Visualize Live Cosmos DB 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 Cosmos DB data for visualizations, dashboards, and more. This article shows how to use CData Connect to create a live connection to Cosmos DB, connect to Cosmos DB data from Power BI and then create reports on Cosmos DB data in Power BI.

Configure Cosmos DB Connectivity for Power BI

Connectivity to Cosmos DB from Power BI is made possible through CData Connect AI. To work with Cosmos DB data from Power BI, 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 Power BI.

Query Cosmos DB Tables

Follow the steps below to build a query to pull Cosmos DB 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 Cosmos DB data from Power BI

Create Cosmos DB 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 Cosmos DB Data from Data Applications

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

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