How to integrate Metabase with QuickBooks Data

Metabase is an open source data visualization tool that allows users to create interactive dashboards. When paired with CData Connect Cloud, users can easily create visualizations and dashboards linked to live QuickBooks data. This article describes how to connect to QuickBooks and build a simple visualization using QuickBooks data.

CData Connect provides a pure cloud-to-cloud interface for QuickBooks, allowing you to easily integrate with live QuickBooks data in Metabase — without replicating the data. Connect looks exactly like a SQL Server database to Metabase and uses optimized data processing out of the box to push all supported SQL operations (filters, JOINs, etc) directly to QuickBooks, leveraging server-side processing to quickly return QuickBooks data.

Getting Started

---

Configure QuickBooks Connectivity for Metabase

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

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

2. Select "QuickBooks" from the Add Connection panel

4. Navigate to the Permissions tab in the Add QuickBooks 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 QuickBooks data from Metabase.

Connect to CData Connect Cloud from Metabase

After creating the connection in Connect Cloud, navigate to your Metabase instance. Use the SQL Server interface to connect to Connect Cloud.

1. Navigate to the administration screen (Settings -> Admin) and click "Add Database" from the "Databases" tab
2. Configure the connection to Connect Cloud and click "Save"
   • Database type: Select "SQL Server"
   • Name: Name the connection (e.g. "QuickBooks (Connect Cloud)")
   • Host: tds.cdata.com
   • Port: 14333
   • Database name: The name of the connection you just created (e.g. QuickBooks1)
   • Username: A Connect Cloud username (e.g. [email protected])
   • Password: The PAT previously created
   • Click to Use a secure connection (SSL)
   

Execute QuickBooks Data with Metabase

Once you configure the connection to Connect Cloud, you can query QuickBooks and build visualizations.

1. Use the "Write SQL" tool to retrieve the QuickBooks data
2. Write a SQL query based on the QuickBooks connection in CData Connect Cloud, e.g.
   
   

   SELECT Name, CustomerBalance FROM Customers

   
3. Navigate to the "Visualization" screen, choose a visualization, and configure the visualization

More Information & Free Trial

At this point, you have built a simple visualization from QuickBooks data in Metabase. You can continue to work with live QuickBooks data in Metabase just like you would any SQL Server database. For more information on creating a live connection to QuickBooks (and more than 100 other data sources), visit the Connect Cloud page. Sign up for a free trial and start working with live QuickBooks data in Metabase today.