Build Presto Visualizations in Tableau Desktop



Use CData Connect Cloud to connect to live Presto data and build visualizations in Tableau.

Tableau is a visual analytics platform transforming the way businesses use data to solve problems. When paired with CData Connect Cloud, you get instant, cloud-to-cloud access to Presto data for visualizations, dashboards, and more. This article shows how to connect to Presto and build visualizations from Presto data in Tableau.

About Presto Data Integration

Accessing and integrating live data from Trino and Presto SQL engines has never been easier with CData. Customers rely on CData connectivity to:

  • Access data from Trino v345 and above (formerly PrestoSQL) and Presto v0.242 and above (formerly PrestoDB)
  • Read and write access all of the data underlying your Trino or Presto instances
  • Optimized query generation for maximum throughput.

Presto and Trino allow users to access a variety of underlying data sources through a single endpoint. When paired with CData connectivity, users get pure, SQL-92 access to their instances, allowing them to integrate business data with a data warehouse or easily access live data directly from their preferred tools, like Power BI and Tableau.

In many cases, CData's live connectivity surpasses the native import functionality available in tools. One customer was unable to effectively use Power BI due to the size of the datasets needed for reporting. When the company implemented the CData Power BI Connector for Presto they were able to generate reports in real-time using the DirectQuery connection mode.


Getting Started


CData Connect Cloud provides a pure SQL Server, cloud-to-cloud interface for Presto, allowing you to easily build visualizations from live Presto data in Tableau without installing connectors. As you build visualizations, Tableau generates SQL queries to gather data. Using optimized data processing out of the box, CData Connect Cloud pushes all supported SQL operations (filters, JOINs, etc) directly to Presto, leveraging server-side processing to quickly return Presto data.

Configure Presto Connectivity for Tableau

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

  1. Log into Connect Cloud, click Sources, and then click Add Connection
  2. Select "Presto" from the Add Connection panel
  3. Enter the necessary authentication properties to connect to Presto.

    Set the Server and Port connection properties to connect, in addition to any authentication properties that may be required.

    To enable TLS/SSL, set UseSSL to true.

    Authenticating with LDAP

    In order to authenticate with LDAP, set the following connection properties:

    • AuthScheme: Set this to LDAP.
    • User: The username being authenticated with in LDAP.
    • Password: The password associated with the User you are authenticating against LDAP with.

    Authenticating with Kerberos

    In order to authenticate with KERBEROS, set the following connection properties:

    • AuthScheme: Set this to KERBEROS.
    • KerberosKDC: The Kerberos Key Distribution Center (KDC) service used to authenticate the user.
    • KerberosRealm: The Kerberos Realm used to authenticate the user with.
    • KerberosSPN: The Service Principal Name for the Kerberos Domain Controller.
    • KerberosKeytabFile: The Keytab file containing your pairs of Kerberos principals and encrypted keys.
    • User: The user who is authenticating to Kerberos.
    • Password: The password used to authenticate to Kerberos.
  4. Click Create & Test
  5. Navigate to the Permissions tab in the Add Presto 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 Presto data from Tableau.

Visualize Live Presto Data in Tableau

To establish a connection from Tableau Desktop to the CData Connect Cloud Virtual SQL Server, follow these steps.

  1. In Tableau Desktop, open a new book. Under To a Server, select More, then Microsoft SQL Server.
  2. Enter your credentials:
    • Server: enter the Virtual SQL Server endpoint and port separated by a comma: tds.cdata.com,14333
    • Database: enter the Connection Name of the CData Connect Cloud data source you want to connect to (for example, Presto1).
    • Authentication: select Use a specific username and password.
    • Username: enter your CData Connect Cloud username. This is displayed in the top-right corner of the CData Connect Cloud interface. For example, [email protected].
    • Password: enter the PAT you previously generated.
    • Require SSL: leave this selected.
  3. Click Sign In.
  4. Select the Database (Connect Cloud connection) you wish to work with and opt for a Live or Extract Connection type.
  5. Select the table(s) you wish to visualize. If you select multiple tables, define the relationship between the tables using the appropriate columns.
  6. Select the fields to visualize.

Real-Time Access to Presto Data from Data Applications

At this point, you have a direct, cloud-to-cloud connection to live Presto data from your Tableau workbook. You can create new visualizations, build dashboards, and more. For more information on gaining live access to data from more than 100 SaaS, Big Data, and NoSQL sources from applications like Tableau, refer to our Connect Cloud page.

Ready to get started?

Learn more about CData Connect Cloud or sign up for free trial access:

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