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URL: https://www.cdata.com/kb/tech/dataverse-jdbc-apache-nifi.rst

⇱ Bridge Microsoft Dataverse Connectivity with Apache NiFi

Bridge Microsoft Dataverse Connectivity with Apache NiFi

👁 Dibyendu Datta
Dibyendu Datta
Lead Technology Evangelist
Access and process Microsoft Dataverse data in Apache NiFi using the CData JDBC Driver.

Apache NiFi supports powerful and scalable directed graphs of data routing, transformation, and system mediation logic. When paired with the CData JDBC Driver for Microsoft Dataverse, NiFi can work with live Microsoft Dataverse data. This article describes how to connect to and query Microsoft Dataverse data from an Apache NiFi Flow.

With built-in optimized data processing, the CData JDBC driver offers unmatched performance for interacting with live Microsoft Dataverse data. When you issue complex SQL queries to Microsoft Dataverse, the driver pushes supported SQL operations, like filters and aggregations, directly to Microsoft Dataverse and utilizes the embedded SQL engine to process unsupported operations client-side (often SQL functions and JOIN operations). Its built-in dynamic metadata querying allows you to work with and analyze Microsoft Dataverse data using native data types.

About Microsoft Dataverse Data Integration

CData provides the easiest way to access and integrate live data from Microsoft Dataverse (formerly the Common Data Service). Customers use CData connectivity to:

  • Access both Dataverse Entities and Dataverse system tables to work with exactly the data they need.
  • Authenticate securely with Microsoft Dataverse in a variety of ways, including Azure Active Directory, Azure Managed Service Identity credentials, and Azure Service Principal using either a client secret or a certificate.
  • Use SQL stored procedures to manage Microsoft Dataverse entities - listing, creating, and removing associations between entities.

CData customers use our Dataverse connectivity solutions for a variety of reasons, whether they're looking to replicate their data into a data warehouse (alongside other data sources)or analyze live Dataverse data from their preferred data tools inside the Microsoft ecosystem (Power BI, Excel, etc.) or with external tools (Tableau, Looker, etc.).


Getting Started


Connecting to Microsoft Dataverse Data in Apache NiFi

  1. Download the CData JDBC Driver for Microsoft Dataverse installer, unzip the package, run the .exe file to install the driver.

  2. Copy the CData JDBC Driver JAR file (and license file if it exists), cdata.jdbc.cds.jar (and cdata.jdbc.cds.lic), to the Apache NiFi lib subfolder, for example, C:\nifi-1.3.0-bin\nifi-1.3.0\lib.

    On Windows, the default location for the CData JDBC Driver is C:\Program Files\CData\CData JDBC Driver for Microsoft Dataverse.

  3. Start Apache NiFi by running the run-nifi.bat file in bin subfolder, for example, C:\nifi-1.3.0-bin\nifi-1.3.0\bin.

    (OR)

    Use the command prompt to navigate to the particular directory and run the run-nifi.bat file for example: 

    cd C:\nifi-1.3.0-bin\nifi-1.3.0\bin
.\run-nifi.bat

  4. Navigate to the Apache NiFi UI in your web browser: It should be https://localhost:8443/nifi.

    Note: If users are utilizing an older version of Apache NiFi, they should access it via http://localhost:8080/nifi. In earlier versions, HTTP was the protocol employed. However, in the most recent version, HTTPS is the standard. By default, HTTP operates on port 8080, while HTTPS uses port 8443.

  5. When accessing Apache NiFi via a URL, it prompts you to enter a username and password for login.

    👁 Enter Username and Password for login

    To retrieve login credentials, users should consult the 'App.log' file located within the log directory of their NiFi installation. This file typically contains the necessary details for accessing the NiFi interface.

    👁 Retrieve login credentials from App.log file
  6. Right-click on the Nifi Flow's workspace and click "Controller Services" 👁 Configuring the Process Group
  7. Click the button to create a new controller service. 👁 Creating a new Controller Service
  8. In the Controller Services section, location the newly created "DBCPConnection Pool" and click the menu () >> Edit to configure the new connection. 👁 Configure the new DBCPConnection Pool

  9. Fill in the properties:

    • Database Connection URL: jdbc:cds:OrganizationUrl=https://myaccount.crm.dynamics.com/;InitiateOAuth=GETANDREFRESH;
    • Database Driver Class Name: cdata.jdbc.cds.CDSDriver
    • Database Driver Location(s): Path to your Apache NiFi's lib folder where the JAR files are present.

    Built-in Connection String Designer

    For assistance in constructing the JDBC URL, use the connection string designer built into the Microsoft Dataverse JDBC Driver. Either double-click the JAR file or execute the JAR file from the command-line.

    java -jar cdata.jdbc.cds.jar

    Fill in the connection properties and copy the connection string to the clipboard.

    You can connect without setting any connection properties for your user credentials. Below are the minimum connection properties required to connect.

    • InitiateOAuth: Set this to GETANDREFRESH. You can use InitiateOAuth to avoid repeating the OAuth exchange and manually setting the OAuthAccessToken.
    • OrganizationUrl: Set this to the organization URL you are connecting to, such as https://myorganization.crm.dynamics.com.
    • Tenant (optional): Set this if you wish to authenticate to a different tenant than your default. This is required to work with an organization not on your default Tenant.

    When you connect the Common Data Service OAuth endpoint opens in your default browser. Log in and grant permissions. The OAuth process completes automatically.

    👁 Using the built-in connection string designer to generate a JDBC URL (Salesforce is shown.)
  10. In the Controller Services section, locate the newly created DBCPConnection Pool and click the menu () >> Enable to enable the new connection.
  11. In the "Enable Controller Service" window, set Scope to "Service and referencing components" 👁 Setting the scope of the Controller Service
  12. To establish a connection and execute a select query, simply drag and drop the processor (indicated by the yellow highlight) into the workspace. 👁 Establish a connection and execute a select query
  13. Select the 'ExecuteSQL' processor and click the 'Add' button to make it visible in the workspace. 👁 Select 'ExecuteSQL' and 'Add'
  14. Double-click on the added processor (ExecuteSQL)to open the connection page. 👁 Click on ExecuteSQL processor to get redirected to the connection page
  15. In the Properties section, fill in the required information. Make sure to set the Database Connection Pooling Service to match the DBCPConnectionPool that you have created, and set your desired SQL query that you want to get executed in the SQL select query section. 👁 Verify and test connection
  16. Go to Relationships and make sure to select an option on how the component should proceed in case of success and failure of the execution process. 👁 Apply the connection
  17. You can enable the ExecuteSQL component by either selecting it and clicking Enable on the Operation section, or by right-clicking it and selecting Enable. 👁 Click on the lightning button

Your Microsoft Dataverse data is now available for use in Apache NiFi. For example, you can use the DBCPConnection Pool as the source for a QueryDatabaseTable processor (shown below).

👁 Configuring a QueryDatabaseTable processor to access Microsoft Dataverse data.

Download a free, 30-day trial of the CData JDBC Driver for Microsoft Dataverse and start working with your live Microsoft Dataverse data in Apache NiFi. Reach out to our Support Team if you have any questions.