Integrate with Live Dynamics CRM Data in MuleSoft (via CData Connect Cloud)

The MuleSoft Anypoint Platform enables the building, deployment, and management of APIs and integrations, facilitating seamless connectivity across applications and systems. When combined with CData Connect Cloud, it provides access to Dynamics CRM data for visualizations, dashboards, and more. This article explains how to use CData Connect Cloud to create a live connection to Dynamics CRM and how to connect and access live Dynamics CRM data from the MuleSoft Anypoint Platform.

Prerequisites

Before configuring and using MuleSoft with CData Connect Cloud, you must first connect a data source to your CData Connect Cloud account. For more information, see the Connections section.

Additionally, you need to generate a Personal Access Token (PAT) on the Settings page. Be sure to copy it down, as it serves as your password during authentication.

Getting Started

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Configure Dynamics CRM Connectivity for MuleSoft

Connectivity to Dynamics CRM from MuleSoft is made possible through CData Connect Cloud. To work with Dynamics CRM data from MuleSoft, we start by creating and configuring a Dynamics CRM connection.

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

2. Select "Dynamics CRM" from the Add Connection panel

3. Enter the necessary authentication properties to connect to Dynamics CRM.

   The connection string options meet the authentication and connection requirements of different Dynamics CRM instances. To connect to your instance, set the User and Password properties, under the Authentication section, to valid Dynamics CRM user credentials and set the Url to a valid Dynamics CRM server organization root. Additionally, set the CRMVersion property to 'CRM2011+' or 'CRMOnline'. IFD configurations are supported as well; set InternetFacingDeployment to true.

   Additionally, you can provide the security token service (STS) or AD FS endpoint in the STSURL property. This value can be retrieved with the GetSTSUrl stored procedure. Office 365 users can connect to the default STS URL by simply setting CRMVersion.

   
4. Click Create & Test
5. Navigate to the Permissions tab in the Add Dynamics CRM 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.

With the connection configured and a PAT generated, you are ready to connect to Dynamics CRM data from Mulesoft.

Connecting to CData Connect Cloud

Follow these steps to establish a connection from Mulesoft to CData Connect Cloud through the JDBC driver:

1. Download and install the CData Connect Cloud JDBC driver.
   • Open the Integrations page of CData Connect Cloud.
   • Search for and select JDBC.
   • Download and run the setup file.
   • When the installation is complete, the JAR file can be found in the installation directory (inside the lib folder).
2. Log into Mulesoft Anypoint Studio or launch the desktop application.
3. Create a new Mulesoft project. The new project appears in a project folder.
4. In the Mule Palette located on the right, drag an HTTP Listener to the Message Flow area.
5. Click on the HTTP Listener to configure it.
6. Click the + sign on the right of Connector configuration. The HTTP Listener config dialog appears.
7. Configure the HTTP Listener, providing a Port on which to query your data, and click OK.
8. Provide a path on which to perform the actions. The HTTP Listener is now configured.
9. In the Mule Palette on the right, type database in the search bar.
10. Drag the database operation you want to perform to the Message Flow area. For this example, we choose Select.
11. Select Generic Connection from the Connection dropdown in the Database Config dialog.
12. Click the Configure button to configure the JDBC driver. Select Use local file from the drop-down list.
13. Locate the CData Connect Cloud JAR file from the JDBC driver installation and click OK.
14. Provide the following information:
    • URL: the URL for the connection, for example:

       jdbc:connect:Authscheme=Basic;user=username;password=PAT

      Note: the password is the PAT created in the Prerequisites section.
    • Driver class name: Enter the Driver class name as:

       cdata.jdbc.connect.ConnectDriver

      
15. Click Test Connection.
16. If the connection is successful, provide the SQL Query Text in the editor. You can see the table metadata on the right side in the Output tab.
17. In the Mule Palette, drag Transform Message to the Message Flow area.
18. Click Transform Message to configure it. Change the Output as follows:
19. Save your project and run it. In the console, Mulesoft starts initializing the dependencies.
20. Once you see the message, "Message source 'listener' on flow your_project_name successfully started", you can start querying your data at the endpoint you provided.
21. Query to check out the data using the Postman application (as shown below).

SQL Access to Dynamics CRM Data from Cloud Applications

Now you have a direct connection to live Dynamics CRM data from MuleSoft Anypoint Platform. You can create more connections to ensure seamless data flow, automate business processes, and manage APIs - all without replicating Dynamics CRM data.

To get real-time data access to 100+ SaaS, Big Data, and NoSQL sources (including Dynamics CRM) directly from your cloud applications, explore the CData Connect Cloud.