How to integrate Gmail with SSAS

Learn how to quickly and efficiently connect Gmail with SSAS for smooth data access.

Read and write Gmail data effortlessly. Send, manage, and sync messages, attachments, labels, and threads — almost no coding required. You can do it all using the high-performance Gmail ODBC Driver for SSAS (often referred to as the Gmail Connector). 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.

Gmail ODBC Driver Powering this integration

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

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

Documentation

Create data source in ZappySys Data Gateway

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

Download and install ODBC PowerPack (if you haven't already).
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
GmailDSN

ZappySys API Driver
When the Configuration window appears give your data source a name if you haven't done that already, then select "Gmail" from the list of Popular Connectors. If "Gmail" 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:

GmailDSN

Gmail

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.

User Account

Gmail authentication

To make this work you will have to create a Google Cloud project. This project forms the basis for creating, enabling, and using all Google Cloud services, including managing APIs, enabling billing, adding and removing collaborators, and managing permissions.

Go to the Google Cloud Console
In the Google Cloud console, go to menu IAM & Admin, and then Create a Project.
Enter the name of the new project into the Project Name field and select the appropriate organization, then click Create.
The console navigates to the Dashboard page and your project is created within a few minutes.
In the Google Cloud console, go to menu More products, Google Workspace, and then Product Library.
Now we need to enable the Gmail API.
Search for Gmail API. Select it and then click ENABLE.
Select the Credentials tab on the left side of the screen.
Select the + CREATE CREDENTIALS link to reveal a drop down menu.
In the dropdown menu, select OAuth client ID.
If presented, click the CONFIGURE CONSENT SCREEN button and then elect the appropriate User Type based on your business needs. Otherwise, continue to step 16.
In the OAuth consent screen tab fill in your app's website and domain information, and then click SAVE AND CONTINUE.
In the Scopes section of the app registration, click ADD OR REMOVE SCOPES and add the following scopes:
- openid
- https://mail.google.com/
- https://www.googleapis.com/auth/userinfo.email
- https://www.googleapis.com/auth/userinfo.profile
- https://www.googleapis.com/auth/gmail.labels
- https://www.googleapis.com/auth/gmail.send
- https://www.googleapis.com/auth/gmail.modify
- https://www.googleapis.com/auth/gmail.compose
- https://www.googleapis.com/auth/gmail.readonly
After the scopes have been added, click SAVE AND CONTINUE.
Complete the wizard setting up scopes.
Select the Credentials tab on the left side of the screen.
Select the + CREATE CREDENTIALS link to reveal a drop down menu.
In the dropdown menu, select OAuth client ID.
In the Application type drop down, select Desktop application and then give your app client a name.
Select the CREATE button.
A popup window will appear that provides important information you should record for your records:
- Client ID
- Client secret
And then click OK.
Go to OAuth Consent Screen tab. Under Publishing Status click PUBLISH APP to ensure your refresh token doesnt expire often. If you planning to use App for Private use then do not have to worry about Verification Status after Publish.
Back to Connection UI, Enter the client ID and client secret into the required parameters.

API Connection Manager configuration

Just perform these simple steps to finish authentication configuration:

Set Authentication Type to User Account [OAuth]
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.
Press Generate Token button to generate the tokens.
Finally, hit OK button:

GmailDSN

Gmail

User Account [OAuth]

https://gmail.googleapis.com/

Required Parameters
UseCustomApp	Fill-in the parameter...
Authorization URL	Fill-in the parameter...
Token URL	Fill-in the parameter...
Default API Version	Fill-in the parameter...
Default User Id	Fill-in the parameter...
Scope	Fill-in the parameter...
Optional Parameters
Client Id
Client Secret
RetryMode	RetryWhenStatusCodeMatch
RetryStatusCodeList	429
RetryCountMax	5
RetryMultiplyWaitTime	True
Redirect URL (Only for Web App)

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 - Gmail

Read and write Gmail data effortlessly. Send, manage, and sync messages, attachments, labels, and threads — almost no coding required.

GmailDSN
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 SSAS to retrieve data from Gmail. Hit OK button to use this query in the next step.
```
SELECT * FROM Messages
```
Some parameters configured in this window will be passed to the Gmail 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 SSAS:
ZappySys API Driver - Gmail

Read and write Gmail data effortlessly. Send, manage, and sync messages, attachments, labels, and threads — almost no coding required.

GmailDSN
```
SELECT * FROM Messages
```
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 Gmail 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 Gmail servers).
Click OK to finish creating the data source.
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.

Read Gmail data in SSAS cube

With the data source created in the Data Gateway (previous step), we're now ready to read Gmail data in an SSAS cube. Before we dive in, open Visual Studio and create a new Analysis Services project. Then, you're all set!

In the example below, we use Multidimensional and Data Mining Analysis Services project, but it should work with Tabular project too.

Create data source based on ZappySys Data Gateway

Let's start by creating a data source for a cube, based on the Data Gateway's data source we created earlier. So, what are we waiting for? Let's do it!

Create a new data source:
Once a window opens, select Create a data source based on an existing or new connection option and click New...:
Here things become a little complicated, but do not despair, it's only for a little while. Just perform these little steps:
- Select Native OLE DB\SQL Server Native Client 11.0 as provider.
- Enter your Server name (or IP address) and Port, separated by a comma.
- Select SQL Server Authentication option for authentication.
- Input User name which has admin permissions in the ZappySys Data Gateway.
- In Database name field enter the same data source name you use in the ZappySys Data Gateway.
- Hopefully, our hard work is done, when we Test Connection.
GmailDSN

GmailDSN
If SQL Server Native Client 11.0 is not listed as Native OLE DB provider, try using these:
- Microsoft OLE DB Driver for SQL Server
- Microsoft OLE DB Provider for SQL Server
Indeed, life is easy again:

Add data source view

We have data source in place, it's now time to add a data source view. Let's not waste a single second and get on to it!

Start by right-clicking on Data Source Views and then choosing New Data Source View...:
Select the previously created data source and click Next:
Ignore the Name Matching window and click Next.
Add the tables you will use in your SSAS cube:
For cube dimensions, consider creating a Virtual Table in the Data Gateway's data source. Use the DISTINCT keyword in the SELECT statement to get unique values from the facts table, like this:
```
SELECT DISTINCT Country FROM Customers
```
For demonstration purposes we are using sample tables which may not be available in Gmail.
Review your data source view and click Finish:
Add the missing table relationships and you're done!

Create cube

We have a data source view ready to be used by our cube. Let's create one!

Start by right-clicking on Cubes and selecting New Cube... menu item:
Select tables you will use for the measures:
And then select the measures themselves:
Don't stop and select the dimensions too:
Move along and click Finish before the final steps:
Review your cube before processing it:
It's time for the grand finale! Hit Process... to create the cube:
A splendid success!

Execute MDX query

The cube is created and processed. It's time to reap what we sow! Just execute an MDX query and get Gmail data in your SSAS cube:

Execute MDX in SSAS cube to read API data

Supported Gmail Connector actions

Got a specific use case in mind? We've mapped out exactly how to perform a variety of essential Gmail operations directly in SSAS, 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 Gmail in SSAS and integrate data without writing complex code — all of this was powered by Gmail 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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