Edit and Search External Blackbaud FE NXT Objects in Salesforce Connect

CData Connect AI, enables you to access Blackbaud FE NXT data from cloud-based applications like the Salesforce console and mobile applications like the Salesforce Mobile App. In this article, you will use CData Connect AI and Salesforce Connect to access external Blackbaud FE NXT objects alongside standard Salesforce objects.

Connect to Blackbaud FE NXT from Salesforce

To work with live Blackbaud FE NXT data in Salesforce Connect, we need to connect to Blackbaud FE NXT from Connect AI, provide user access to the connection, and create a Workspace for the Blackbaud FE NXT data.

Connect to Blackbaud FE NXT from Connect AI

CData Connect AI uses a straightforward, point-and-click interface to connect to data sources.

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

2. Select "Blackbaud FE NXT" from the Add Connection panel
👁 Selecting a data source

3. Enter the necessary authentication properties to connect to Blackbaud FE NXT.

   Blackbaud Financial Edge NXT uses the OAuth authentication standard. To authenticate using OAuth, create an app to obtain the OAuthClientId, OAuthClientSecret, and CallbackURL connection properties.

   See the Getting Started guide in the CData driver documentation for more information.

   👁 Configuring a connection (Salesforce is shown)
   
4. Click Save & Test
5. Navigate to the Permissions tab in the Add Blackbaud FE NXT Connection page and update the User-based permissions. 👁 Updating permissions
   

Add a Personal Access Token

When connecting to Connect AI through the REST API, the OData API, or the Virtual SQL Server, a Personal Access Token (PAT) is used to authenticate the connection to Connect AI. It is best practice to create a separate PAT for each service to maintain granularity of access.

1. Click on the Gear icon () at the top right of the Connect AI app to open the settings page.
2. On the Settings page, go to the Access Tokens section and click Create PAT.
3. Give the PAT a name and click Create. 👁 Creating a new PAT
   
4. The personal access token is only visible at creation, so be sure to copy it and store it securely for future use.

Configure Blackbaud FE NXT Endpoints for Salesforce Connect

After connecting to Blackbaud FE NXT, create a workspace for your desired table(s).

1. Navigate to the Workspaces page and click Add to create a new Workspace (or select an existing workspace). 👁 The Workspaces page.
   👁 Adding a new Workspace.
   
2. Click Add to add new assets to the Workspace.
3. Select the Blackbaud FE NXT connection (e.g. FinancialEdgeNXT1) and click Next. 👁 Selecting an Asset (Salesforce is shown).
   
4. Select the table(s) you wish to work with and click Confirm. 👁 Selecting Tables (Salesforce is shown).
   
5. Make note of the OData Service URL for your workspace, e.g. https://cloud.cdata.com/api/odata/{workspace_name}

With the connection, PAT, and Workspace configured, you are ready to connect to Blackbaud FE NXT data from Salesforce Connect.

Connect to Blackbaud FE NXT Data as an External Data Sources

Follow the steps below to connect to the feed produced by Connect AI.

1. Log into Salesforce and click Setup -> Integrations -> External Data Sources.
2. Click Now External Data Sources.
3. Enter values for the following properties:
   • External Data Sources: Enter a label to be used in list views and reports.
   • Name: Enter a unique identifier.
   • Type: Select the option "Salesforce Connect: OData 4.0".
   • URL: Enter the URL to the OData endpoint of Connect AI: https://cloud.cdata.com/api/odata/{workspace_name}
4. Select the Writable External Objects option.
5. Select JSON in the Format menu.
6. In the Authentication section, set the following properties:
   • Identity Type: If all members of your organization will use the same credentials to access Connect AI, select "Named Principal". If the members of your organization will connect with their own credentials, select "Per User".
   • Authentication Protocol: Select Password Authentication to use basic authentication.
   • Certificate: Enter or browse to the certificate to be used to encrypt and authenticate communications from Salesforce to your server.
   • Username: Enter a CData Connect AI username (e.g. [email protected]).
   • Password: Enter the user's PAT.

Synchronize Blackbaud FE NXT Objects

After you have created the external data source, follow the steps below to create Blackbaud FE NXT external objects that reflect any changes in the data source. You will synchronize the definitions for the Blackbaud FE NXT external objects with the definitions for Blackbaud FE NXT tables.

1. Click the link for the external data source you created.
2. Click Validate and Scan.
3. Select the Blackbaud FE NXT tables you want to work with as external objects.

Access Blackbaud FE NXT Data as Salesforce Objects

After adding Blackbaud FE NXT data as an external data source and syncing Blackbaud FE NXT tables as external objects, you can use the external Blackbaud FE NXT objects just as you would standard Salesforce objects.

• Create a new tab with a filter list view:

  👁 Viewing external objects from Salesforce (NetSuite is shown)
  

• Create reports of external objects:

  👁 Reporting on external objects from Salesforce (NetSuite is shown)
  

• Create, update, and delete Blackbaud FE NXT objects from the Salesforce dashboard:

  👁 Editing external objects from Salesforce (NetSuite is shown)
  

Simplified Access to Blackbaud FE NXT Data from Cloud Applications

At this point, you have a direct, cloud-to-cloud connection to live Blackbaud FE NXT data from Salesforce. For more information on gaining simplified access to data from more than 100 SaaS, Big Data, and NoSQL sources in cloud applications like Salesforce, refer to our Connect AI page.