Import Real-Time Dynamics NAV Data via ODBC in ColdFusion to Build Applications

Dibyendu Datta
Lead Technology Evangelist

Use CData ODBC drivers to import and use Dynamics NAV data in ColdFusion.

Adobe ColdFusion is a web and mobile application development platform. It uses its own scripting language, ColdFusion Markup Language (CFML), to create data-driven websites as well as generate remote services, such as REST. When ColdFusion is paired with the CData ODBC Driver for Dynamics NAV, you can link your ColdFusion web and mobile applications to operational Dynamics NAV data. This allows for your applications to be more robust and complete. This article details how to use the ODBC driver to create a table populated with Dynamics NAV data from within a ColdFusion markup file.

To follow along with this tutorial, you need to install the CData ODBC Driver for Dynamics NAV and Adobe ColdFusion.

Configuring the Connection

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 process. You can use the Microsoft ODBC Data Source Administrator to create and configure ODBC DSNs.

Before you can connect, OData Services will need to be enabled on the server. Once OData Services are enabled, you will be able to query any Services that are published on the server.

The User and Password properties, under the Authentication section, must be set to valid Dynamics NAV user credentials. In addition, specify a URL to a valid Dynamics NAV server organization root and a ServerInstance. If there is not a Service Default Company for the server, set the Company as well.

Adding a Data Source and Creating a Table

After creating a DSN, follow the steps below to add a new data source, test our connection to it, create a ColdFusion markup file, and, finally, import Dynamics NAV Data and display it in a table in ColdFusion:

From the ColdFusion administrator interface, choose Data & Services. 👁 Selecting Data & Services
Here, click "Add New Data Source". The data source name can be any name, provided it conforms to the ColdFusion variable naming conventions. For our ODBC driver, choose "ODBC Socket", then click the "Add" button. 👁 Adding Data Source Name
From the ODBC DSN Dropdown menu select CData Dynamics NAV Sys. Under the Advanced Settings section, leave the Connection String blank. Note that any properties specified in this input field will override the ones specified in the DSN Configuration. 👁 Populating driver properties
Now, test the connection by pressing the check mark to the left of the CDataDynamics NAVODBC data source you just created. When the data source reports an "OK" status, it is ready for use. 👁 Testing the connection

Next, create a new ColdFusion Markup file (.cfm) and place it in the wwwroot directory ("C:\ColdFusion2021\cfusion\wwwroot") for ColdFusion.

The following code queries the data source:

 
 <cfquery name="Dynamics NAVQuery" dataSource="CDataDynamics NAVODBC"> 
 SELECT * FROM Customer 
 </cfquery>

And a CFTable can be used to quickly output the table in HTML:

 
 <cftable 
 query = "Dynamics NAVQuery" 
 border = "1" 
 colHeaders 
 colSpacing = "2" 
 headerLines = "2" 
 HTMLTable 
 maxRows = "500" 
 startRow = "1"> 

 <cfcol header="<b>Name</b>" align="Left" width=2 text="Name"/> 

 <cfcol header="<b>Prices_Including_VAT</b>" align="Left" width=15 text="Prices_Including_VAT"/> 

 ...

 </cftable>

Full code, including the HTML portion is available below:

 
 <html> 
 <head><title>CData Software | Dynamics NAV Customer Table Demo </title></head> 
 <body> 
 <cfoutput>#ucase("Dynamics NAV Customer Table Demo")#</cfoutput> 
 <cfquery name="Dynamics NAVQuery" dataSource="CDataDynamics NAVODBC"> 

 SELECT * FROM Customer 

 </cfquery> 
 <cftable 
 query = "Dynamics NAVQuery" 
 border = "1" 
 colHeaders 
 colSpacing = "2" 
 headerLines = "2" 
 HTMLTable 
 maxRows = "500" 
 startRow = "1"> 
 <cfcol header="<b>Name</b>" align="Left" width=2 text="Name"/> 

 <cfcol header="<b>Prices_Including_VAT</b>" align="Left" width=15 text="Prices_Including_VAT"/> 

 ...

 </cftable> 
 </body> 

 </html>

Finally, run the code in a browser. It produces a table populated with Dynamics NAV data! 👁 Running the code

As a note, the CData ODBC Drivers also support parameterized queries using the cfqueryparam element. For example:

SELECT * FROM Account WHERE name =

Get Started Today

Download a free, 30-day trial of the CData ODBC Driver for Dynamics NAV and start building Dynamics NAV-connected applications with Adobe ColdFusion. Reach out to our Support Team if you have any questions.

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Download a free trial of the Dynamics NAV ODBC Driver to get started:

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Learn more:

👁 Dynamics NAV Icon
Dynamics NAV ODBC Driver

The Dynamics NAV ODBC Driver is a powerful tool that allows you to connect with live Dynamics NAV data, directly from any applications that support ODBC connectivity.

Access Dynamics NAV like you would a database - read, write, and update Items, Sales Orders, Purchase Orders, etc. through a standard ODBC Driver interface.

URL: https://www.cdata.com/kb/tech/dynamicsnav-odbc-coldfusion.rst