Use the CData ODBC Driver for Quickbase in MicroStrategy Desktop

MicroStrategy is an analytics and mobility platform that enables data-driven innovation. When paired with the CData ODBC Driver for Quickbase, you gain database-like access to live Quickbase data from MicroStrategy, expanding your reporting and analytics capabilities. In this article, we walk through adding Quickbase as a data source in MicroStrategy Desktop and creating a simple visualization of Quickbase data.

The CData ODBC Driver offers unmatched performance for interacting with live Quickbase data in MicroStrategy due to optimized data processing built into the driver. When you issue complex SQL queries from MicroStrategy to Quickbase, the driver pushes supported SQL operations, like filters and aggregations, directly to Quickbase and utilizes the embedded SQL Engine to process unsupported operations (often SQL functions and JOIN operations) client-side. With built-in dynamic metadata querying, you can visualize and analyze Quickbase data using native MicroStrategy data types.

Connect to Quickbase as an ODBC Data Source

Information for connecting to Quickbase follows, along with different instructions for configuring a DSN in Windows and Linux environments.

User Authentication Method

To authenticate with user credentials, specify the following connection properties:

1. Set the User and Password.
2. If your application requires an ApplicationToken;, you must provide it otherwise an error will be thrown. You can find the ApplicationToken under SpecificApp > Settings > App management > App properties > Advanced settings > Security options > Manage Application Token.

User Token Authentication

To authenticate with a user token, specify the following connection properties:

1. Set UserToken and you are ready to connect. You can find the UserToken under Quick Base > My Preferences > My User Information > Manage User Tokens.

When you configure the DSN, you may also want to set the Max Rows connection property. This will limit the number of rows returned, which is especially helpful for improving performance when designing reports and visualizations.

Windows

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.

Linux

If you are installing the CData ODBC Driver for Quickbase in a Linux environment, the driver installation predefines a system DSN. You can modify the DSN by editing the system data sources file (/etc/odbc.ini) and defining the required connection properties.

/etc/odbc.ini

[CData QuickBase Sys]
Driver = CData ODBC Driver for Quickbase
Description = My Description
User = [email protected]
Password = password
Domain = myinstance.quickbase.com
ApplicationToken = bwkxrb5da2wn57bzfh9xn24

For specific information on using these configuration files, please refer to the help documentation (installed and found online).

Connect to and Visualize Quickbase Data using MicroStrategy Desktop

In addition to connecting Quickbase in MicroStrategy enterprise products, you can connect to Quickbase in MicroStrategy Desktop. Follow the steps below to add Quickbase data as a dataset and create visualizations and reports of Quickbase data.

1. Open MicroStrategy Desktop and create a new dossier.
2. In the datasets panel, click New Data, select Databases, and select Type a Query as the Import Option.
3. Add a new data source and choose DSN data sources.
4. Choose the DSN you previously configured (likely CData QuickBase Sys) and select Generic DBMS in the Version menu.
5. Set the User and Password properties for the DSN (or use placeholder values) and name the data source.
👁 Creating a new data source for Quickbase.

6. Select the new database instance to view the tables. You may need to manually click the search icon in the Available Tables section to see the tables.
7. Create a SQL query for the Quickbase data (see below) and click Execute SQL to test the query.

   SELECT * FROM SampleTable_1
   

   👁 Querying Quickbase for data.
   NOTE: Since we create a live connection, we can execute a SELECT * query and utilize the filtering and aggregation features native to the MicroStrategy products.
8. Click Finish and choose to connect live.
9. Choose a visualization, choose fields to display (data types are discovered automatically through dynamic metadata discovery) and apply any filters to create a new visualization of Quickbase data. Where possible, the complex queries generated by the filters and aggregations will be pushed down to Quickbase, while any unsupported operations (which can include SQL functions and JOIN operations) will be managed client-side by the CData SQL Engine embedded in the driver. 👁 Visualize Quickbase data.
   
10. Once you are finished configuring the dossier, click File -> Save.

Using the CData ODBC Driver for Quickbase in MicroStrategy Desktop, you can easily create robust visualizations and reports on Quickbase data. Read our other articles on connecting to Quickbase in MicroStrategy and connecting to Quickbase in MicroStrategy Web for more examples.