How to Build Tableau Reports on Salesforce Data using the DataDirect Salesforce Drivers

1. 1. Download and install the Progress DataDirect Salesforce ODBC driver for your database using the 15-day trial software. In this tutorial, we are connecting to Salesforce.   

2. 2. Configure a data source for your database. See the DataDirect documentation for assistance with setting up your data source. The sample below uses a data source.  

1. After the DataDirect Salesforce ODBC driver has been installed, open ODBC Administrator to configure the connection and click on "Add."  

2. Choose the “DataDirect X.X Salesforce” driver and click on “Finish.”  

3. You should now see the ODBC Salesforce Driver Setup pop-up window launched. Add your Data Source Name, hostname, username, and other credentials, and click on “Apply” and then “Test Connect.” If you are connecting to a sandbox instance use “test.salesforce.com” as Host Name. If your instance does not require a security token to connect, leave it blank. 

4. A Logon Dialog will pop up. Enter your username and password and click on “OK.”  

5. A pop-up window will confirm that the connection is established.  

1. Start Tableau and select the “Other Databases (ODBC)” option.  

2. In the pop-up window select the “DSN” radial button and choose the data source previously configured to connect to Salesforce in the dropdown and click on “Connect.”  

3. The Logon Dialog will reappear. Provide hostname, schema map, username, and password again, and click on “OK.”  

4. Enter any additional parameters required to connect to your Salesforce data sources, such as a username and password, and select “Sign In.”  

1. To get started, copy sforce.jar from the Progress install location to Tableau’s driver location.   

• For Windows: copy sforce.jar to C:\Program Files\Tableau\Drivers    

• For Mac: copy sforce.jar to ~/Library/Tableau/Drivers   

2. Open Tableau and create a new data source.    

• Select “Other Databases (JDBC).”   

• The pop-up window will appear.   

• Enter your Salesforce connection URL in the textbox. The URL will look something like:   
     

• Enter credentials for username and password, and click on “Sign In.”   

1. After the driver has been downloaded:   

• If you are on Windows, extract the PROGRESS_DATADIRECT_JDBC_SALESFORCE_WIN.zip and run the PROGRESS_DATADIRECT_JDBC_INSTALL.exeto install the JDBC driver.    

• If you are on Linux, extract the PROGRESS_DATADIRECT_JDBC_SALESFORCE_WIN.zip and run the PROGRESS_DATADIRECT_JDBC_INSTALL.jarto start the installation.    

2. After you have completed the installation, you can find the Progress DataDirect Salesforce jar file.    

• On Windows, you will find it at C:\Program Files\Progress\DataDirect\JDBC_60\lib\sforce.jar    

• On Linux, you will find it at ~/home/<username>/Progress/DataDirect/JDBC_60/lib/sforce.jar 

1. Select “Sign In” and the Tableau configuration screen should now appear.  

2. In the database dropdown menu choose the data source.    

3. You can use Tableau's schema and table drop-down list to browse and select your data, or you can execute SQL statements by clicking on the "New Custom SQL" option.  

4. Once Tableau can access your relevant data, you can easily create reports like those shown below: