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

⇱ Import Real-Time Microsoft Planner Data via ODBC in ColdFusion to Build Applications

Import Real-Time Microsoft Planner Data via ODBC in ColdFusion to Build Applications

👁 Dibyendu Datta
Dibyendu Datta
Lead Technology Evangelist
Use CData ODBC drivers to import and use Microsoft Planner 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 Microsoft Planner, you can link your ColdFusion web and mobile applications to operational Microsoft Planner 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 Microsoft Planner data from within a ColdFusion markup file.

To follow along with this tutorial, you need to install the CData ODBC Driver for Microsoft Planner 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.

You can connect without setting any connection properties for your user credentials. Below are the minimum connection properties required to connect.

  • InitiateOAuth: Set this to GETANDREFRESH. You can use InitiateOAuth to avoid repeating the OAuth exchange and manually setting the OAuthAccessToken.
  • Tenant (optional): Set this if you wish to authenticate to a different tenant than your default. This is required to work with an organization not on your default Tenant.

When you connect the Driver opens the MS Planner OAuth endpoint in your default browser. Log in and grant permissions to the Driver. The Driver then completes the OAuth process.

  1. Extracts the access token from the callback URL and authenticates requests.
  2. Obtains a new access token when the old one expires.
  3. Saves OAuth values in OAuthSettingsLocation to be persisted across connections.

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 Microsoft Planner Data and display it in a table in ColdFusion:

  1. From the ColdFusion administrator interface, choose Data & Services. 👁 Selecting Data & Services
  2. 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
  3. From the ODBC DSN Dropdown menu select CData Microsoft Planner 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
  4. Now, test the connection by pressing the check mark to the left of the CDataMicrosoft PlannerODBC data source you just created. When the data source reports an "OK" status, it is ready for use. 👁 Testing the connection
  5. 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="Microsoft PlannerQuery" dataSource="CDataMicrosoft PlannerODBC"> 
 SELECT * FROM Tasks 
 </cfquery>
    And a CFTable can be used to quickly output the table in HTML: 
     
 <cftable 
 query = "Microsoft PlannerQuery" 
 border = "1" 
 colHeaders 
 colSpacing = "2" 
 headerLines = "2" 
 HTMLTable 
 maxRows = "500" 
 startRow = "1"> 

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

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

 ...

 </cftable>
    Full code, including the HTML portion is available below: 
     
 <html> 
 <head><title>CData Software | Microsoft Planner Tasks Table Demo </title></head> 
 <body> 
 <cfoutput>#ucase("Microsoft Planner Tasks Table Demo")#</cfoutput> 
 <cfquery name="Microsoft PlannerQuery" dataSource="CDataMicrosoft PlannerODBC"> 

 SELECT * FROM Tasks 

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

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

 ...

 </cftable> 
 </body> 

 </html>
  6. Finally, run the code in a browser. It produces a table populated with Microsoft Planner 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 Microsoft Planner and start building Microsoft Planner-connected applications with Adobe ColdFusion. Reach out to our Support Team if you have any questions.

Ready to get started?

Download a free trial of the Microsoft Planner ODBC Driver to get started:

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Learn more:

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Microsoft Planner ODBC Driver

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

Access Microsoft Planner data like you would a database - read, write, and update Microsoft Planner Buckets, Plans, Tasks, etc. through a standard ODBC Driver interface.