Visualize Live Azure Synapse Data in Power BI (via CData Connect AI)

Power BI transforms your company's data into rich visuals for you to collect and organize so you can focus on what matters to you. When paired with CData Connect AI, you get access to Azure Synapse data for visualizations, dashboards, and more. This article shows how to use CData Connect to create a live connection to Azure Synapse, connect to Azure Synapse data from Power BI and then create reports on Azure Synapse data in Power BI.

Configure Azure Synapse Connectivity for Power BI

Connectivity to Azure Synapse from Power BI is made possible through CData Connect AI. To work with Azure Synapse data from Power BI, we start by creating and configuring a Azure Synapse connection.

1. Log into Connect AI, click Sources, and then click Add Connection
👁 Adding a Connection

2. Select "Azure Synapse" from the Add Connection panel
👁 Selecting a data source

3. Enter the necessary authentication properties to connect to Azure Synapse.

   Connecting to Azure Synapse

   In addition to providing authentication (see below), set the following properties to connect to a Azure Synapse database:

   • Server: The server running Azure. You can find this by logging into the Azure portal and navigating to Azure Synapse Analytics -> Select your database -> Overview -> Server name.
   • Database: The name of the database, as seen in the Azure portal on the Azure Synapse Analytics page.

   Authenticating to Azure Synapse

   Connect to Azure Synapse using the following properties:

   • User: The username provided for authentication with Azure.
   • Password: The password associated with the authenticating user.
   👁 Configuring a connection (Salesforce is shown)
   
4. Click Save & Test
5. Navigate to the Permissions tab in the Add Azure Synapse Connection page and update the User-based permissions. 👁 Updating permissions
   

With the connection configured, you are ready to connect to Azure Synapse data from Power BI.

Query Azure Synapse Tables

Follow the steps below to build a query to pull Azure Synapse data into the report:

1. Open Power BI Desktop and click Get Data -> Online Services -> CData Connect AI and click "Connect"
2. Click "Sign in" and authenticate with your CData Connect AI account 👁 Authenticating with Connect AI
   
3. After signing in, click "Connect" 👁 Connecting to Connect AI
   
4. Select tables in the Navigator dialog 👁 The available tables. (Salesforce tables are shown)
   
5. Click Load to establish the connection to your Azure Synapse data from Power BI

Create Azure Synapse Data Visualizations

After connecting to the data into Power BI, you can create data visualizations in the Report view by dragging fields from the Fields pane onto the canvas. Select the dimensions and measures you wish to visualize along with the chart type.

Click Refresh to synchronize your report with any changes to the data.

Live Access to Azure Synapse Data from Data Applications

With CData Connect AI you have a direct connection to Azure Synapse data from Power BI. You can import more data, create new visualizations, build reports, and more — all without replicating Azure Synapse data.

To get SQL data access to hundreds of SaaS, Big Data, and NoSQL sources (including Azure Synapse) directly from your on-premise BI, reporting, ETL and other data applications, visit the CData Connect AI page and start a free trial.