Feed Salesforce Data Cloud Data into FineReport

The CData JDBC Driver for Salesforce Data Cloud fully implements the JDBC standard and can provide Salesforce Data Cloud data connectivity to a wide variety of BI, reporting, and ETL tools and custom applications. In this article, we explain how to set Salesforce Data Cloud data as JDBC data source in FineReport and view Salesforce Data Cloud data as a table in the Report Designer.

Set Up a JDBC Data Source of Salesforce Data Cloud Data

Follow the instruction below to set Salesforce Data Cloud data as a FineReport database connection.

1. Copy the cdata.jdbc.salesforcedatacloud.jar file from the lib folder in the CData JDBC Driver for Salesforce Data Cloud installation directory to the lib folder of the FineReport installation directory. You will need to copy the cdata.jdbc.salesforcedatacloud.lic file as well.
2. From the Server tab, select Define Data Connection, click to add a new connection, and click JDBC.
👁 FineReport Server Tab (Salesforce is shown.)

Next we will set up the data connection definition in the window.

1. Database: Others
2. JDBC Driver: cdata.jdbc.salesforcedatacloud.SalesforceDataCloudDriver
3. URL: A standard JDBC connection string using semicolon-separated connection properties.

   Salesforce Data Cloud supports authentication via the OAuth standard.

   OAuth

   Set to OAuth.

   Desktop Applications

   CData provides an embedded OAuth application that simplifies authentication at the desktop.

   You can also authenticate from the desktop via a custom OAuth application, which you configure and register at the Salesforce Data Cloud console. For further information, see Creating a Custom OAuth App in the Help documentation.

   Before you connect, set these properties:

   • : GETANDREFRESH. You can use to avoid repeating the OAuth exchange and manually setting the .
   • (custom applications only): The Client ID assigned when you registered your custom OAuth application.
   • (custom applications only): The Client Secret assigned when you registered your custom OAuth application.

   When you connect, the driver opens Salesforce Data Cloud's OAuth endpoint in your default browser. Log in and grant permissions to the application.

   The driver then completes the OAuth process as follows:

   • Extracts the access token from the callback URL.
   • Obtains a new access token when the old one expires.
   • Saves OAuth values in so that they persist across connections.

   For other OAuth methods, including Web Applications and Headless Machines, refer to the Help documentation.

   Built-in Connection String Designer

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

   java -jar cdata.jdbc.salesforcedatacloud.jar
   

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

   👁 Using the built-in connection string designer to generate a JDBC URL (Salesforce is shown.)
   

   When you configure the JDBC URL, 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.

   A typical JDBC URL is below:

    jdbc:salesforcedatacloud:InitiateOAuth=GETANDREFRESH;
    

👁 FineReport data connection definition window (Salesforce is shown.)

4. Click Connection pool attributes and set Test before getting connections to No.
👁 FineReport connection pool (Salesforce is shown.)

Click Test connection to ensure you have configured the connection properly. With the connection to Salesforce Data Cloud set up, you can use it as FineReport data source.

Select Salesforce Data Cloud Data in the Report Designer.

1. Click to add a new template data set and select DB query to open the database query window.
👁 Adding a new DB query.

2. Choose the JDBC connection that you created from the dropdown list.
3. The Salesforce Data Cloud entities will appear as tables on the left pane.
4. Write a SELECT statement for the Salesforce Data Cloud data tables and columns that you want to load.
👁 FineReport database query (Salesforce is shown.)

5. Click preview and data is shown as table.
👁 FineReport database query preview (Salesforce is shown.)

With these simple steps, Salesforce Data Cloud can be used as a JDBC data source in FineReport.