiceName: The name of the service you want to retrieve data from. Only none or one service must be specified. If you want to specify a list of services, see BrowsableSchemas.

    If you're not sure what service to specify, you can always query the sys_schemas to list available services.

  • User: Set this to the username of your account.
  • Password: Set this to the password of your account.

Custom Service Connection String Example:

Url=https://test.sapbydesign.com;ServiceType=CustomService;ServiceName=khsalesorder;User=Test;Password=test;

Connect to the ODataDataSource API

  • Url: Set this to the Url of your SAP ByDesign site. For example, https://test.sapbydesign.com.
  • ServiceType: If you want to query OData Data Source API( odata/analytics/ds) , specify ServiceType=ODataDataSource.
  • ServiceName: The name of the service you want to retrieve data from. Only none or one service must be specified. If you want to specify a list of services, see BrowsableSchemas.

    If you're not sure what service to specify, you can always query the sys_schemas to list available services.

  • User: Set this to the username of your account.
  • Password: Set this to the password of your account.

ODataDataSource Connection String Example:

Url=https://test.sapbydesign.com;ServiceType=ODataDataSource;ServiceName=Customer.svc;User=Test;Password=test;

Add a new custom ODATA service

  • In the SAP ByDesign work center view, click on "Application and User Management".
  • Select "OData Services".
  • In the dropdown list, select "Custom OData Services".
  • Now you should see a list of your current custom services. To add a new one click on "New".

SAP ByDesign URL Restrictions

The SAP ByDesign connector enforces URL restrictions to avoid exceeding the maximum of allowed URI length, which causes the service to throw "URI Too Long" error"

By default, the length of the columns in the projection is limited to 1000 characters. If the columns selected in the projection surpass this limit, the driver drops the projection specification and retrieves all fields. This may impact performance because of service response delay and increased payload.

In the case of the analytical service (ServiceType=AnalyticsService), the driver throws an error indicating you must reduce the number of columns in the projection. In addition, the server-side filter length is restricted to 1000 characters for the same reasons. If the generated filter length surpasses this limit, the driver drops the additional filters and handles them client-side.

In SAP ByDesign, you can configure or disable these limitations by using the MaxSelectLength and MaxFilterLength hidden connection properties. These properties both default to 1000 characters. If your service does not have these restrictions, set the properties to -1 to disable the length limitations.

Next Step

See Using the Connector to create data visualizations.

Copyright (c) 2024 CData Software, Inc. - All rights reserved.
Build 23.0.8839