How to create an RPA flow for Exa Data in UiPath Studio

UiPath is a Robotic Process Automation (RPA) platform with rich features and an easy-to-use UI that enables non-developers to create process automation. By using UiPath Studio, you can build an RPA program just like drawing a diagram. With the CData API Driver for ODBC, users can embed Exa data in the workflow.

This article explains how to use the Exa ODBC Driver in UiPath Studio to create an RPA program that accesses Exa data.

👁 Using the CData ODBC Data Sources in UiPath

Configure the Connection to Exa

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.

Start by setting the Profile connection property to the location of the Exa Profile on disk (e.g. C:\profiles\Exa.apip). Next, set the ProfileSettings connection property to the connection string for Exa (see below).

Exa API Profile Settings

Visit dashboard.exa.ai, sign in or create an account, and generate an API key from your API settings.

Connect UiPath Studio to Exa Data

Now you are ready to use Exa data ODBC DSN in UiPath Studio with the following steps.

1. From the Start page, click Blank to create a New Project.
2. Click Manage Packages then search for and install UiPath.Database.Activities.
3. Navigate to the Activities and drop a Flowchart (Workflow -> Flowchart -> Flowchart) onto the process.
4. Drop a database Connect activity (App Integration -> Datbase -> Connect) after the Start activity.
5. Double-click the Connect activity and configure the Connection. 👁 Configure the Connect Activity
   
   1. Click the Connection Wizard
   2. Select "Microsoft ODBC Data Source"
   3. In Connection Properties, select your DSN (CData API Source) and click OK
6. To store Connection info, create a variable and bind to Output in the Properties section. Choose DatabaseConnection in Output.
   👁 Bind the Connection to the Output property.
   

Create an Execute Query Activity

With the connection configured, we are ready to query Exa data in our RPA.

1. From the Activities navigation, select Execute Query and drop it on the Flowchart.
2. Double-click the Execute Query activity and set the properties as follows:
   • ExistingDbConnection: Your Connection variable
   • Sql: SELECT statement like SELECT RequestId, Answer FROM Answer WHERE RequestId = 'my-request-id'
   • DataTable: Create and use a variable with the Type System.Data.DataTable
   👁 Set the Query for the ODBC Driver.
   

Create Write CSV Activity

With the Connection and Execute Query activities configured, we are ready to add a Write CSV activity to the Flowchart to replicate the Exa data.

1. From the Activities navigation, select Write CSV and drop it after the Execute Query activity.
2. Double-click the Write CSV activity and set the properties as follows:
   • FilePath: Set to a file (new or existing) on disk (i.e.: C:\UiPath[id]-data.csv
   • DataTable: Set to the DataTable variable you created earlier

Connect the Activities and Run the Flowchart

If they are not already connected, connect each Activity that you created to complete the RPA project for extracting Exa data and exporting it to CSV.

👁 Connect each Activity in the Flowchart

Click Run to extract Exa data and create a CSV file.

👁 Running the RPA Flowchart

In this article, we used the CData API Driver for ODBC to create an automation flow that accesses Exa data in UiPath Studio. Download a free, 30-day trial of the ODBC Driver and start working with live Exa data in UiPath Studio today!