Azure DevOps Connector for SQL Server In this article you will learn how to integrate Azure DevOps data in SQL Server without coding in just a few clicks (live / bi-directional connection to Azure DevOps). Azure DevOps Connector can be used to integrate Azure DevOps data in your App / BI Tools. You can create, read, query, modify, and delete WorkItems, Projects, Teams and more.. Using Azure DevOps Connector you will be able to connect, read, and write data from within SQL Server. Follow the steps below to see how we would accomplish that. Download Documentation The driver mentioned above is part of ODBC PowerPack which is a collection of high-performance Drivers for various API data source (i.e. REST API, JSON, XML, CSV, Amazon S3 and many more). Using familiar SQL query language you can make live connections and read/write data from API sources or JSON / XML / CSV Files inside SQL Server (T-SQL) or your favorite Reporting (i.e. Power BI, Tableau, Qlik, SSRS, MicroStrategy, Excel, MS Access), ETL Tools (i.e. Informatica, Talend, Pentaho, SSIS). You can also call our drivers from programming languages such as JAVA, C#, Python, PowerShell etc. If you are new to ODBC and ZappySys ODBC PowerPack then check the following links to get started. ODBC PowerPack - System Requirements and Installation Getting Started - Using ODBC PowerPack ODBC API Driver Help File

Connect to Azure DevOps in other apps Connect to Azure DevOps in SSIS Connect to Azure DevOps in Power BI Connect to Azure DevOps in SSRS Connect to Azure DevOps in Informatica Connect to Azure DevOps in MS Access Connect to Azure DevOps in MS Excel Connect to Azure DevOps in SSAS Connect to Azure DevOps in C# Connect to Azure DevOps in Python Connect to Azure DevOps in JAVA Connect to Azure DevOps in Tableau Connect to Azure DevOps in SAP Crystal Reports Connect to Azure DevOps in Azure Data Factory (Pipeline) Connect to Azure DevOps in Azure Data Factory (SSIS) Connect to Azure DevOps in Talend Studio Connect to Azure DevOps in UiPath Connect to Azure DevOps in PowerShell Connect to Azure DevOps in ODBC

Video Tutorial - Integrate Azure DevOps data in SQL Server

This video covers following and more so watch carefully. After watching this video follow the steps described in this article.

• How to download / install required driver for Azure DevOps integration in SQL Server
• How to configure connection for Azure DevOps
• Features about API Driver (Authentication / Query Language / Examples / Driver UI)
• Using Azure DevOps Connection in SQL Server

Create Data Source in ZappySys Data Gateway based on API Driver

1. Download and install ZappySys ODBC PowerPack.

2. Search for gateway in start menu and Open ZappySys Data Gateway:
   

3. Go to Users Tab to add our first Gateway user. Click Add; we will give it a name tdsuser and enter password you like to give. Check Admin option and click OK to save. We will use these details later when we create linked server:
   

4. Now we are ready to add a data source. Click Add, give data source a name (Copy this name somewhere, we will need it later) and then select Native - ZappySys API Driver. Finally, click OK. And it will create the Data Set for it and open the ZS driver UI.

   AzureDevOpsDSN

   
   

5. When the Configuration window appears give your data source a name if you haven't done that already, then select "Azure DevOps" from the list of Popular Connectors. If "Azure DevOps" is not present in the list, then click "Search Online" and download it. Then set the path to the location where you downloaded it. Finally, click Continue >> to proceed with configuring the DSN:

   AzureDevOpsDSN

   Azure DevOps

   

6. Now it's time to configure the Connection Manager. Select Authentication Type, e.g. Token Authentication. Then select API Base URL (in most cases, the default one is the right one). More info is available in the Authentication section.

    OAuth [OAuth]

   Steps to get Azure DevOps Credentials
   Connecting to your Azure DevOps data requires you to authenticate your REST API access. Follow the instructions below:

   1. Go to https://app.vsaex.visualstudio.com/app/register to register your app.
   2. Fill in your application and company's information as required, and then select the scopes that your application needs. This should typically be Project and team (read and write) and Work items (read and write).
      Your selected scopes when registering your app must match the scopes you enter here on the connector screen. If they don't match, the connector will not be able to work with your Azure DevOps account!

      If you need further information about the scopes used in Azure DevOps, or need to see what to enter into the connector screen to match up with your selected scopes, visit https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/devops/integrate/get-started/authentication/oauth?view=azure-devops.
   3. Select Create Application and then the Application Settings page will be displayed.
   4. Record the application settings that are displayed for us to use later, especially the App ID and the Client Secret.
   5. Visit https://aex.dev.azure.com. Once you are logged in, record your organization name in the URL that is displayed on the page. For example, if your organization is called "acmeinc", the URL on the page would be acmeinc.visualstudio.com.
   6. Back at the connector screen, enter the App ID that was recorded in step 4 into the Client Id (App ID) field.
   7. Enter the client secret that was recorded in step 4 into the Client Secret field. In order to edit the text in this field, select the ellipses (...) button that appears when the textbox is clicked and edit the client secret with the dialog box that appears.
   8. Enter the organization that was recorded in step 5 into the Organization name or Id for url field.
   9. Click Generate Token. If proper authentication occurs, you will see a notice saying so. You can click Yes to save a backup file of your generated tokens.
   10. Select the project you want to connect to by default from the Default Project (Choose after Generating Token) field.
   11. Select the Security tab.
   12. Enter https://auditservice.dev.azure.com,https://almsearch.dev.azure.com into the Additional Trusted Domains field.
   13. Select the Test Connection button at the bottom of the window to verify proper connectivity with your Azure DevOps account.
   14. If the connection test succeeds, select OK.

