Query Microsoft Project Data as a SQL Server Database in Node.js

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

CData Connect AI provides a pure MySQL, cloud-to-cloud interface for Microsoft Project, allowing you to easily query live Microsoft Project 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 Microsoft Project, leveraging server-side processing to quickly return Microsoft Project data.

Configure Microsoft Project Connectivity for NodeJS

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

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

2. Select "Microsoft Project" from the Add Connection panel
👁 Selecting a data source

3. Enter the necessary authentication properties to connect to Microsoft Project.

   The User and Password properties, under the Authentication section, must be set to valid Microsoft Project user credentials. In addition, specify a URL to a valid Microsoft Project server organization root or Microsoft Project services file.

   👁 Configuring a connection (Salesforce is shown)
   
4. Click Save & Test
5. Navigate to the Permissions tab in the Add Microsoft Project 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 Microsoft Project data from Node.js.

Query Microsoft Project from Node.js

The following example shows how to define a connection and execute queries to Microsoft Project 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 Microsoft Project (MicrosoftProject1)

Connect to Microsoft Project 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: 'MicrosoftProject1'
	}
}

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

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