Query LinkedIn Ads Data as a SQL Server Database in Node.js

You can use CData Connect AI to query LinkedIn Ads data through a SQL Server interface. Follow the procedure below to create a virtual database for LinkedIn Ads in Connect AI and start querying using Node.js.

CData Connect AI provides a pure MySQL, cloud-to-cloud interface for LinkedIn Ads, allowing you to easily query live LinkedIn Ads data in Node.js — without replicating the data to a natively supported database. As you query data in Node.js, CData Connect AI pushes all supported SQL operations (filters, JOINs, etc) directly to LinkedIn Ads, leveraging server-side processing to quickly return LinkedIn Ads data.

Configure LinkedIn Ads Connectivity for NodeJS

Connectivity to LinkedIn Ads from NodeJS is made possible through CData Connect AI. To work with LinkedIn Ads data from NodeJS, we start by creating and configuring a LinkedIn Ads connection.

1. Log into Connect AI, click Sources, and then click Add Connection
👁 Adding a Connection

2. Select "LinkedIn Ads" from the Add Connection panel
👁 Selecting a data source

3. Enter the necessary authentication properties to connect to LinkedIn Ads.

   LinkedIn Ads uses the OAuth authentication standard. OAuth requires the authenticating user to interact with LinkedIn using the browser. See the OAuth section in the Help documentation for a guide.

   👁 Configuring a connection (Salesforce is shown)
   
4. Click Save & Test
5. Navigate to the Permissions tab in the Add LinkedIn Ads Connection page and update the User-based permissions. 👁 Updating permissions
   

Add a Personal Access Token

When connecting to Connect AI through the REST API, the OData API, or the Virtual SQL Server, a Personal Access Token (PAT) is used to authenticate the connection to Connect AI. It is best practice to create a separate PAT for each service to maintain granularity of access.

1. Click on the Gear icon () at the top right of the Connect AI app to open the settings page.
2. On the Settings page, go to the Access Tokens section and click Create PAT.
3. Give the PAT a name and click Create. 👁 Creating a new PAT
   
4. The personal access token is only visible at creation, so be sure to copy it and store it securely for future use.

With the connection configured and a PAT generated, you are ready to connect to LinkedIn Ads data from Node.js.

Query LinkedIn Ads from Node.js

The following example shows how to define a connection and execute queries to LinkedIn Ads with the SQL Server module. You will need the following information:

• server: tds.cdata.com
• port: 14333
• user: a Connect AI user (e.g. [email protected])
• password: the PAT for the above user
• database: The connection you configured for LinkedIn Ads (LinkedInAds1)

Connect to LinkedIn Ads data and start executing queries with the code below:

var sql = require('mssql')
var config = {
	server: 'tds.cdata.com',
	port: 14333, 
	user: '[email protected]', //update me
	password: 'CONNECT_USER_PAT', //update me	
	options: {
		encrypt: true,
		database: 'LinkedInAds1'
	}
}

sql.connect(config, err => { 
 if(err){
 throw err ;
 }
 new sql.Request().query('SELECT * FROM Analytics', (err, result) => {
 console.dir(result)
 })
 
});

sql.on('error', err => {
 console.log("SQL Error: " ,err);
})