How to integrate Outlook Mail (Office 365) with Tableau

Integrate Tableau and Outlook Mail (Office 365)

Learn how to quickly and efficiently connect Outlook Mail (Office 365) with Tableau for smooth data access.

Read and write Microsoft Outlook Mail (Office 365) data effortlessly. Send, manage, and sync messages, attachments, and folders — almost no coding required. You can do it all using the high-performance Outlook Mail (Office 365) ODBC Driver for Tableau (often referred to as the Outlook Mail (Office 365) 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.

Outlook Mail (Office 365) ODBC Driver Powering this integration

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

Built on the ZappySys API Driver, the Outlook Mail (Office 365) ODBC Driver is a high-performance, low-code / no-code solution. It enables you to connect to Outlook Mail (Office 365) 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 Outlook Mail (Office 365) 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
OutlookMailOffice365DSN

ZappySys API Driver
When the Configuration window appears give your data source a name if you haven't done that already, then select "Outlook Mail (Office 365)" from the list of Popular Connectors. If "Outlook Mail (Office 365)" 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:

OutlookMailOffice365DSN

Outlook Mail (Office 365)

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 Credentials

Outlook Mail (Office 365) authentication

Use delegated access (User Credentials) whenever you want to let a signed-in user work with their own resources or resources they can access. Whether it's an admin setting up policies for their entire organization or a user deleting an email in their inbox, all scenarios involving user actions should use delegated access. [API reference]

Follow these simple steps below to create Microsoft Entra ID application with delegated access:

WARNING: If you are planning to automate processes, we recommend that you use a Application Credentials authentication method. In case, you still need to use User Credentials, then make sure you use a system/generic account (e.g. automation@my-company.com). When you use a personal account which is tied to a specific employee profile and that employee leaves the company, the token may become invalid and any automated processes using that token will start to fail.

Navigate to the Azure Portal and log in using your credentials.
Access Microsoft Entra ID.
Register a new application by going to App registrations and clicking on New registration button:
INFO: Find more information on how to register an application in Graph API reference.
When configuration window opens, configure these fields:
- Supported account type
  - Use Accounts in this organizational directory only, if you need access to data in your organization only.
- Redirect URI:
  - Set the type to Public client/native (mobile & desktop).
  - Use https://zappysys.com/oauth as the URL.
After registering the app, copy the Application (client) ID for later:
Then copy OAuth authorization endpoint (v2) & OAuth token endpoint (v2) URLs to use later in the configuration:
Now go to SSIS package or ODBC data source and use the copied values in User Credentials authentication configuration:
- In the Authorization URL field paste the OAuth authorization endpoint (v2) URL value you copied in the previous step.
- In the Token URL field paste the OAuth token endpoint (v2) URL value you copied in the previous step.
- In the Client ID field paste the Application (client) ID value you copied in the previous step.
- In the Scope field use the default value or select individual scopes, e.g.:
  - email
  - offline_access
  - openid
  - profile
  - Mail.Read
  - Mail.Read.Shared
  - Mail.ReadBasic
  - Mail.ReadBasic.Shared
  - Mail.ReadWrite
  - Mail.ReadWrite.Shared
  - Mail.Send
  - Mail.Send.Shared
  - User.Read
  - User.ReadBasic.All
  - Group.Read.All
Press Generate Token button to generate Access and Refresh Tokens.
Optional step. Choose Default User Id from the drop down menu (if someone shared a mailbox with you).
Click Test Connection to confirm the connection is working.
Done! Now you are ready to use the API Connector!

API Connection Manager configuration

Just perform these simple steps to finish authentication configuration:

Set Authentication Type to User Credentials [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:

OutlookMailOffice365DSN

Outlook Mail (Office 365)

User Credentials [OAuth]

https://graph.microsoft.com/v1.0

Required Parameters
Authorization URL	Fill-in the parameter...
Token URL	Fill-in the parameter...
Client ID	Fill-in the parameter...
Scope	Fill-in the parameter...
Return URL	Fill-in the parameter...
Optional Parameters
Client Secret
Refresh Token File Path
Login Prompt Option
Default User Id (Select after clicking Generate Token)	me
RetryMode	RetryWhenStatusCodeMatch
RetryStatusCodeList	429\|503
RetryCountMax	5
RetryMultiplyWaitTime	True

Application Credentials

Outlook Mail (Office 365) authentication

Application-only access is broader and more powerful than delegated access (User Credentials), so you should only use app-only access where needed. Use it when: 1. The application needs to run in an automated way, without user input (for example, a daily script that checks emails from certain contacts and sends automated responses). 2. The application needs to access resources belonging to multiple different users (for example, a backup or data loss prevention app might need to retrieve messages from many different chat channels, each with different participants). 3. You find yourself tempted to store credentials locally and allow the app to sign in 'as' the user or admin. [API reference]

Follow these simple steps below to create Microsoft Entra ID application with application access permissions.

