How to integrate Cosmos DB with Qlik Cloud

Name: ODBC PowerPack
Rating: 4.9 (8 reviews)
Author: ZappySys

Learn how to quickly and efficiently connect Cosmos DB with Qlik Cloud for smooth data access.

Read and write Azure Cosmos DB data effortlessly. Query, integrate, and manage databases, containers, documents, and users — almost no coding required. You can do it all using the high-performance Cosmos DB ODBC Driver (powered by Cosmos DB Connector for ZappySys API Driver). We'll walk you through the entire setup.

Ready to dive in? Download the product to jump right in, or follow the step-by-step guide below to see how it works.

Cosmos DB ODBC Driver Powering this integration

Low-code / No-code
High performance
Bidirectional
Easy to use

Built on the ZappySys API Driver, the Cosmos DB ODBC Driver is a high-performance, low-code / no-code solution. It enables you to connect to Cosmos DB data without any coding right in your SQL Server, or any ODBC/JDBC application. Part of the ODBC PowerPack.

Documentation

Create data source using Cosmos DB ODBC Driver

Video instructions

Watch this quick walkthrough to see how to configure your Cosmos DB ODBC data source, or scroll down for the step-by-step written guide.

While this video uses the OData Connector as an example, the core concepts and setup process are exactly the same for the Cosmos DB Connector.

Watch this video on YouTube

Step-by-step instructions

To get data from Cosmos DB using Qlik Cloud, we first need to create an ODBC data source. We will later read this data in Qlik Cloud. Perform these steps:

Download and install ODBC PowerPack (if you haven't already).
Search for odbc and open the ODBC Data Sources (64-bit):
Create a User data source (User DSN) based on the ZappySys API Driver driver:

ZappySys API Driver
- Create and use a User DSN if the client application runs under a User Account. This is the ideal option at design time (e.g., when developing in Visual Studio). Use it for both types of applications (64-bit and 32-bit).
- Create and use a System DSN if the client application runs under a System Account (e.g., as a Windows Service). This is usually the required option in a production environment. If your Windows Service is a 32-bit application, you must use the 32-bit ODBC Data Source Administrator to configure this
When the Configuration window appears give your data source a name if you haven't done that already, then select "Cosmos DB" from the list of Popular Connectors. If "Cosmos DB" 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:

CosmosDbDSN

Cosmos DB

Select your authentication scenario below to expand connection configuration steps to:

Configure the authentication in Cosmos DB.
Enter those details into the ZappySys API Driver data source configuration.

API Key

Cosmos DB authentication

Connecting to your Azure Cosmos DB data requires you to authenticate your REST API access. Follow the instructions below:

Go to your Azure portal homepage: https://portal.azure.com/.
In the search bar at the top of the homepage, enter Azure Cosmos DB. In the dropdown that appears, select Azure Cosmos DB.
Click on the name of the database account you want to connect to (also copy and paste the name of the database account for later use).
On the next page where you can see all of the database account information, look along the left side and select Keys:
On the Keys page, you will have two tabs: Read-write Keys and Read-only Keys. If you are going to write data to your database, you need to remain on the Read-write Keys tab. If you are only going to read data from your database, you should select the Read-only Keys tab.
On the Keys page, copy the PRIMARY KEY value and paste it somewhere for later use (the SECONDARY KEY value may also be copied and used).
Now go to SSIS package or ODBC data source and use this PRIMARY KEY in API Key authentication configuration.
Enter the primary or secondary key you recorded in step 6 into the Primary or Secondary Key field.
Then enter the database account you recorded in step 3 into the Database Account field.
Next, enter or select the default database you want to connect to using the Default Database field.
Continue by entering or selecting the default table (i.e. container/collection) you want to connect to using the Default Table (Container/Collection) field.
Select the Test Connection button at the bottom of the window to verify proper connectivity with your Azure Cosmos DB account.
If the connection test succeeds, select OK.
Done! Now you are ready to use Cosmos DB Connector!

API Connection Manager configuration

Just perform these simple steps to finish authentication configuration:

Set Authentication Type to API Key [Http]
Optional step. Modify API Base URL if needed (in most cases default will work).
Fill in all the required parameters and set optional parameters if needed.
Finally, hit OK button:

CosmosDbDSN

Cosmos DB

API Key [Http]

https://[$Account$].documents.azure.com

Required Parameters
Primary or Secondary Key	Fill-in the parameter...
Account Name (Case-Sensitive)	Fill-in the parameter...
Database Name (keep blank to use default) Case-Sensitive	Fill-in the parameter...
API Version	Fill-in the parameter...
Optional Parameters
Default Table (needed to invoke #DirectSQL)

Find full details in the Cosmos DB Connector authentication reference.

Once the data source connection has been configured, it's time to configure the SQL query. Select the Preview tab and then click Query Builder button to configure the SQL query:

ZappySys API Driver - Cosmos DB

Read and write Azure Cosmos DB data effortlessly. Query, integrate, and manage databases, containers, documents, and users — almost no coding required.

CosmosDbDSN
Start by selecting the Table or Endpoint you are interested in and then configure the parameters. This will generate a query that we will use in Qlik Cloud to retrieve data from Cosmos DB. Hit OK button to use this query in the next step.
```
#DirectSQL SELECT * FROM root where root.id !=null order by root._ts desc
```
Some parameters configured in this window will be passed to the Cosmos DB API, e.g. filtering parameters. It means that filtering will be done on the server side (instead of the client side), enabling you to get only the meaningful data much faster.
Now hit Preview Data button to preview the data using the generated SQL query. If you are satisfied with the result, use this query in Qlik Cloud:
ZappySys API Driver - Cosmos DB

Read and write Azure Cosmos DB data effortlessly. Query, integrate, and manage databases, containers, documents, and users — almost no coding required.

CosmosDbDSN
```
#DirectSQL SELECT * FROM root where root.id !=null order by root._ts desc
```
You can also access data quickly from the tables dropdown by selecting <Select table>.

A WHERE clause, LIMIT keyword will be performed on the client side, meaning that the whole result set will be retrieved from the Cosmos DB API first, and only then the filtering will be applied to the data. If possible, it is recommended to use parameters in Query Builder to filter the data on the server side (in Cosmos DB servers).
Click OK to finish creating the data source.

Set up Qlik Direct Access data gateway

To connect to the Cosmos DB data, you need a secure pipeline between your Qlik Cloud tenant and the Cosmos DB ODBC DSN. Let's download, deploy, and register the Qlik data gateway to make this happen.

First, log into your My Qlik tenants portal and choose your tenant:
- Navigate to Administration.
- Select Spaces.
Create a shared space if you do not have one yet:
- Click Create new.
- Name shared space and confirm.
Next, let's grab the gateway installer:
- Navigate to Administration.
- Select Data gateways.
Download the gateway:
- Click Deploy.
- Select Data Gateway - Direct Access (Windows).
- Check acknowledgement box.
- Click Download.
If you are not running this locally, copy the installer to your target machine.

The ODBC PowerPack and the Qlik Direct Access gateway must be installed on the exact same machine.
Install the Qlik Direct Access gateway.
Once installed, open an elevated Command Prompt on the gateway machine:

Link the gateway to your tenant:

Navigate to ConnectorAgent directory.
Run tenant URL setup command.

cd \
cd "Program Files\Qlik\ConnectorAgent\ConnectorAgent"
ConnectorAgent.exe qcs set_config --tenant_url https://<tenant>.qlikcloud.com

Generate your data gateway key:
```
ConnectorAgent.exe qcs generate_keys
```
Start the gateway service:
```
ConnectorAgent.exe service start
```
Generate and copy the registration payload:
- Run registration command.
- Copy output text.
```
ConnectorAgent.exe qcs get_registration
```
Now let's head back to the Qlik Cloud Administration page to complete the data gateway registration.
Create the gateway entry in your tenant and apply the key:
- Name gateway.
- Select Direct Access for Gateway type.
- Select shared space.
- Paste generated key.
- Click Create.
Finally, verify the status shows Connected:

Create ODBC connection in Analytics

With the gateway actively running, let's build the actual ODBC connection in Analytics.

Navigate to your My Qlik tenants page, choose your tenant, select the Analytics tile, and click the Create menu item:
Click the Data connection tile:
Next, let's create the ODBC data connection by selecting your shared space and finding the right connector:
- Pick your shared space.
- Search for odbc.
- Choose the ODBC (via Direct Access gateway) option.
Finally, configure the ODBC connection fields to wrap up the setup:
- Select your Data gateway.
- Select the System DSN option.
- Choose the ODBC source (DSN).
- Select the DB2 SQL syntax.
- Name the connection.
- Click Test connection, then click Create.
CosmosDbDSN
Connection is ready!

