Connect to Excel Online Data in JRuby

JRuby is a high-performance, stable, fully threaded Java implementation of the Ruby programming language. The CData JDBC Driver for Excel Online makes it easy to integrate connectivity to live Excel Online data in JRuby. This article shows how to create a simple JRuby app that connects to Excel Online data, executes a query, and displays the results.

Configure a JDBC Connection to Excel Online Data

Before creating the app, note the installation location for the JAR file for the JDBC Driver (typically C:\Program Files\CData\CData JDBC Driver for Excel Online\lib).

JRuby natively supports JDBC, so you can easily connect to Excel Online and execute SQL queries. Initialize the JDBC connection with the getConnection function of the java.sql.DriverManager class.

You can connect to a workbook by providing authentication to Excel Online and then setting the following properties:

• : Set this to the name or Id of the workbook.

  If you want to view a list of information about the available workbooks, execute a query to the Workbooks view after you authenticate.

• : Set this to true if you are connecting to a workbook in a sandbox account. Otherwise, leave this blank to connect to a production account.

You use the OAuth authentication standard to authenticate to Excel Online. See the Getting Started section in the help documentation for a guide. Getting Started also guides you through executing SQL to worksheets and ranges.

Built-in Connection String Designer

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

java -jar cdata.jdbc.excelonline.jar

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

Below is a typical JDBC connection string for Excel Online:

jdbc:excelonline:InitiateOAuth=GETANDREFRESH;

Create a JRuby App with Connectivity to Excel Online Data

Create a new Ruby file (for example: ExcelOnlineSelect.rb) and open it in a text editor. Copy the following code into your file:

require 'java'
require 'rubygems'
require 'C:/Program Files/CData/CData JDBC Driver for Excel Online 2018/lib/cdata.jdbc.excelonline.jar'

url = "jdbc:excelonline:InitiateOAuth=GETANDREFRESH;"
conn = java.sql.DriverManager.getConnection(url)
stmt = conn.createStatement
rs = stmt.executeQuery("SELECT Id, Column1 FROM Test_xlsx_Sheet1")
while (rs.next) do
 puts rs.getString(1) + ' ' + rs.getString(2)
end

With the file completed, you are ready to display your Excel Online data with JRuby. To do so, simply run your file from the command line:

jruby -S ExcelOnlineSelect.rb

Writing SQL-92 queries to Excel Online allows you to quickly and easily incorporate Excel Online data into your own JRuby applications. Download a free trial today!