Connect to Cosmos DB Data from PowerBuilder via ODBC

The CData ODBC Driver for Cosmos DB can be used from any platform or development technology that supports ODBC, including PowerBuilder. This article shows how to connect to Cosmos DB data and execute queries from the Database Painter and controls such as the DataWindow.

Connect to Cosmos DB as an ODBC Data Source

If you have not already, first specify connection properties in an ODBC DSN (data source name). This is the last step of the driver installation. You can use the Microsoft ODBC Data Source Administrator to create and configure ODBC DSNs.

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.

Create a Profile for the ODBC Driver for Cosmos DB

Follow the steps below to use the Database Painter tool to create a database profile based on an ODBC DSN (data source name) for Cosmos DB. In the Database Painter, you can use wizards and the UI to work with Cosmos DB data.

1. In PowerBuilder, click Tools -> Database Painter.
2. In the Objects window in the Database Painter, right-click the ODBC node and click New Profile.
3. On the Connection tab, enter a name for the profile and select the Cosmos DB DSN in the Data Source menu. 👁 The ODBC DSN, required to create the Database Profile. (Salesforce is shown.)
   
4. To view and modify a table, right-click a table and then click Edit Data -> Grid.

Using Cosmos DB Data with PowerBuilder Controls

You can use standard PowerBuilder objects to connect to ODBC data sources and execute queries. The following example shows how to retrieve Cosmos DB data into a DataWindow. You can add the following code to the open method:

SQLCA.DBMS = "ODBC"
SQLCA.DBParm = "ConnectString='DSN=CData CosmosDB Source'"
CONNECT USING SQLCA;
dw_customers.SetTransObject(SQLCA);
dw_customers.Retrieve();