   Fill in all required parameters and set optional parameters if needed:

   AzureDevOpsDSN

   Azure DevOps

   OAuth [OAuth]

   https://dev.azure.com

   Required Parameters
   Client Id (App ID)	Fill in the parameter...
   Client Secret	Fill in the parameter...
   Organization name or Id for url (e.g. mycompany)	Fill in the parameter...
   Return URL	Fill in the parameter...
   Scope	Fill in the parameter...
   API Version	Fill in the parameter...
   Optional Parameters
   Default Project Name (Choose after Generating Token)	Fill in the parameter...
   RetryMode	Fill in the parameter...
   RetryStatusCodeList	Fill in the parameter...
   RetryCountMax	Fill in the parameter...
   RetryMultiplyWaitTime	Fill in the parameter...

   

    Personal Access Token (PAT) [Http]

   Steps to get Azure DevOps Credentials
   To connect to Azure DevOps using a Personal Access Token (PAT), you must first create a valid PAT:

   1. Go to your Azure DevOps home page: https://dev.azure.com/{your organization name}.
   2. On the home page, select the User Settings menu dropdown (looks like a person icon with a small gear over it), and then select Personal access tokens.
   3. Select the New Token button.
   4. Enter a name for the new personal access token.
   5. Select the appropriate organization for the new personal access token.
   6. Select the expiration date for the new personal access token.
   7. Select the scopes for this token. (You may be restricted from creating full-scoped PATs. If so, your Azure DevOps administrator in Azure AD has enabled a policy which limits you to a specific custom defined set of scopes.)
   8. Select the Create button.
   9. The new Personal Access Token (PAT) is created and displayed. Copy and save this token, since it is as sensitive as a password.
   10. Visit https://aex.dev.azure.com. Once you are logged in, record your organization name in the URL that is displayed on the page. For example, if your organization is called "acmeinc", the URL on the page would be acmeinc.visualstudio.com.
   11. Back at the connector screen, enter the token you recorded from step 9 into the Personal Access Token (PAT) field.
   12. Enter the organization that was recorded in step 10 into the Organization name or Id for url field.
   13. Enter the name or Id of the project you want to connect to by default in the Default Project (Choose after above fields) field.
   14. Select the Security tab.
   15. Enter https://auditservice.dev.azure.com,https://almsearch.dev.azure.com,https://analytics.dev.azure.com into the Additional Trusted Domains field.
   16. Select the Test Connection button at the bottom of the window to verify proper connectivity with your Azure DevOps account.
   17. If the connection test succeeds, select OK.

   Fill in all required parameters and set optional parameters if needed:

   AzureDevOpsDSN

   Azure DevOps

   Personal Access Token (PAT) [Http]

   https://dev.azure.com

   Required Parameters
   Personal Access Token (PAT)	Fill in the parameter...
   Organization name or Id for url	Fill in the parameter...
   API Version	Fill in the parameter...
   Optional Parameters
   AuthScheme	Fill in the parameter...
   AuthHeader	Fill in the parameter...
   UserName	Fill in the parameter...
   Default Project Name (Choose after Generating Token)	Fill in the parameter...
   RetryMode	Fill in the parameter...
   RetryStatusCodeList	Fill in the parameter...
   RetryCountMax	Fill in the parameter...
   RetryMultiplyWaitTime	Fill in the parameter...

   

7. Once the data source has been configured, you can preview data. Select the Preview tab and use settings similar to the following to preview data:
   

8. Click OK to finish creating the data source.

Read data in SQL Server from the ZappySys Data Gateway

1. To read the data in SQL Server the first thing you have to do is create a Linked Server. Go to SQL Server Management Studio and configure it in a similar way:
   

2. Then click on Security option and configure username we created in ZappySys Data Gateway in one of the previous steps:
   

3. Optional: Under the Server Options, Enable RPC and RPC Out and Disable Promotion of Distributed Transactions(MSDTC).

   

   ---

   You need to enable RPC Out if you plan to use EXEC(...) AT [MY_LINKED_SERVER_NAME] rather than OPENQUERY.
   If don't enabled it, you will encounter the Server 'MY_LINKED_SERVER_NAME' is not configured for RPC error.

   Query Example:

   EXEC('Select * from Products') AT [MY_LINKED_SERVER_NAME]

   ---

   If you plan to use 'INSERT INTO...EXEC(....) AT [MY_LINKED_SERVER_NAME]' in that case you need to Disable Promotion of Distributed Transactions(MSDTC).
   If don't disabled it, you will encounter the The operation could not be performed because OLE DB provider "SQLNCLI11" for linked server "MY_LINKED_SERVER_NAME" was unable to begin a distributed transaction. error.

   Query Example:

   Insert Into dbo.Products
    EXEC('Select * from Products') AT [MY_LINKED_SERVER_NAME]
   

   ---

4. Finally, open a new query and execute a query we saved in one of the previous steps:
   

   SELECT * FROM OPENQUERY([MY_LINKED_SERVER_NAME], 'SELECT * FROM Products');

   

Create Linked Server using Code

    USE [master]
    GO
    --///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////
    --Run below code in SSMS to create Linked Server and use ZappySys Drivers in SQL Server
    --///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

    //Replace YOUR_GATEWAY_USER, YOUR_GATEWAY_PASSWORD
    //Replace localhost with IP/Machine name if ZappySys Gateway Running on different machine other than SQL Server
    //Replace Port 5000 if you configured gateway on a different port


    --1. Configure your gateway service as per this article https://zappysys.com/links?id=10036

    --2. Make sure you have SQL Server Installed. You can download FREE SQL Server Express Edition from here if you dont want to buy Paid version https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/sql-server/sql-server-editions-express

    --Uncomment below if you like to drop linked server if it already exists
    --EXEC master.dbo.sp_dropserver @server=N'LS_AzureDevOpsDSN', @droplogins='droplogins'

    --3. Create new linked server

    EXEC master.dbo.sp_addlinkedserver
      @server = N'LS_AzureDevOpsDSN'  --Linked server name (this will be used in OPENQUERY sql
    , @srvproduct=N''
    ---- For MSSQL 2012,2014,2016 and 2019 use below (SQL Server Native Client 11.0)---
    , @provider=N'SQLNCLI11'
    ---- For MSSQL 2022 or higher use below (Microsoft OLE DB Driver for SQL Server)---
    --, @provider=N'MSOLEDBSQL'
    , @datasrc=N'localhost,5000' --//Machine / Port where Gateway service is running
    , @provstr=N'Network Library=DBMSSOCN;'
    , @catalog=N'AzureDevOpsDSN' --Data source name you gave on Gateway service settings

    --4. Attach gateway login with linked server

    EXEC master.dbo.sp_addlinkedsrvlogin
    @rmtsrvname=N'LS_AzureDevOpsDSN'  --linked server name
    , @useself=N'False'
    , @locallogin=NULL
    , @rmtuser=N'YOUR_GATEWAY_USER' --enter your Gateway user name
    , @rmtpassword='YOUR_GATEWAY_PASSWORD'  --enter your Gateway user's password
    GO

    --5. Enable RPC OUT (This is Optional - Only needed if you plan to use EXEC(...) AT YourLinkedServerName rather than OPENQUERY
    EXEC sp_serveroption 'LS_AzureDevOpsDSN', 'rpc', true;
    EXEC sp_serveroption 'LS_AzureDevOpsDSN', 'rpc out', true;

    --Disable MSDTC - Below needed to support INSERT INTO from EXEC AT statement
    EXEC sp_serveroption 'LS_AzureDevOpsDSN', 'remote proc transaction promotion', false;

    --Increase query timeout if query is going to take longer than 10 mins (Default timeout is 600 seconds)
    --EXEC sp_serveroption 'LS_AzureDevOpsDSN', 'query timeout', 1200;
    GO

Firewall settings

So far we have assumed that Gateway is running on the same machine as SQL Server. However there will be a case when ZappySys ODBC PowerPack is installed on a different machine than SQL Server. In such case you may have to perform additional Firewall configurations. On most computers firewall settings wont allow outside traffic to ZappySys Data Gateway. In such case perform following steps to allow other machines to connect to Gateway.

If you are using newer version of ZappySys Data Gateway then adding firewall rule is just a single click.

1. Search for gateway in start menu and open ZappySys Data Gateway.
2. Go to Firewall Tab and click Add Firewall Rule button like below. This will create Firewall rule to all Inbound Traffic on Port 5000 (Unless you changed it).

1. Search for Windows Firewall Advanced Security in start menu.
2. Under Inbound Rules > Right click and click [New Rule] >> Click Next
3. Select Port on Rule Type >> Click Next
4. Click on TCP and enter port number under specified local port as 5000 (use different one if you changed Default port) >> Click Next
5. Select Profile (i.e. Private, Public) >> Click Next
6. Enter Rule name [i.e. ZappySys Data Gateway – Allow Inbound ] >> Click Next
7. Click OK to save the rule

OPENQUERY vs EXEC (handling larger SQL text)

So far we have seen examples of using OPENQUERY. It allows us to send pass-through query at remote server. The biggest limitation of OPENQUERY is it doesn't allow you to use variables inside SQL so often we have to use unpleasant looking dynamic SQL (Lots of tick, tick …. and escape hell). Well there is good news. With SQL 2005 and later you can use EXEC(your_sql) AT your_linked_server syntax . Disadvantage of EXEC AT is you cannot do SELECT INTO like OPENQUERY. Also you cannot perform JOIN like below in EXEC AT

    SELECT a.* FROM OPENQUERY([ls_AzureDevOpsDSN],'select * from Customers') a
    JOIN OPENQUERY([ls_AzureDevOpsDSN],'select * from Orders') b ON a.CustomerId=b.CustomerId;

    USE [master]
    GO
    --Replace YOUR_GATEWAY_USER, YOUR_GATEWAY_PASSWORD
    --Replace localhost with IP/Machine name if ZappySys Gateway Running on different machine other than SQL Server

    --Create new linked server
    EXEC master.dbo.sp_addlinkedserver
    @server = N'LS_AzureDevOpsDSN'  --Linked server name (this will be used in OPENQUERY sql)
    , @srvproduct=N''
    ---- For MSSQL 2012,2014,2016 and 2019 use below (SQL Server Native Client 11.0)---
    , @provider=N'SQLNCLI11'
    ---- For MSSQL 2022 or higher use below (Microsoft OLE DB Driver for SQL Server)---
    --, @provider=N'MSOLEDBSQL'
    , @datasrc=N'localhost,5000' --//Machine / Port where Gateway service is running
    , @provstr=N'Network Library=DBMSSOCN;'
    , @catalog=N'AzureDevOpsDSN' --Data source name you gave on Gateway service settings

