Visualize Live Snowflake Data in Tableau

Tableau is a visual analytics platform transforming the way businesses use data to solve problems. When paired with the CData Tableau Connector for Snowflake, you can easily get access to live Snowflake data within Tableau. This article shows how to connect to Snowflake in Tableau and build a simple chart.

The CData Tableau Connectors enable high-speed access to live Snowflake data in Tableau. Once you install the connector, you simply authenticate with Snowflake and you can immediately start building responsive, dynamic visualizations and dashboards. By surfacing Snowflake data using native Tableau data types and handling complex filters, aggregations, & other operations automatically, CData Tableau Connectors grant seamless access to Snowflake data.

NOTE: The CData Tableau Connectors require Tableau 2020.3 or higher. If you are using an older version of Tableau, you will need to use the CData JDBC Driver. If you wish to connect to Snowflake data in Tableau Cloud, you will need to use CData Connect AI.

Getting Started

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Connect to Snowflake in Tableau

Open Tableau and click More under Connect -> To a Server. Select "Snowflake by CData," then configure the connection and click "Sign In."

To connect to Snowflake:

1. Set User and Password to your Snowflake credentials and set the AuthScheme property to PASSWORD or OKTA.
2. Set URL to the URL of the Snowflake instance (i.e.: https://myaccount.snowflakecomputing.com).
3. Set Warehouse to the Snowflake warehouse.
4. (Optional) Set Account to your Snowflake account if your URL does not conform to the format above.
5. (Optional) Set Database and Schema to restrict the tables and views exposed.
6. (Optional) If MFA is enabled on your Snowflake account (via Duo Security), set MFACode to the passcode generated by your Duo authenticator app.

See the Getting Started guide in the CData driver documentation for more information.

Discover Schemas and Query Data

1. Select CData from the Database pull-down menu.
2. Select Snowflake from the Schema pull-down menu.
3. Drag the tables and views you wish to visualize onto the join area. You can include multiple tables. 👁 Selecting table(s)
   
4. Select Update Now or Automatically Update. Update Now lets you preview the first 10,000 rows of the data source (or enter the number of rows you want to see in the Rows text box). Automatically Update automatically reflects the changes in the preview area.
5. Click the tab for your worksheet. Columns are listed as Dimensions and Measures, depending on the data type. The CData Tableau Connector discovers data types automatically, allowing you to leverage the powerful data processing and visualization features of Tableau.
6. Drag a field from the Dimensions or Measures area to Rows or Columns. Tableau creates column or row headers.
7. Select one of the chart types from the Show Me tab. Tableau displays the chart type that you selected.
👁 Visualizing live Snowflake data

Using the CData Tableau Connector for Snowflake with Tableau, you can easily create robust visualizations and reports on Snowflake data. Download a free, 30-day trial and get started today.