Navigate to the Azure Portal and log in using your credentials.
Access Microsoft Entra ID.
Register a new application by going to App registrations and clicking on New registration button:
INFO: Find more information on how to register an application in Graph API reference.
When configuration window opens, configure these fields:
- Supported account type
  - e.g. select Accounts in this organizational directory only if you need access to data in your organization only.
- Redirect URI:
  - Set the type to Public client/native (mobile & desktop).
  - Leave the URL field empty.
After registering the app, copy the Application (client) ID for later:
Then copy OAuth authorization endpoint (v2) & OAuth token endpoint (v2) URLs:
Continue and create Client secret:
Then copy the Client secret for later steps:
Continue by adding permissions for the app by going to the API permissions section, and clicking on Add a permission:
Select Microsoft Graph:
Then choose Application permissions option:
Continue by adding these Mail (Outlook) permissions:
Finish by clicking Add permissions button:
Now it's time to Grant admin consent for your application:
Confirm all the permissions are granted:
Now go to SSIS package or ODBC data source and use the copied values in Application Credentials authentication configuration:
- In the Token URL field paste the OAuth token endpoint (v2) URL value you copied in the previous step.
- In the Client ID field paste the Application (client) ID value you copied in the previous step.
- In the Client Secret field paste the Client secret value you copied in the previous step.
- Choose Default User Id from the drop down menu.
Click Test Connection to confirm the connection is working.
That's it! Now you can use the connector.

API Connection Manager configuration

Just perform these simple steps to finish authentication configuration:

Set Authentication Type to Application Credentials [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.
Finally, hit OK button:

OutlookMailOffice365DSN

Outlook Mail (Office 365)

Application Credentials [OAuth]

https://graph.microsoft.com/v1.0

Required Parameters
Token URL	Fill-in the parameter...
Client ID	Fill-in the parameter...
Client Secret	Fill-in the parameter...
Scope	Fill-in the parameter...
Default User Id	Fill-in the parameter...
Optional Parameters
RetryMode	RetryWhenStatusCodeMatch
RetryStatusCodeList	429\|503
RetryCountMax	5
RetryMultiplyWaitTime	True

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 - Outlook Mail (Office 365)

Read and write Microsoft Outlook Mail (Office 365) data effortlessly. Send, manage, and sync messages, attachments, and folders — almost no coding required.

OutlookMailOffice365DSN
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 Tableau to retrieve data from Outlook Mail (Office 365). Hit OK button to use this query in the next step.
```
SELECT * FROM MyMessages
```
Some parameters configured in this window will be passed to the Outlook Mail (Office 365) 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 Tableau:
ZappySys API Driver - Outlook Mail (Office 365)

Read and write Microsoft Outlook Mail (Office 365) data effortlessly. Send, manage, and sync messages, attachments, and folders — almost no coding required.

OutlookMailOffice365DSN
```
SELECT * FROM MyMessages
```
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 Outlook Mail (Office 365) 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 Outlook Mail (Office 365) 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 data in SQL Server via Data Gateway

After configuring your data source using the ZappySys ODBC Driver, the next mandatory step to read that data in SQL Server is to create a Linked Server. SQL Server requires a Linked Server definition to access any ODBC-based source through the ZappySys Data Gateway, allowing the source driver data to be queried using standard T-SQL.

There are two ways to create the Linked Server:

Method 1: Using a SQL Script automatically generated by the Data Gateway
Method 2: Using SQL Server UI (SSMS) to manually configure the Linked Server

Method 1: Using a SQL Script automatically generated by the Data Gateway

The fastest and most reliable way to create the Linked Server is to use the SQL Script generated by the Data Gateway. This ensures all settings are applied correctly with minimal manual steps.

In the Data Gateway, open the App Integration tab.
Update the prefilled Linked Server Name if you want to use a custom name.
Select the OutlookMailOffice365DSN data source which we created earlier as the Database.
Choose the correct SQL Server version for your environment.
- SQL 2019 or Lower (@provider='SQLNCLI11')
- SQL 2022 or Higher (@provider='MSOLEDBSQL')
Click Generate Code.
In the generated script scroll down to 4. Attach Gateway login with linked server step, enter your Data Gateway admin username and password.

'LS_TO_OUTLOOK_MAIL_OFFICE_365_IN_GATEWAY'
Press Ctrl + A and Ctrl + C to copy the entire script.

