Connect to ADP Data from Blazor Apps

Blazor is a framework for developing modern, client-side web UIs using .NET technology. Instead of coding in JavaScript, developers can use the familiar C# language and .NET libraries to build app UIs.

The CData ADO.NET Provider for ADP can be used with standard ADO.NET interfaces, such as LINQ and Entity Framework, to interact with live ADP data. Since Blazor supports .NET Core, developers can use CData ADO.NET Providers in Blazor apps. In this article, we will guide you to build a simple Blazor app that talks to ADP using standard SQL queries.

Install the CData ADO.NET Provider for ADP

CData ADO.NET Providers allow users to access ADP just like they would access SQL Server, using simple SQL queries.

Install the ADP ADO.NET Data Provider from the CData website or from NuGet. Search NuGet for "ADP ADO.NET Data Provider."

Create a ADP-Connected Blazor App

Start by creating a Blazor project that references the CData ADO.NET Provider for ADP

1. Create a Blazor project on Visual Studio.
👁 Create a Blazor app project.

2. From the Solution Explorer, right click Dependencies, then click Add Project Reference.
3. In the Reference Manager, click the Browse button, and choose the .dll file of the installed ADO.NET Provider (e.g. System.Data.CData.ADP.dll, typically located at C:\Program Files\CData\CData ADO.NET Provider for ADP\lib etstandard2.0).
👁 Reference ADO.NET for ADP .dll in the Blazor app.

SELECT ADP Data from the Blazor App

1. Open the Index.razor file from the Project page.
2. In a ADPConnection object, set the connection string:

   Connect to ADP by specifying the following properties:

   • OAuthClientId: The client Id of the custom OAuth application you obtained from ADP.
   • OAuthClientSecret: The custom OAuth application's client secret.
   • SSLClientCert: Set this to the certificate provided during registration.
   • SSLClientCertPassword: Set this to the password of the certificate.
   • UseUAT: The connector makes requests to the production environment by default. If using a developer account, set UseUAT = true.
   • RowScanDepth: The maximum number of rows to scan for the custom fields columns available in the table. The default value will be set to 100. Setting a high value may decrease performance.

   The connector uses OAuth to authenticate with ADP. OAuth requires the authenticating user to interact with ADP using the browser. OAuth access can be configured in ADP through ADP API Central. For more information, refer ADP's API Central Quick Start Guide and the OAuth section in CData's Help documentation.

   For example: OAuthClientId=YourClientId;OAuthClientSecret=YourClientSecret;SSLClientCert='c:\cert.pfx';SSLClientCertPassword='admin@123';InitiateOAuth=GETANDREFRESH;

3. The code below creates a simple Blazor app for displaying ADP data, using standard SQL to query ADP just like SQL Server.

    @page "/"
    @using System.Data;
    @using System.Data.CData.ADP;
    
    <h1>Hello, world!</h1>
    
    Welcome to your Data app.
    
    <div class="row">
    <div class="col-12">
    
    @using (ADPConnection connection = new ADPConnection(
    "OAuthClientId=YourClientId;OAuthClientSecret=YourClientSecret;SSLClientCert='c:\cert.pfx';SSLClientCertPassword='admin@123';InitiateOAuth=GETANDREFRESH;"))
    {
    var sql = "SELECT AssociateOID, WorkerID FROM Workers WHERE AssociateOID = 'G3349PZGBADQY8H8'";
    var results = new DataTable();
    
    ADPDataAdapter dataAdapter = new ADPDataAdapter(sql, connection);
    dataAdapter.Fill(results);
    
    <table class="table table-bordered">
    <thead class="thead-light">
    <tr>
    @foreach (DataColumn item in results.Rows[0].Table.Columns)
    {
    <th scope="col">@item.ColumnName</th>
    }
    </tr>
    </thead>
    <tbody>
    @foreach (DataRow row in results.Rows)
    {
    <tr>
    @foreach (var column in row.ItemArray)
    {
    <td>@column.ToString()</td>
    }
    </tr>
    }
    </tbody>
    </table>
    }
    </div>
    </div>
    

4. Rebuild and run the project. The ADO.NET Provider renders ADP data as an HTML table in the Blazor app. 👁 Query ADP from Blazor app.
   

   At this point, you have a ADP-connected Blazor app, capable of working with live ADP data just like you would work with a SQL Server instance. Download a free, 30-day trial and start working with live ADP data in your Blazor apps today.