Use the CData ODBC Driver for Dynamics CRM in MicroStrategy Desktop

MicroStrategy is an analytics and mobility platform that enables data-driven innovation. When paired with the CData ODBC Driver for Dynamics CRM, you gain database-like access to live Dynamics CRM data from MicroStrategy, expanding your reporting and analytics capabilities. In this article, we walk through adding Dynamics CRM as a data source in MicroStrategy Desktop and creating a simple visualization of Dynamics CRM data.

The CData ODBC Driver offers unmatched performance for interacting with live Dynamics CRM data in MicroStrategy due to optimized data processing built into the driver. When you issue complex SQL queries from MicroStrategy to Dynamics CRM, the driver pushes supported SQL operations, like filters and aggregations, directly to Dynamics CRM and utilizes the embedded SQL Engine to process unsupported operations (often SQL functions and JOIN operations) client-side. With built-in dynamic metadata querying, you can visualize and analyze Dynamics CRM data using native MicroStrategy data types.

Getting Started

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Connect to Dynamics CRM as an ODBC Data Source

Information for connecting to Dynamics CRM follows, along with different instructions for configuring a DSN in Windows and Linux environments.

The connection string options meet the authentication and connection requirements of different Dynamics CRM instances. To connect to your instance, set the User and Password properties, under the Authentication section, to valid Dynamics CRM user credentials and set the Url to a valid Dynamics CRM server organization root. Additionally, set the CRMVersion property to 'CRM2011+' or 'CRMOnline'. IFD configurations are supported as well; set InternetFacingDeployment to true.

Additionally, you can provide the security token service (STS) or AD FS endpoint in the STSURL property. This value can be retrieved with the GetSTSUrl stored procedure. Office 365 users can connect to the default STS URL by simply setting CRMVersion.

When you configure the DSN, you may also want to set the Max Rows connection property. This will limit the number of rows returned, which is especially helpful for improving performance when designing reports and visualizations.

Windows

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.

Linux

If you are installing the CData ODBC Driver for Dynamics CRM in a Linux environment, the driver installation predefines a system DSN. You can modify the DSN by editing the system data sources file (/etc/odbc.ini) and defining the required connection properties.

/etc/odbc.ini

[CData DynamicsCRM Sys]
Driver = CData ODBC Driver for Dynamics CRM
Description = My Description
User = myuseraccount
Password = mypassword
URL = https://myOrg.crm.dynamics.com/
CRM Version = CRM Online

For specific information on using these configuration files, please refer to the help documentation (installed and found online).

Connect to and Visualize Dynamics CRM Data using MicroStrategy Desktop

In addition to connecting Dynamics CRM in MicroStrategy enterprise products, you can connect to Dynamics CRM in MicroStrategy Desktop. Follow the steps below to add Dynamics CRM data as a dataset and create visualizations and reports of Dynamics CRM data.

1. Open MicroStrategy Desktop and create a new dossier.
2. In the datasets panel, click New Data, select Databases, and select Type a Query as the Import Option.
3. Add a new data source and choose DSN data sources.
4. Choose the DSN you previously configured (likely CData DynamicsCRM Sys) and select Generic DBMS in the Version menu.
5. Set the User and Password properties for the DSN (or use placeholder values) and name the data source.
👁 Creating a new data source for Dynamics CRM.

6. Select the new database instance to view the tables. You may need to manually click the search icon in the Available Tables section to see the tables.
7. Create a SQL query for the Dynamics CRM data (see below) and click Execute SQL to test the query.

   SELECT * FROM Account
   

   👁 Querying Dynamics CRM for data.
   NOTE: Since we create a live connection, we can execute a SELECT * query and utilize the filtering and aggregation features native to the MicroStrategy products.
8. Click Finish and choose to connect live.
9. Choose a visualization, choose fields to display (data types are discovered automatically through dynamic metadata discovery) and apply any filters to create a new visualization of Dynamics CRM data. Where possible, the complex queries generated by the filters and aggregations will be pushed down to Dynamics CRM, while any unsupported operations (which can include SQL functions and JOIN operations) will be managed client-side by the CData SQL Engine embedded in the driver. 👁 Visualize Dynamics CRM data.
   
10. Once you are finished configuring the dossier, click File -> Save.

Using the CData ODBC Driver for Dynamics CRM in MicroStrategy Desktop, you can easily create robust visualizations and reports on Dynamics CRM data. Read our other articles on connecting to Dynamics CRM in MicroStrategy and connecting to Dynamics CRM in MicroStrategy Web for more examples.