Connect to Avalara AvaTax Data in JRuby

JRuby is a high-performance, stable, fully threaded Java implementation of the Ruby programming language. The CData JDBC Driver for Avalara AvaTax makes it easy to integrate connectivity to live Avalara AvaTax data in JRuby. This article shows how to create a simple JRuby app that connects to Avalara AvaTax data, executes a query, and displays the results.

Configure a JDBC Connection to Avalara AvaTax Data

Before creating the app, note the installation location for the JAR file for the JDBC Driver (typically C:\Program Files\CData\CData JDBC Driver for Avalara AvaTax\lib).

JRuby natively supports JDBC, so you can easily connect to Avalara AvaTax and execute SQL queries. Initialize the JDBC connection with the getConnection function of the java.sql.DriverManager class.

The primary method for performing basic authentication is to provide your login credentials, as follows:

• User: Set this to your username.
• Password: Set this to your password.

Optionally, if you are making use of a sandbox environment, set the following:

• UseSandbox: Set this to true if you are authenticating with a sandbox account.

Authenticating Using Account Number and License Key

Alternatively, you can authenticate using your account number and license key. Connect to data using the following:

• AccountId: Set this to your Account Id. The Account Id is listed in the upper right hand corner of the admin console.
• LicenseKey: Set this to your Avalara Avatax license key. You can generate a license key by logging into Avalara Avatax as an account administrator and navigating to Settings -> Reset License Key.

Built-in Connection String Designer

For assistance in constructing the JDBC URL, use the connection string designer built into the Avalara AvaTax JDBC Driver. Either double-click the JAR file or execute the jar file from the command-line.

java -jar cdata.jdbc.avalaraavatax.jar

Fill in the connection properties and copy the connection string to the clipboard.

Below is a typical JDBC connection string for Avalara AvaTax:

jdbc:avalaraavatax:User=MyUser;Password=MyPassword;

Create a JRuby App with Connectivity to Avalara AvaTax Data

Create a new Ruby file (for example: AvalaraAvataxSelect.rb) and open it in a text editor. Copy the following code into your file:

require 'java'
require 'rubygems'
require 'C:/Program Files/CData/CData JDBC Driver for Avalara AvaTax 2018/lib/cdata.jdbc.avalaraavatax.jar'

url = "jdbc:avalaraavatax:User=MyUser;Password=MyPassword;"
conn = java.sql.DriverManager.getConnection(url)
stmt = conn.createStatement
rs = stmt.executeQuery("SELECT Id, TotalTax FROM Transactions")
while (rs.next) do
 puts rs.getString(1) + ' ' + rs.getString(2)
end

With the file completed, you are ready to display your Avalara AvaTax data with JRuby. To do so, simply run your file from the command line:

jruby -S AvalaraAvataxSelect.rb

Writing SQL-92 queries to Avalara AvaTax allows you to quickly and easily incorporate Avalara AvaTax data into your own JRuby applications. Download a free trial today!