    --Attach gateway login with linked server
    EXEC master.dbo.sp_addlinkedsrvlogin
    @rmtsrvname=N'LS_AzureDevOpsDSN'  --linked server name
    , @useself=N'False'
    , @locallogin=NULL
    , @rmtuser=N'YOUR_GATEWAY_USER' --enter your Gateway user name
    , @rmtpassword='YOUR_GATEWAY_PASSWORD'  --enter your Gateway user's password
    GO

    --5. Enable RPC OUT (This is Optional - Only needed if you plan to use EXEC(...) AT YourLinkedServerName rather than OPENQUERY
    EXEC sp_serveroption 'LS_AzureDevOpsDSN', 'rpc', true;
    EXEC sp_serveroption 'LS_AzureDevOpsDSN', 'rpc out', true;
    --Disable MSDTC - Below needed to support INSERT INTO from EXEC AT statement
    EXEC sp_serveroption 'LS_AzureDevOpsDSN', 'remote proc transaction promotion', false;
    --Increase query timeout if query is going to take longer than 10 mins (Default timeout is 600 seconds)
    --EXEC sp_serveroption 'LS_AzureDevOpsDSN', 'query timeout', 1200;
    GO

Fetching Tables / Columns using metadata stored procs

exec [linked-server-name].[gateway-datasource-name].[DATA].sp_tables

exec [linked-server-name].[gateway-datasource-name].[DATA].sp_columns_90 N'your-table-name'

    //List all tables
    exec [ls_AzureDevOpsDSN].[AzureDevOpsDSN].[DATA].sp_tables

    //List all columns and its type for specified table
    exec [ls_AzureDevOpsDSN].[AzureDevOpsDSN].[DATA].sp_columns_90 N'Account'

Known Issues

Let's explore some common problems that can occur when using OPENQUERY or Data Gateway connectivity.

SQL Native Client 11.0 not visible in the Providers dropdown (Linked Server Creation)

If you are following some screenshots / steps from our article it might say use SQL Native Client to create Linked Server to ZappySys Gateway but for some users they dont see that driver entry in the dropdown. This is due to the fact that Microsoft has deprecated SQL Native Client OLEDB Driver (SQLNCLI and SQLNCLI11) going forward after SQL 2022. So you need to use [Microsoft OLE DB Driver for SQL Server] instead (MSOLEDBSQL). Please follow all other instructions except the driver type selection, use new suggested driver instead if you dont see SQL Native Client.

Error: The data is invalid

There will be a time when, you may encounter unexpected errors like the ones listed below. These can include:

OLE DB provider "SQLNCLI11" for linked server "Zs_Csv" returned message "Deferred prepare could not be completed.".
OLE DB provider "SQLNCLI11" for linked server "Zs_Csv" returned message "Communication link failure".
Msg 13, Level 16, State 1, Line 0

Session Provider: The data is invalid.

There are few reasons for such error but below are two main reasons

• If the query length exceeds 2000 characters, as shown below, you might encounter this error.

  SELECT * FROM OPENQUERY(LS, '--some really long text more than 2000 chars--')

• If a query contains multiple OPENQUERY statements for JOINs or UNIONs, as shown below, it might fail due to a MARS compatibility issue where the gateway doesn't support parallel queries on a single connection.

  SELECT a.id, b.name from OPENQUERY(LS, 'select * from tbl1') a join OPENQUERY(LS, 'select * from tbl2') b on a.id=b.id

There are few ways to fix above error based on reason why you getting this error (i.e. Query Length issue OR JOIN/UNION in the same statement)

• If your query has long SQL (more than 2000 chars ) then reduce SQL length using different techniques
  • e.g. use SELECT * FROM MyTable rather than SELECT col1,col2… FROM MyTable
  • Use Meta Option in WITH clause if you must use column name. (e.g. SELECT * FROM MyTable WITH(META=’c:\meta.txt’) this way you can define column in Meta file rather than SELECT query. Check this article
  • Consider using EXECT (….) AT [Linked_Server_name] option rather than OPENQUERY so you can use very long SQL (See next section on EXEC..AT usecase)
  • Consider using Virtual Table / Stored Proc to wrap long SQL so your call is very small (where usp_GetOrdersByYear is custom proc created on ZappySys Driver UI)
    

    SELECT * FROM OPENQUERY(LS, 'EXEC usp_GetOrdersByYear 2021')

• If your query uses JOIN  / UNION with multiple OPENQUERY in same SQL then use multiple Linked servers (one for each OPENQUERY clause) as below.
  

  select a.id, b.name from OPENQUERY(LS_1, 'select * from tbl1') a join OPENQUERY(LS_2, 'select * from tbl2') b on a.id=b.id

Error: Unable to begin a distributed transaction (When INSERT + EXEC used)

If you try to use the EXEC statement to insert data into a table, as shown below, you might encounter the following error unless the MSDTC option is turned off.

INSERT INTO MyTable EXEC('select * from tbl') AT MyLinkedServer

"Protocol error in TDS stream"
The operation could not be performed because OLE DB provider "SQLNCLI11" for linked server "ls_Json2" was unable to begin a distributed transaction.
--OR--
The operation could not be performed because OLE DB provider "MSOLEDBSQL" for linked server "ls_Json" was unable to begin a distributed transaction.

