Create Dynamic SAP ByDesign Grids Using the Infragistics XamDataGrid

Using Infragistics WPF UI controls, you can build contemporary applications reminiscent of Microsoft Office for both desktop and touch-based devices. When coupled with the CData ADO.NET Provider for SAP ByDesign, you gain the capability to construct interactive grids, charts, and various other visual elements while directly accessing real-time data from SAP ByDesign data. This article will guide you through the process of creating a dynamic grid within Visual Studio using the Infragistics XamDataGrid control.

You will need to install the Infragistics WPF UI components to continue. Download a free trial here: https://www.infragistics.com/products/wpf.

Create a WPF Project

Open VisualStudio and create a new WPF project.

Add a TextBox for passing a SQL query to the CData ADO.NET Provider and a Button for executing the query.

The XAML at this stage is as follows:

< Window
        xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml/presentation"
        xmlns:x="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml"
        xmlns:d="http://schemas.microsoft.com/expression/blend/2008"
        xmlns:mc="http://schemas.openxmlformats.org/markup-compatibility/2006"
        xmlns:local="clr-namespace:CDataXamDataGridGroupingListApp"
        xmlns:igWPF="http://schemas.infragistics.com/xaml/wpf" x:Class="CDataXamDataGridGroupingListApp.MainWindow"
        mc:Ignorable="d"
        Title="MainWindow" Height="450" Width="800">
  < Grid>
    < TextBox x:Name="textBox" HorizontalAlignment="Left" Height="44" TextWrapping="Wrap" Text="TextBox" VerticalAlignment="Top" Width="682" Margin="10,10,0,0"/>
    < Button x:Name="button" Content="Execute" HorizontalAlignment="Left" Margin="697,10,0,0" VerticalAlignment="Top" Width="85" Height="44"/>
  < /Grid>
< /Window>

Add and Configure a XamDataGrid

After adding the initial controls, add a XamDataGrid to the App. The component will appear in the Visual Studio toolbox.

Arrange the component on the designer so that it is below the TextBox & Button and linked to the boundaries of the app.

Once the XamDataGrid is placed, edit the XAML to set the XamDataGrid DataSource attribute to "{Binding}" and set the FieldSettings AllowRecordFiltering and AllowSummaries attributes to "true." Next, add an empty method as the Click event handler for the Button component. The XAML at this stage is as follows:

< Window
        xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml/presentation"
        xmlns:x="http://schemas.microsoft.com/winfx/2006/xaml"
        xmlns:d="http://schemas.microsoft.com/expression/blend/2008"
        xmlns:mc="http://schemas.openxmlformats.org/markup-compatibility/2006"
        xmlns:local="clr-namespace:CDataXamDataGridGroupingListApp"
        xmlns:igWPF="http://schemas.infragistics.com/xaml/wpf" x:Class="CDataXamDataGridGroupingListApp.MainWindow"
        mc:Ignorable="d"
        Title="MainWindow" Height="450" Width="800">
  < Grid>
    < TextBox x:Name="textBox" HorizontalAlignment="Left" Height="44" TextWrapping="Wrap" Text="TextBox" VerticalAlignment="Top" Width="682" Margin="10,10,0,0"/>
    < Button x:Name="button" Content="Execute" HorizontalAlignment="Left" Margin="697,10,0,0" VerticalAlignment="Top" Width="85" Click="Button_Click" Height="44"/>

    < igWPF:XamDataGrid Margin="10,59,10,10" DataSource="{Binding}">
      < igWPF:XamDataGrid.FieldSettings>
        < igWPF:FieldSettings AllowSummaries="True" AllowRecordFiltering="True"/>
      < /igWPF:XamDataGrid.FieldSettings>
    < /igWPF:XamDataGrid>

  < /Grid>
< /Window>

Connect to and Query SAP ByDesign

The last step in building our WPG App with a dynamic DataGrid is connecting to and querying live SAP ByDesign data. First add a reference to the CData ADO.NET Provider to the project (typically found in C:\Program Files\CData[product_name]\lib).

Next, add the Provider to the namespace, along with the standard Data library:

using System.Data.CData.SAPByDesign;
using System.Data;

Finally, add the code to connect to SAP ByDesign and query using the text from the TextBox to the Click event handler.

Set the following connection properties to connect to SAP ByDesign.

• Url: Set this to the Url of your SAP ByDesign site. For example, https://test.sapbydesign.com
• User: Set this to the username of your account.
• Password: Set this to the password of your account.
• CustomService or AnalyticsService: Only one of these must be specified. If you have a custom service you want to retrieve data from, specify CustomService. If you want to retrieve the reports of a analytical service, specify AnalyticsService.
  If neither is specified, 'cc_home_analytics.svc' will used as a default for the AnalyticsService property. If you are not sure what service to specify, you can always query the Services view to list available services.

private void Button_Click(object sender, RoutedEventArgs e)
{
  //connecting to SAP ByDesign
  string connString = "URL=https://my999999.sapbydesign.com;User=username;Password=password;CustomService=servicename;";
  using (var conn = new SAPByDesignConnection(connString))
  {
    //using the query from the TextBox
    var dataAdapter = new SAPByDesignDataAdapter(textBox.Text, conn);
    var table = new DataTable();
    dataAdapter.Fill(table);
    
    //passing the DataRowCollection to the DataContext
    //  for use in the XamDataGrid
    this.DataContext = table.Rows;
  }
}

Run the Application

With the app fully configured, we are ready to display SAP ByDesign data in our XamDataGrid. When you click "Execute," the app connects to SAP ByDesign and submits the SQL query through the CData ADO.NET Provider.

Live SAP ByDesign data is displayed in the grid.

Group the data by dragging and dropping a column name into the header.

As you add groupings and filters, the underlying SQL query is submitted directly to SAP ByDesign, making it possible to drill down into live SAP ByDesign data to find only the specific information you need.

Free Trial & More Information

At this point, you have created a dynamic WPF App with access to live SAP ByDesign data. For more information, visit the CData ADO.NET Provider page. Download a free, 30-day trial and start working live SAP ByDesign data in apps built using the Infragistics UI controls today.