Redash is a collaboration tool that lets you query, visualize, and share your data. When paired with
CData Connect AI, Redash gets access to live Xero data. This article demonstrates how to connect to Xero
using Connect AI and work with live Xero data in Redash.
CData Connect AI provides a pure SQL Server interface for Xero, allowing you to query data from
Xero without replicating the data to a natively supported database.
Using optimized data processing out of the box, CData Connect AI pushes all supported SQL operations
(filters, JOINs, etc.) directly to Xero, leveraging server-side processing to return the
requested Xero data quickly.
About Xero Data Integration
Accessing and integrating live data from Xero has never been easier with CData. Customers rely on CData connectivity to:
- Connect to Xero Accounts and both US and Australian Payroll APIs.
- Read, write, update, and delete Xero objects like Customers, Transactions, Invoices, Sales Receipts and more.
- Use SQL stored procedures for actions like adding items to a cart, submitting orders, and downloading attachments.
- Work with accounting, payroll, file, fixed asset, and project data.
Customers regularly integrate their Xero data with preferred tools, like Tableau, Qlik Sense, or Excel, and integrate Xero data into their database or data warehouse.
Getting Started
Configure Xero Connectivity for Redash
Connectivity to Xero from Redash is made possible through CData Connect AI. To work with Xero data in Redash, we start by creating and configuring a Xero connection.
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Log into Connect AI, click Sources, and then click Add Connection
👁 Adding a Connection
- Select "Xero" from the Add Connection panel
👁 Selecting a data source
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Xero uses OAuth to authenticate. Click "Sign in" to authenticate with Xero.
👁 Authenticating with OAuth (Salesforce is shown).
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Navigate to the Permissions tab in the Add Xero 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.
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Click on the Gear icon () at the top right of the Connect AI app to open the settings page.
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On the Settings page, go to the Access Tokens section and click Create PAT.
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Give the PAT a name and click Create.
👁 Creating a new PAT
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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 Xero data from Redash.
Connect to Xero from Redash using Connect AI
To establish a connection from Redash to CData Connect AI using the Virtual SQL Server, follow these steps:
- Log into Redash.
- Click the settings widget on the top right.
- Click New Data Source.
- Select Microsoft SQL Server as the Data Source Type.
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On the configuration tab, set the following properties:
- Database Name: enter the Connection Name of the CData Connect AI data source you want to connect to (for example, Salesforce1).
- Server: enter the virtual SQL Server host name (tds.cdata.com)
- User: enter your CData Connect AI username. This is displayed in the top-right corner of the CData Connect AI interface. For example, [email protected].
- Password: enter the PAT you generated on the Settings page.
- Port: enter 14333
👁 Configuring the connection to Connect AI from Redash.
- Click Create.
- Click Test Connection to ensure that the connection is configured properly.
You can now work with live Xero data in Redash.
Get CData Connect AI
To get live data access to hundreds of SaaS, Big Data, and NoSQL sources directly from Redash,
try CData Connect AI today!
