Use the CData JDBC Driver for Zendesk in MicroStrategy Desktop

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

The CData JDBC Driver offers unmatched performance for interacting with live Zendesk data in MicroStrategy due to optimized data processing built into the driver. When you issue complex SQL queries from MicroStrategy to Zendesk, the driver pushes supported SQL operations, like filters and aggregations, directly to Zendesk 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 use native MicroStrategy data types to visualize and analyze Zendesk data.

Connect to and Visualize Zendesk Data using MicroStrategy Desktop

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

1. Open MicroStrategy Desktop and create a new dossier.
2. In the datasets panel, click New Data, select Databases, and choose Select a Table as the Import Option.
3. Add a new data source and choose the DSN-less data sources option.
4. Choose Generic in the Database menu and Generic DBMS in the Version menu.
5. Click the link to show the connection string and opt to edit the connection string. In the Driver menu, select MicroStrategy Cassandra ODBC Driver. (MicroStrategy requires a certified driver to interface through JDBC; the actual driver will not be used.)
6. Set the connection string as follows and click OK:
   • Add the JDBC keyword to the connection string.
   • Set MSTR_JDBC_JAR_FOLDER to the path of the JAR file for the JDBC driver. (C:\Program Files\CData JDBC Driver for Zendesk\lib\ on Windows.)
   • Set DRIVER to cdata.jdbc.zendesk.ZendeskDriver, the driver class.
   • Set URL to the JDBC URL for the Zendesk driver, setting the necessary connection properties.

     Connecting to Zendesk

     To connect, set the URL and provide authentication. The URL is your Zendesk Support URL: https://{subdomain}.zendesk.com.

     Authenticating to Zendesk

     You can authenticate using the Basic or OAuth methods.

     Using Basic Authentication

     To use Basic authentication, specify your email address and password or your email address and an API token. Set User to your email address and follow the steps below to provide the Password or ApiToken.

     • Enable password access in the Zendesk Support admin interface at Admin > Channels > API.
     • Manage API tokens in the Zendesk Support Admin interface at Admin > Channels > API. More than one token can be active at the same time. Deleting a token deactivates it permanently.

     Using OAuth Authentication

     See the Getting Started guide in the CData driver documentation for an authentication guide.

     Built-in Connection String Designer

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

     java -jar cdata.jdbc.zendesk.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 connection string follows:

   JDBC;MSTR_JDBC_JAR_FOLDER=PATH\TO\JAR\;DRIVER=cdata.jdbc.zendesk.ZendeskDriver;URL={jdbc:zendesk:URL=https://subdomain.zendesk.com;[email protected];Password=test123;InitiateOAuth=GETANDREFRESH;};
   

   👁 Creating a new data source for Zendesk.
   
7. Right-click on the new data source, and choose Edit catalog options.
8. Edit the SQL Statement to SELECT * FROM SYS_SCHEMAS to read the metadata from the JDBC Driver.
9. Select the new data source to view the available tables. You may need to manually click the search icon in the Available Tables section to see the tables.
10. Drag tables into the pane to import them. 👁 Select tables to import.
    Note: Since we create a live connection, we can import whole tables and utilize the filtering and aggregation features native to the MicroStrategy products.
11. Click Finish and choose the option to connect Live. Live connections are possible and effective, thanks to the high-performance data processing native to CData JDBC Drivers.
12. Choose a visualization, choose fields to display, and apply any filters to create a new visualization of Zendesk data. Data types are discovered automatically through dynamic metadata discovery. Where possible, the complex queries generated by the filters and aggregations will be pushed down to Zendesk, 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 Zendesk data.
    
13. Once you are finished configuring the dossier, click File -> Save.

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