Solution:
Method-1: Go to linked server properties | Server Options | Enable Promotion of Distributed Transaction | Change to false (Default is true)
Now your try your INSERT with EXEC AT and it should work

Method-2: Run the below command if you dont want to use UI

EXEC master.dbo.sp_serveroption @server=N'My_Linked_Server', @optname=N'remote proc transaction promotion', @optvalue=N'false'

Error: Cannot use OPENQUERY with JOIN / UNION

When you perform a JOIN or UNION ALL on the same Linked Server, it may fail to process sometimes because the Data Gateway doesn't support parallel query requests on the same connection. A workaround for that would be to create multiple linked servers for the same data source. Refer to the section above for the same workaround.

Error: Truncation errors due to data length mismatch

Many times, you may encounter truncation errors if a table column's length is less than the actual column size from the query column. To solve this issue, use the new version of Data Gateway and check the 'Use nvarchar(max) for string options' option found on the General Tab.

Performance Tips

Now, let's look at a few performance tips in this section.

Use INSERT INTO rather than SELECT INTO to avoid extra META request

We discussed some Pros and Cons of OPENQUERY vs EXEC (…) AT in previous section. One obvious advantage of EXEC (….) AT is it reduces number of requests to driver (It sends pass through query). With EXEC you cannot load data dynamically like SELECT INTO tmp FROM OPENQUERY. Table must exist before hand if you use EXEC.

INSERT INTO tmp_API_Report_Load(col1,col2)
EXEC('select col1,col2 from some_api_table') AT [API-LINKED-SERVER]
--OR--
INSERT INTO tmp_API_Report_Load(col1,col2)
select col1,col2 from OPENQUERY([API-LINKED-SERVER], 'select col1,col2 from some_api_table')

The advantage of this method is that your query speed will increase because the system only calls the API once when you use EXEC AT. In contrast, with OPENROWSET, the query needs to be called twice: once to obtain metadata and once to retrieve the data.

Use Cached Metadata if possible

Advanced topics

Create Custom Stored Procedure in ZappySys Driver

You can create procedures to encapsulate custom logic and then only pass handful parameters rather than long SQL to execute your API call.

Steps to create Custom Stored Procedure in ZappySys Driver. You can insert Placeholders anywhere inside Procedure Body. Read more about placeholders here

1. Go to Custom Objects Tab and Click on Add button and Select Add Procedure:
   

2. Enter the desired Procedure name and click on OK:
   

3. Select the created Stored Procedure and write the your desired stored procedure and Save it and it will create the custom stored procedure in the ZappySys Driver:
   Here is an example stored procedure for ZappySys Driver. You can insert Placeholders anywhere inside Procedure Body. Read more about placeholders here
   

   CREATE PROCEDURE [usp_get_orders]
       @fromdate = '<<yyyy-MM-dd,FUN_TODAY>>'
    AS
       SELECT * FROM Orders where OrderDate >= '<@fromdate>';
   

   
   

4. That's it now go to Preview Tab and Execute your Stored Procedure using Exec Command. In this example it will extract the orders from the date 1996-01-01:
   

   Exec usp_get_orders '1996-01-01';

   
   

5. Let's generate the SQL Server Query Code to make the API call using stored procedure. Go to Code Generator Tab, select language as SQL Server and click on Generate button the generate the code.
   As we already created the linked server for this Data Source, in that you just need to copy the Select Query and need to use the linked server name which we have apply on the place of [MY_API_SERVICE] placeholder.
   

   SELECT * FROM OPENQUERY([MY_API_SERVICE], 'EXEC usp_get_orders @fromdate=''1996-07-30''')

   
   

6. Now go to SQL served and execute that query and it will make the API call using stored procedure and provide you the response.
   

Create Custom Virtual Table in ZappySys Driver

ZappySys API Drivers support flexible Query language so you can override Default Properties you configured on Data Source such as URL, Body. This way you don't have to create multiple Data Sources if you like to read data from multiple EndPoints. However not every application support supplying custom SQL to driver so you can only select Table from list returned from driver.

If you're dealing with Microsoft Access and need to import data from an SQL query, it's important to note that Access doesn't allow direct import of SQL queries. Instead, you can create custom objects (Virtual Tables) to handle the import process.

Many applications like MS Access, Informatica Designer wont give you option to specify custom SQL when you import Objects. In such case Virtual Table is very useful. You can create many Virtual Tables on the same Data Source (e.g. If you have 50 URLs with slight variations you can create virtual tables with just URL as Parameter setting.

1. Go to Custom Objects Tab and Click on Add button and Select Add Table:
   

2. Enter the desired Table name and click on OK:
   

3. And it will open the New Query Window Click on Cancel to close that window and go to Custom Objects Tab.

4. Select the created table, Select Text Type AS SQL and write the your desired SQL Query and Save it and it will create the custom table in the ZappySys Driver:
   Here is an example SQL query for ZappySys Driver. You can insert Placeholders also. Read more about placeholders here
   

   SELECT
     "ShipCountry",
     "OrderID",
     "CustomerID",
     "EmployeeID",
     "OrderDate",
     "RequiredDate",
     "ShippedDate",
     "ShipVia",
     "Freight",
     "ShipName",
     "ShipAddress",
     "ShipCity",
     "ShipRegion",
     "ShipPostalCode"
   FROM "Orders"
   Where "ShipCountry"='USA'

   
   

5. That's it now go to Preview Tab and Execute your custom virtual table query. In this example it will extract the orders for the USA Shipping Country only:
   

   SELECT * FROM "vt__usa_orders_only"

   
   

6. Let's generate the SQL Server Query Code to make the API call using stored procedure. Go to Code Generator Tab, select language as SQL Server and click on Generate button the generate the code.
   As we already created the linked server for this Data Source, in that you just need to copy the Select Query and need to use the linked server name which we have apply on the place of [MY_API_SERVICE] placeholder.
   

   SELECT * FROM OPENQUERY([MY_API_SERVICE], 'EXEC [usp_get_orders] ''1996-01-01''')

   
   

7. Now go to SQL served and execute that query and it will make the API call using stored procedure and provide you the response.
   

Actions supported by Azure DevOps Connector

Azure DevOps Connector Examples for SQL Server Connection

This page offers a collection of SQL examples designed for seamless integration with the ZappySys API ODBC Driver under ODBC Data Source (36/64) or ZappySys Data Gateway, enhancing your ability to connect and interact with Prebuilt Connectors effectively.

SELECT * FROM WorkItems

SELECT * FROM WorkItems WITH (Project='ProductTesting')

SELECT * FROM WorkItems WHERE Id=1001

SELECT * FROM get_workitems_by_ids WITH (ids='6444,5578,9467')

SELECT * FROM search_workitems_by_text WITH (SearchText='Text that I want to search for')

SELECT * FROM WorkItems WHERE Id='8563' WITH (ContineOn404Error='False')

SELECT * FROM WorkItems WITH (Query='SELECT * FROM WorkItems 
WHERE [System.Id] > 2000 AND [System.Id] < 7050 
	AND [System.TeamProject]=''ProductTesting''
	AND [System.ChangedDate] < @Today
	AND [System.CreatedDate] > @StartOfYear
	AND [System.WorkItemType]=''Task'' 
	AND [System.State]=''Resolved'' 
	AND [Microsoft.VSTS.Common.Priority] >= 1
	ORDER BY [System.ChangedDate] DESC
	')

SELECT * FROM WorkItems WITH (Project='PosProject', Query='SELECT * FROM WorkItems WHERE [System.Id] = 2819')

SELECT * FROM WorkItems WITH (Query='SELECT * FROM WorkItems WHERE [System.WorkItemType] = ''Task''')

INSERT INTO WorkItems (WorkItemType, Title, [CustomFieldText], [CustomFieldDate], [CustomFieldNumber])
VALUES ('task', 'Fix Issues in System', 'My Custom Text', '2021-01-01T23:59:59.123', 1000)

INSERT INTO WorkItems (WorkItemType, Title, [CustomFieldText], [CustomFieldDate], [CustomFieldNumber])
VALUES ('task', 'Fix Issues in System', 'My Custom Text', '2021-01-01T23:59:59.123', 1000)
WITH(Project='MyProject')

INSERT INTO WorkItems  (   
      [WorkItemType]   
    , [Title] 
	, [Description] 
	, [Tags]
	, [AreaPath]  
	, [IterationPath] 
	, [AssignedTo] 
	, [Priority]
    , [Triage] 	
  --, [StackRank]  
	, [Blocked]  
	, [TaskType] 
	, [RequiresReview]
	, [RequiresTest] 
	, [IntegrationBuild] 
	, [FoundIn] 
	, [OriginalEstimate] 
	, [RemainingWork] 
	, [CompletedWork] 
	, [Size] 
	, [Effort] 
	, [TargetDate] 
	, [StartDate] 
	, [FinishDate] 
	, [DueDate] 
	, [StoryPoints] 
  --, [Discipline] 
	, [SystemInfo] 
	, [Steps] 
	, [ReproSteps] 
	--, [CustomFieldText]  --custom field prefix with CustomYOUR_FIELD_NAME_WITHOUT_SPACE_OR_DASH_OR_DOT
	--, [CustomFieldDate] 
	--, [CustomFieldNumber] 
	--, [CustomFieldDecimal] 
	--, [CustomFieldPickListString] 
	--, [CustomFieldPickListNum] 
)
VALUES (
      'Bug' -- Task, User Story -- WorkItemType
    , 'My Task Title - Created on <<FUN_NOW>>'  --Title
    , 'Some Description - Created on <<FUN_NOW>>' --Description
    , 'odata; api' --Tags
    , 'ProductTesting\SSISPowerPack' --AreaPath
    , 'ProductTesting\2021.6' --IterationPath
    , 'build@mycompany.com' --AssignedTo
    , 1 --Priority
    , 'Pending' --Triage
  --, ??? --[StackRank]
	, 'No' --Blocked
	, 'Planned' --TaskType
	, 'No' --RequiresReview
	, 'No' --RequiresTest
	, '101.1.2.3' --IntegrationBuild
	, '100.1.2.3' --FoundIn
	, 9999.111 --OriginalEstimate
	, 9999.222 --RemainingWork
	, 9999.333 --CompletedWork
	, 9999.444 --Size
	, 9999.555 --Effort
	, '2021-01-31' --TargetDate
	, '2022-01-31' --StartDate
	, '2023-01-31' --FinishDate
	, '2024-01-31' --DueDate
	, 100.5 --StoryPoints
  --, 'Some Discipline' --Discipline
	, 'Windows 10' --SystemInfo
	, 'Here are steps' --Steps
	, 'Here are steps to reproduce' --ReproSteps
	--, 'abcd'  --CustomFieldText
	--, '2021-01-31' --CustomFieldDate
	--, 9999  --CustomFieldNumber 
	--, 9999.123 --CustomFieldDecimal
	--, 'BBB' --CustomFieldPickListString
	--, '2' --CustomFieldPickListNum
)
WITH(Project='ProductTesting')

