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Use the API Server and Azure Synapse ADO.NET Provider to Access Azure Synapse Data in Microsoft PowerPivot
Use the API Server to connect to live Azure Synapse data in the PowerPivot business intelligence tool.
This article will explain how to use the API Server and the ADO.NET Provider for Azure Synapse (or any of 200+ other ADO.NET Providers) to provide Azure Synapse data as OData services and then consume the data in Microsoft Excel's PowerPivot business intelligence tool. Follow the steps below to retrieve and edit Azure Synapse data in Power Pivot.
Set Up the API Server
Follow the steps below to begin producing secure Azure Synapse OData services:
Deploy
The API Server runs on your own server. On Windows, you can deploy using the stand-alone server or IIS. On a Java servlet container, drop in the API Server WAR file. See the help documentation for more information and how-tos.
The API Server is also easy to deploy on Microsoft Azure, Amazon EC2, and Heroku.
Connect to Azure Synapse
After you deploy the API Server and the ADO.NET Provider for Azure Synapse, provide authentication values and other connection properties needed to connect to Azure Synapse by clicking Settings -> Connections and adding a new connection in the API Server administration console.
Connecting to Azure Synapse
In addition to providing authentication (see below), set the following properties to connect to a Azure Synapse database:
- Server: The server running Azure. You can find this by logging into the Azure portal and navigating to Azure Synapse Analytics -> Select your database -> Overview -> Server name.
- Database: The name of the database, as seen in the Azure portal on the Azure Synapse Analytics page.
Authenticating to Azure Synapse
Connect to Azure Synapse using the following properties:
- User: The username provided for authentication with Azure.
- Password: The password associated with the authenticating user.
You can then choose the Azure Synapse entities you want to allow the API Server access to by clicking Settings -> Resources.
Additionally, click Settings -> Server and set the Default Format to XML (Atom) for compatibility with Excel.
Authorize API Server Users
After determining the OData services you want to produce, authorize users by clicking Settings -> Users. The API Server uses authtoken-based authentication and supports the major authentication schemes. Access can also be restricted based on IP address; by default, only connections to the local machine are allowed. You can authenticate as well as encrypt connections with SSL.
Import Azure Synapse Tables in Power Pivot
Follow the steps below to import tables that can be refreshed on demand:
- In Excel, click the PowerPivot Window icon in the PowerPivot tab to open PowerPivot.
- Click Home -> Get External Data -> From Data Service -> From OData Data Feed.
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Add authentication parameters. Click Advanced and set the Integrated Security option to Basic. You will need to enter the User Id and Password of a user who has access to the CData API Server. Set the password to the user's authtoken.
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In the Base URL box, enter the OData URL of the CData API Server. For example, http://localhost:8032/api.rsc.
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Select which tables you want to import and click Finish.
You can now work with Azure Synapse data in Power Pivot.