You are now successfully wired up to your Cosmos DB data. Let's see how to actually load it into your dashboard.

Load Cosmos DB data into Qlik Cloud

Depending on your specific use case, you can choose one of the two methods below to bring your data into the Qlik Cloud environment for analysis.

Use Analytics app with Data load editor

This is the best method if you need to run dynamic SQL. We will use your new gateway connection in the Data load editor to pull the data and verify it visually.

Navigate to your My Qlik tenants page, choose your tenant, select the Analytics tile, and click the Create menu item:
Click the Application tile to start creating a new application:
Next, create the application within your shared space:
- Name the application.
- Select your shared space.
- Click the Create button.
Now, open the new application and click the Data load editor option:
With the editor open, you can configure your DSN and SQL query before running the data load:
- Select your shared space connection.
- Click the gateway connection button to use the ODBC (via Direct Access gateway) option.
- Name the table as MyData and prepare your SQL load script.
- Click Load data.
#DirectSQL SELECT * FROM root where root.id !=null order by root._ts desc
```
LIB CONNECT TO 'My Shared Space:Gateway Connection';

MyData:

LOAD *;

SQL
#DirectSQL SELECT * FROM root where root.id !=null order by root._ts desc
```
Once the data has successfully loaded, go to the sheet to build your dashboard:
- Select the Sheet option.
- Select the Fields section.
- Drag and drop the fields onto the sheet to create your visuals.
MyData
Your Cosmos DB data is now ready for analysis!

Use Data flow for data integration

Use this method if you want to build a complete source-to-destination pipeline directly inside Qlik Cloud.

Navigate to your My Qlik tenants page, choose your tenant, select the Analytics tile, and click the Create menu item:
Click the Data flow tile to start building your integration:
Next, create the data flow within your shared space:
- Name your data flow.
- Select your shared space.
- Click the Create button.
Now that the data flow is created, open the editor and browse your available connections:
- Select the Editor tab.
- Click the Browse connections button.
Select the gateway-backed ODBC connection we set up earlier:
- Choose your gateway connection.
- Click Next.
Select your source tables and the specific fields you want to import:
- Select one or multiple tables.
- Uncheck any unwanted columns (optional).
- Click Finish.
Map your source and destination nodes to define the flow:
- Connect the source node to the destination node.
- Click Run flow to start the integration process.
Wait for the successful completion message to appear:
Your Cosmos DB data integration is now complete!

Optional: Centralized data access via ZappySys Data Gateway

In some situations, you may need to provide Cosmos DB data access to multiple users or services. Configuring the data source on a Data Gateway creates a single, centralized connection point for this purpose.

This configuration provides two primary advantages:

Centralized data access
The data source is configured once on the gateway, eliminating the need to set it up individually on each user's machine or application. This significantly simplifies the management process.
Centralized access control
Since all connections route through the gateway, access can be governed or revoked from a single location for all users.

	Data Gateway	Local ODBC data source
Simple configuration
Installation	Single machine	Per machine
Connectivity	Local and remote	Local only
Connections limit	Limited by License	Unlimited
Central data access
Central access control
More flexible cost

To achieve this, you must first create a data source in the Data Gateway (server-side) and then create an ODBC data source in Qlik Cloud (client-side) to connect to it.

Let's not wait and get going!

Create Cosmos DB data source in the gateway

In this section we will create a data source for Cosmos DB in the Data Gateway. Let's follow these steps to accomplish that:

Search for gateway in the Windows Start Menu and open ZappySys Data Gateway Configuration:
Go to the Users tab and follow these steps to add a Data Gateway user:
- Click the Add button
- In the Login field enter a username, e.g., john
- Then enter a Password
- Check the Is Administrator checkbox
- Click OK to save
Now we are ready to add a data source:
- Click the Add button
- Give the Data source a name (have it handy for later)
- Then select Native - ZappySys API Driver
- Finally, click OK
CosmosDbDSN

ZappySys API Driver
When the ZappySys API Driver configuration window opens, go back to ODBC Data Source Administrator where you already have the Cosmos DB ODBC data source created and configured, and follow these steps on how to Import data source configuration into the Gateway:
- Open ODBC data source configuration and click Copy settings:
  
  ZappySys API Driver - Configuration [Version: 2.0.1.10418]
  
  ZappySys API Driver - Cosmos DB
  
  Read and write Azure Cosmos DB data effortlessly. Query, integrate, and manage databases, containers, documents, and users — almost no coding required.
  