UPDATE WorkItems SET
Title = 'Renamed Work Item Title',
CustomMyField = 'New Custom Text'
WHERE Id = 7455

UPDATE WorkItems
SET   [Title] = 'Update-QA Task <<FUN_NOW>>'
	, [Description] = 'Updated desc <<FUN_NOW>>'
  --, [WorkItemType]='Bug' -- Task
	, [State] = 'Active'
	, [Tags] = 'odata; api'
	, [Revision] = 1
	, [AreaPath] = 'ProductTesting\SSISPowerPack'
	, [TeamProject] = 'ProductTesting'
	, [IterationPath] = 'ProductTesting\2021.6'
	, [Reason] = 'Reactivated'
	, [AssignedTo] = 'build@mycompany.com'
	, [Priority] = 1
  --, [Triage] = 'Pending'	
  --, [StackRank] = ???
	, [Blocked] = 'No'
	, [TaskType] = 'Planned'
	, [RequiresReview] = 'No'
	, [RequiresTest] = 'No'
	, [ActivatedDate] = '2021-01-31'
  --, [ResolvedReason] = 'Complete and Requires Review/Test'
	, [IntegrationBuild] = '101.1.2.3'
	, [FoundIn] = '100.1.2.3'
	, [OriginalEstimate] = 9999.123
	, [RemainingWork] = 9999.123
	, [CompletedWork] = 9999.123
	, [Size] = 9999.123
	, [Effort] = 9999.123
	, [TargetDate] = '2021-01-31'
	, [StartDate] = '2021-01-31'
	, [FinishDate] = '2021-01-31'
	, [DueDate] = '2021-01-31'
	, [StoryPoints] = 100.5
--	, [Discipline] = 'abcd'
	, [SystemInfo] = 'abcd'
	, [Steps] = 'abcd'
	, [ReproSteps] = 'abcd'
--	, [CustomFieldText] = 'abcd' 
--	, [CustomFieldDate] = '2021-01-31' 
--	, [CustomFieldNumber] = 9999  
--	, [CustomFieldDecimal] = 9999.123 
--	, [CustomFieldPickListString] = 'BBB' 
--	, [CustomFieldPickListNum] = '2' 
WHERE [Id] = 6455

UPDATE WorkItems
SET   Tags = 'newtag1; newtag2'
WHERE Id = 6455
WITH(
	   Project='ProductTesting'
	  ,Operation='add'
)

DELETE FROM WorkItems WHERE Id = 7455

DELETE FROM WorkItems
Where 1=1 
WITH(Query='SELECT * FROM WorkItems Where [System.TeamProject]=''MyProject'' AND ([System.Id]=6469 OR [System.Id]=6468) ')

UPDATE WorkItems
Set Title='New Title - Updated on <<FUN_NOW>>'
Where 1=1 
WITH(Query='SELECT * FROM WorkItems Where [System.TeamProject]=''MyProject'' AND ([System.Id]=6469 OR [System.Id]=6468) ')

SELECT * FROM WorkItemComments

SELECT * FROM WorkItemComments 
WHERE WorkItemId=6455

SELECT * FROM WorkItemComments 
WHERE WorkItemId=6455 and Id=5283490

SELECT 
	  Id
	, Title
	, Description
	, CreatedDate
	, Url
FROM WorkItems 
--WHERE Id=5283490 -- get just one comment for specific WorkItem Id
WITH(Query='SELECT * FROM WorkItems WHERE [System.TeamProject]=''ProductTesting'' and [System.Id]=6455 ORDER BY [System.Id] DESC')

#DirectSQL SELECT * FROM WorkItems WHERE [System.TeamProject]=''ProductTesting'' and [System.Id]=6455 ORDER BY [System.Id] DESC')

SELECT 
	  IterationPath as Sprint
	, AssignedToUniqueName as AssignedTo
	, SUM(OriginalEstimate) as OriginalHours_Total
	, SUM(RemainingWork) as RemainingWork_Total
	, SUM(CompletedWork) as CompletedHours_Total
FROM WorkItems
GROUP BY IterationPath,AssignedToUniqueName
WITH(
	  Project='ProductTesting'
	  
	  --//On Preview UI Change [Max Rows] to use more sample rows - else it will use only 100 rows
	  ,Query='SELECT * FROM WorkItems WHERE [System.IterationPath] UNDER ''ProductTesting\Sprint 1'' and State IN(''Resolved'', ''Closed'')'
	  
	  --Use below to query all sprints for this Product
	  --,Query='SELECT * FROM WorkItems WHERE [System.IterationPath] UNDER ''ProductTesting\'' and State IN(''Resolved'', ''Closed'')'
)

SELECT * INTO #t1 FROM WorkItems WITH(Project='ProductTesting', Query='SELECT * FROM WorkItems WHERE [System.Id]>=1 and [System.Id]<20000');
SELECT * INTO #t2 FROM WorkItems WITH(Project='ProductTesting', Query='SELECT * FROM WorkItems WHERE [System.Id]>=20000 and [System.Id]<40000');
SELECT * INTO #t3 FROM WorkItems WITH(Project='ProductTesting', Query='SELECT * FROM WorkItems WHERE [System.Id]>=40000 and [System.Id]<60000');
--//....
--//add more temp tables above and update UNION ALL too

SELECT * FROM #t1 
UNION ALL 
SELECT * FROM #t2
UNION ALL 
SELECT * FROM #t3
;

