How to Build Tableau reports on SQL Server Data using SQL Server ODBC Driver

Introduction

Progress DataDirect SQL Server ODBC Driver offers a high-performing, secure and reliable connectivity solution, for ODBC applications to access SQL Server data. If you want to use our ODBC SQL Server Driver with the Tableau Desktop application, Progress DataDirect has you covered. In this tutorial, you will learn how to configure the DataDirect SQL Server driver within Tableau Desktop to create reports. These steps can also be used to configure any ODBC connection with Tableau.

Prerequisites

This tutorial assumes that you have ODBC drivers installed and a data source configured. If you have not yet done these steps, please follow these instructions:

Download and install the Progress DataDirect SQL Server ODBC driver using the 15-day trial software. In this tutorial, we are connecting to Microsoft SQL Server.
Configure a data source for your database. See the DataDirect documentation for assistance with setting up your data source. You will learn how to configure a SQL Server Datasource in the following steps.

Configure Connection to SQL Server ODBC Driver Using the ODBC Administrator

After the DataDirect SQL Server ODBC driver has been installed, open ODBC Administrator to configure the connection and click on Add.
Choose the “DataDirect X.X SQL Server Wire Protocol” and click on “Finish.”
The ODBC SQL Server Wire Protocol Driver Setup window will pop up.
Enter your credentials, click on “Apply” or “OK,” and then click on “Test Connect.”
The SQL Server Logon screen will pop up. Provide logon credentials and click on “OK.”
A dialog box will confirm that the connection is established.

Connect to an ODBC Data Source

Start Tableau and select the “Other Databases (ODBC)” option.
In the pop-up window, select the “DSN” radial button and choose the data source previously configured to connect to SQL Server in the dropdown.
Click on “Connect” and another Logon Dialog popup screen will appear. Enter your credentials and click on “OK.”
Enter any additional parameters required to connect to your SQL Server Datasource, such as a username and password, and select “OK.” The original connection screen will now display the connection attributes.
Select “Sign In” and the Tableau configuration screen should now appear.
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.
For example, you can execute a statement such as "Select * from schema_name.table_name" and then click on the "Sheet 1" option at the bottom of the Tableau screen. This screen will allow you to select data and create tables or charts, such as the sample below: