Analyze Dynamics 365 Business Central Data in Infragistics Reveal

Reveal, an offering from Infragistics, serves as a data visualization tool that seamlessly integrates with CData Connect Cloud. Together, they empower users to deliver dynamic dashboards using real-time data from a diverse range of data sources, including Dynamics 365 Business Central data. In this article, we will guide you through the process of connecting to Dynamics 365 Business Central via Connect Cloud and subsequently linking Connect Cloud with Infragistics Reveal to construct a straightforward dashboard.

Connect to Dynamics 365 Business Central from Infragistics Reveal

To work with live Dynamics 365 Business Central data in Infragistics Reveal, we need to connect to Dynamics 365 Business Central from Connect Cloud, provide user access to the connection, and create a Workspace for the Dynamics 365 Business Central data.

Connect to Dynamics 365 Business Central from Connect Cloud

CData Connect Cloud uses a straightforward, point-and-click interface to connect to data sources.

1. Log into Connect Cloud, click Sources, and then click Add Connection

2. Select "Dynamics 365 Business Central" from the Add Connection panel

3. Enter the necessary authentication properties to connect to Dynamics 365 Business Central.

   To authenticate to Dynamics 365 Business Central, you must select an AuthScheme and provide the required properties.To authenticate with an Access Key, set AuthScheme to "AccessKey" and provide the User and AccessKey properties.

   To obtain the User and AccessKey values, navigate to the Users page in Dynamics 365 Business Central and then click on Edit. The User Name and Web Service Access Key values are what you will enter as the User and AccessKey connection string properties. Note that the User Name is not your email address. It is a shortened user name.

   Additionally, specify OrganizationUrl. If you have multiple companies in your organization, you must also specify the Company to indicate which company you would like to connect to. Company does not need to be specified if you have only one company.

   If you wish to authenticate through other methods, refer to the Help documentation.

   
4. Click Create & Test
5. Navigate to the Permissions tab in the Add Dynamics 365 Business Central Connection page and update the User-based permissions.

Add a Personal Access Token

When connecting to Connect Cloud through the REST API, the OData API, or the Virtual SQL Server, a Personal Access Token (PAT) is used to authenticate the connection to Connect Cloud. It is best practice to create a separate PAT for each service to maintain granularity of access.

1. Click on the Gear icon () at the top right of the Connect Cloud app to open the settings page.
2. On the Settings page, go to the Access Tokens section and click Create PAT.
3. Give the PAT a name and click Create.
4. The personal access token is only visible at creation, so be sure to copy it and store it securely for future use.

Configure Dynamics 365 Business Central Endpoints for Infragistics Reveal

After connecting to Dynamics 365 Business Central, create a workspace for your desired table(s).

1. Navigate to the Workspaces page and click Add to create a new Workspace (or select an existing workspace).
2. Click Add to add new assets to the Workspace.
3. Select the Dynamics 365 Business Central connection (e.g. D365BusinessCentral1) and click Next.
4. Select the table(s) you wish to work with and click Confirm.
5. Make note of the OData Service URL for your workspace, e.g. https://cloud.cdata.com/api/odata/{workspace_name}

With the connection, PAT, and Workspace configured, you are ready to connect to Dynamics 365 Business Central data from Infragistics Reveal.

Create a Dashboard in Reveal

With Connect Cloud configured, we can visualize Dynamics 365 Business Central data in Reveal.

1. Log into Reveal and click Dashboards -> New
2. Click Data Sources -> OData Feed
3. Specify the Connect Cloud OData API endpoint URL (found on the OData page): https://cloud.cdata.com/api/odata/{workspace_name}
4. Select Generic Credentials and
   • Set Username to a Connect Cloud username (e.g. [email protected])
   • Set Password to the PAT for the user
   
5. Select the entity you wish to visualize
6. Select fields and choose a chart type

More Information & Free Trial

At this point, you have created a simple dashboard from live Dynamics 365 Business Central data. For more information on creating OData feeds from Dynamics 365 Business Central (and more than 100 other sources), visit the Connect Cloud page. Sign up for a free trial and start working live Dynamics 365 Business Central data in tools that consume OData APIs.