SELECT 
	  Id
	, WorkItemId
	, Text
	, RenderedText
	, Format
	, CreatedDate
	, CreatedByUniqueName
	, CreatedById
	, CreatedByDisplayName
	, ModifiedDate
	, ModifiedByUniqueName
	, ModifiedById
	, ModifiedByDisplayName
	, Url
FROM WorkItemComments 
--WHERE Id=5283490 -- get just one comment for specific WorkItem Id
WITH(Query='SELECT [System.Id] FROM WorkItems WHERE [System.TeamProject]=''ProductTesting'' and [System.Id]=6455 ORDER BY [System.Id] DESC')

INSERT INTO WorkItemComments(WorkItemId, Text)
VALUES(6455, 'Adding <b>html comment</b> - created on <<FUN_NOW>>')
WITH(Project='ProductTesting')

UPDATE WorkItemComments
SET Text='Updating <b>html comment</b> - updated on <<FUN_NOW>>'
Where WorkItemId=6455 and Id=5284411
WITH(Project='ProductTesting')

DELETE FROM WorkItemComments WHERE WorkItemId=6455 and Id=5284411

SELECT *
FROM generic_request
WITH(
	  Url='YOUR_ORGANIZATION/YOUR_PROJECT/_apis/wit/attachments?api-version=7.0',
	  RequestMethod='POST',
	  RequestContentTypeCode='ApplicationOctetStream', --//Binary upload
	  --Headers='Content-Type: application/octet-stream', --//same as above
	  Body='@c:\temp\screeenshot-1.png',
	  IsMultiPart=1,
	  Meta='id:string(100);url:string(500)' --response columns you like to display
)

SELECT *
FROM generic_request
WITH(
	  Url='YOUR_ORGANIZATION/YOUR_PROJECT/_apis/wit/workitems/WORK_ITEM_NUMBER?api-version=7.0',
	  RequestMethod='PATCH',
	  Headers='Content-Type: application/json-patch+json',
	  Meta='id:int; fields.System.Title:string; fields.System.State:string; fields.System.WorkItemType:string; relations:string(4000)',
	  Body='
[
  {
    "op": "add",
    "path": "/fields/System.History",
    "value": "Adding the necessary spec"
  },
  {
    "op": "add",
    "path": "/relations/-",
    "value": {
      "rel": "AttachedFile",
      "url": "https://dev.azure.com/YOUR_ORGANIZATION/YOUR_PROJECT/_apis/wit/attachments/ATTACHMENT_ID?fileName=Screenshot.png",
      "attributes": {
        "comment": "Error screenshot"
      }
    }
  }
]
'
)

SELECT * FROM Projects

SELECT Id, Name, Description, Url, State, Revision, Visibility, LastUpdateTime FROM Projects

SELECT * FROM Projects WHERE Id='a80fb082-f7c4-4345-911d-1c05ad1b1fc9'

INSERT INTO Projects (Name, Abbreviation, Description, SourceControlType, Visibility)
VALUES
('My New Project', 'MNP',
'The system we use for implementing point-of-service walk-in payment systems.',
'Git', 'private')

UPDATE Projects SET Description = 'The system we use for implementing point-of-service walk-in payment systems and phone payments.'
WHERE Id='1be9ccef-45d7-4574-af67-7dc6c0699b6a'

DELETE FROM Projects WHERE Id='85kd1641-5555-49b1-9c5e-22c22a61d4c4'

SELECT * FROM Teams

SELECT * FROM Teams WITH (Project='841e1641-325d-49b1-9c5e-22c11a61d4c4')

SELECT Id, Name, ProjectId, ProjectName, Url, Description, IdentityUrl FROM Teams

SELECT * FROM Teams WHERE Id='a0aa750f-1550-44af-a056-223696077df6'

INSERT INTO Teams (Name, Description) VALUES
('PosProject Team', 'This is the team who will be working on the Point of Service project.')

INSERT INTO Teams (Name, Description) VALUES
('PosProject Team', 'This is the team who will be working on the Point of Service project.')
WITH (ProjectId='85kd1641-5555-49b1-9c5e-22c22a61d4c4')

UPDATE Teams SET	Name = 'PointOfServiceProject Team' WHERE Id='8djr4d07-5555-5555-9552-0b6d7je99w7f'

DELETE FROM Teams WHERE Id='8djr4d07-5555-5555-9552-0b6d7je99w7f'

SELECT * FROM AuditRecords

SELECT Id, CorrelationId, ActivityId, ActorCUID, ActorUserId, AuthenticationMechanism,
Timestamp, ScopeType, ScopeDisplayName, ScopeId, IpAddress, UserAgent, ActionId, ProjectId, ProjectName,
ProcessTemplate, ProjectVisibility, StartTime, EndTime, BatchSize, EventSummary, Details, Area, Category,
CategoryDisplayName, ActorDisplayName, ActorImageUrl FROM AuditRecords

SELECT * FROM get_queries
WITH(
	Project='Odbc'
)

SELECT * FROM get_workitems_by_query_id
WITH(
	  Query='e5150e18-1323-485d-8937-6991bf09ab1c' --see get_queries endpoint
	, Project='Odbc'
)

Conclusion

In this article we discussed how to connect to Azure DevOps in SQL Server and integrate data without any coding. Click here to Download Azure DevOps Connector for SQL Server and try yourself see how easy it is. If you still have any question(s) then ask here or simply click on live chat icon below and ask our expert (see bottom-right corner of this page).

Download Azure DevOps Connector for SQL Server Documentation 

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