  CosmosDbDSN
- The window opens, telling us the connection string was successfully copied to the clipboard:
- Then go to Data Gateway configuration and in data source configuration window click Load settings:
  
  CosmosDbDSN
  
  ZappySys API Driver - Configuration [Version: 2.0.1.10418]
  
  ZappySys API Driver - Cosmos DB
  
  Read and write Azure Cosmos DB data effortlessly. Query, integrate, and manage databases, containers, documents, and users — almost no coding required.
  
  CosmosDbDSN
- Once a window opens, just paste the settings by pressing CTRL+V or by clicking right mouse button and then Paste option.
Once done, go to the Network Settings tab and Add a firewall rule for inbound traffic:
- This will initially allow all inbound traffic.
- Click Edit IP filters to restrict access to specific IP addresses or ranges.
Crucial Step: After creating or modifying the data source, you must:
- Click the Save button to persist your changes.
- Hit Yes when prompted to restart the Data Gateway service.
This ensures all changes are properly applied:

Skipping this step may cause the new settings to fail, preventing you from connecting to the data source.

Create ODBC data source to connect to the gateway

In this part we will create an ODBC data source to connect to the ZappySys Data Gateway from Qlik Cloud. To achieve that, let's perform these steps:

Search for odbc and open the ODBC Data Sources (64-bit):
Create a User data source (User DSN) based on the ODBC Driver 17 for SQL Server driver:

ODBC Driver 17 for SQL Server

If you don't see the ODBC Driver 17 for SQL Server driver in the list, choose a similar version.
Then set a Name for the data source (e.g. Gateway) and the address of the Data Gateway:

ZappySysGatewayDSN

localhost,5000

Make sure you separate the hostname and port with a comma, e.g. localhost,5000.
Proceed with the authentication part:
- Select SQL Server authentication
- In the Login ID field enter the user name you created in the Data Gateway, e.g., john
- Set Password to the one you configured in the Data Gateway
Then set the default database property to CosmosDbDSN (the one we used in the Data Gateway):

CosmosDbDSN

CosmosDbDSN

Make sure to type the data source name manually or copy/paste it directly into the field. Using the dropdown might fail because the Trust server certificate option is not enabled yet (next step).
Continue by checking the Trust server certificate option:
Once you do that, test the connection:
If the connection is successful, everything is good:
Done!

We are ready to move to the final step. Let's do it!

Access data in Qlik Cloud via the gateway

Finally, we are ready to read data from Cosmos DB in Qlik Cloud via the Data Gateway. Follow these final steps:

Go back to Qlik Cloud.
Navigate to your My Qlik tenants page, choose your tenant, select the Analytics tile, and click the Create menu item:
Click the Data connection tile:
Next, let's create the ODBC data connection by selecting your shared space and finding the right connector:
- Pick your shared space.
- Search for odbc.
- Choose the ODBC (via Direct Access gateway) option.
Finally, configure the ODBC connection fields to wrap up the setup:
- Select your Data gateway.
- Select the System DSN option.
- Choose the ODBC source (DSN).
- Select the DB2 SQL syntax.
- Name the connection.
- Click Test connection, then click Create.
ZappySysGatewayDSN
Read the data the same way we discussed at the beginning of this article.
That's it!

Now you can connect to Cosmos DB data in Qlik Cloud via the ZappySys Data Gateway.

If you are asked for authentication details, use Database authentication, SQL authentication or Basic authentication option and enter the credentials you used when configuring the Data Gateway, e.g. john and your password.

Explore supported Cosmos DB Connector actions

Got a specific use case in mind? We've mapped out exactly how to perform a variety of essential Cosmos DB operations directly in Qlik Cloud, so you don't have to figure out the setup from scratch. Check out the step-by-step guides below:

Conclusion

In this article we showed you how to connect to Cosmos DB in Qlik Cloud and integrate data without writing complex code — all of this was powered by Cosmos DB ODBC Driver.

Download ODBC PowerPack now or ping us via chat if you have any questions or are looking for a specific feature (you can also reach out to us by submitting a ticket):

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