Import Cosmos DB Data into the Power BI Service for Visualizations

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 Cosmos DB data for visualizations, dashboards, and more. This article shows how to connect to Cosmos DB in CData Connect AI, publish a dataset from Power BI Desktop to the Power BI Service and then create reports on Cosmos DB data in the Power BI service.

Configure Cosmos DB Connectivity for Power BI Service

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

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

2. Select "Cosmos DB" from the Add Connection panel
👁 Selecting a data source

3. Enter the necessary authentication properties to connect to Cosmos DB.

   To obtain the connection string needed to connect to a Cosmos DB account using the SQL API, log in to the Azure Portal, select Azure Cosmos DB, and select your account. In the Settings section, click Connection String and set the following values:

   • AccountEndpoint: The Cosmos DB account URL from the Keys blade of the Cosmos DB account
   • AccountKey: In the Azure portal, navigate to the Cosmos DB service and select your Azure Cosmos DB account. From the resource menu, go to the Keys page. Find the PRIMARY KEY value and set AccountKey to this value.
   👁 Configuring a connection (Salesforce is shown)
   
4. Click Save & Test
5. Navigate to the Permissions tab in the Add Cosmos DB Connection page and update the User-based permissions. 👁 Updating permissions
   

With the connection configured, you are ready to connect to Cosmos DB data from the Power BI service.

Publish a Dataset from Power BI Desktop

Once you connect to Cosmos DB in Connect AI, you can create a dataset in Power BI desktop and publish the dataset to the Power BI service.

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 Cosmos DB data from Power BI
6. Define any relationships between the selected entities on the Relationships tab.
7. Click Publish (from the Home menu) and select a Workspace.

Build Reports and Dashboards on Cosmos DB Data in the Power BI Service

Now that you have published a dataset to the Power BI service, you can create new reports and dashboards based on the published data:

1. Log in to PowerBI.com.
2. Click Workspaces and select a workspace.
3. Click Create and select Report.
4. Select the published dataset for the report. 👁 Select a dataset
   
5. Choose fields and visualizations to add to your report. 👁 Visualizing Cosmos DB data in the Power BI service
   

Live Access to Cosmos DB Data from Cloud Applications

Now you have a direct connection to live Cosmos DB data from the Power BI service. You can create more data sources and new visualizations, build reports, and more — all without replicating Cosmos DB data.

To get live data access to hundreds of SaaS, Big Data, and NoSQL sources directly from your cloud applications, sign up for a free trial of CData Connect AI.