LS_TO_OUTLOOK_MAIL_OFFICE_365_IN_GATEWAY

OutlookMailOffice365DSN
Paste the script into SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS) and run it.
That's it linked server is created in the SQL Server.

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

SELECT * FROM OPENQUERY([LS_TO_OUTLOOK_MAIL_OFFICE_365_IN_GATEWAY], 'SELECT * FROM MyMessages')

Execute query at Linked Server to ZappySys Data Gateway in SSMS

SELECT * FROM OPENQUERY([LS_TO_OUTLOOK_MAIL_OFFICE_365_IN_GATEWAY], 'SELECT * FROM MyMessages')

Sample SQL Script for Creating a Linked Server in SQL Server

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_TO_OUTLOOK_MAIL_OFFICE_365_IN_GATEWAY', @droplogins='droplogins'

--3. Create new linked server

EXEC master.dbo.sp_addlinkedserver
    @server = N'LS_TO_OUTLOOK_MAIL_OFFICE_365_IN_GATEWAY'  --Linked server name (this will be used in OPENQUERY sql
, @srvproduct=N''
---- For MSSQL 2012, 2014, 2016, 2017, 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'OutlookMailOffice365DSN' --Data source name you gave on Gateway service settings

--4. Attach gateway login with linked server

EXEC master.dbo.sp_addlinkedsrvlogin
@rmtsrvname=N'LS_TO_OUTLOOK_MAIL_OFFICE_365_IN_GATEWAY'  --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_TO_OUTLOOK_MAIL_OFFICE_365_IN_GATEWAY', 'rpc', true;
EXEC sp_serveroption 'LS_TO_OUTLOOK_MAIL_OFFICE_365_IN_GATEWAY', 'rpc out', true;

--Disable MSDTC - Below needed to support INSERT INTO from EXEC AT statement
EXEC sp_serveroption 'LS_TO_OUTLOOK_MAIL_OFFICE_365_IN_GATEWAY', '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_TO_OUTLOOK_MAIL_OFFICE_365_IN_GATEWAY', 'query timeout', 1200;
GO

Method 2: Using SQL Server UI (SSMS) to manually configure the Linked Server

You can also create the Linked Server manually through SSMS if you prefer a visual setup. This method lets you configure the provider, data source, and security interactively.

First, let's open SQL Server Management Studio, create a new Linked Server, and start configuring it:

LS_TO_OUTLOOK_MAIL_OFFICE_365_IN_GATEWAY

Microsoft OLE DB Driver for SQL Server

localhost,5000

OutlookMailOffice365DSN

OutlookMailOffice365DSN
- For SQL Server 2012, 2014, 2016, 2017, and 2019, choose SQL Server Native Client 11.0 as the provider.
- For SQL Server 2022 or higher, choose Microsoft OLE DB Driver for SQL Server as the provider.
Then click on Security option and configure username we created in ZappySys Data Gateway in one of the previous steps, e.g. john:
Optional step. 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 [LS_TO_OUTLOOK_MAIL_OFFICE_365_IN_GATEWAY] rather than OPENQUERY.
If don't enabled it, you will encounter the Server 'LS_TO_OUTLOOK_MAIL_OFFICE_365_IN_GATEWAY' is not configured for RPC error.

Query Example:
```
DECLARE @MyQuery NVARCHAR(MAX) = 'SELECT * FROM MyMessages';

EXEC (@MyQuery) AT [LS_TO_OUTLOOK_MAIL_OFFICE_365_IN_GATEWAY];
```
If you plan to use 'INSERT INTO <TABLE> EXEC(...) AT [LS_TO_OUTLOOK_MAIL_OFFICE_365_IN_GATEWAY]' 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
DECLARE @MyQuery NVARCHAR(MAX) = 'SELECT * FROM MyMessages';

EXEC (@MyQuery) AT [LS_TO_OUTLOOK_MAIL_OFFICE_365_IN_GATEWAY];
```

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

SELECT * FROM OPENQUERY([LS_TO_OUTLOOK_MAIL_OFFICE_365_IN_GATEWAY], 'SELECT * FROM MyMessages')

SELECT * FROM OPENQUERY([LS_TO_OUTLOOK_MAIL_OFFICE_365_IN_GATEWAY], 'SELECT * FROM MyMessages')

Create View in SQL Server

Finally, use this or similar query in a view or stored procedure, which you will be able to use in Tableau. We will create a view to return invoices:

CREATE VIEW vwApiInvoices AS
 SELECT * FROM OPENQUERY([LS_TO_OUTLOOK_MAIL_OFFICE_365_IN_GATEWAY], 'SELECT * FROM Invoices')

Read data in Tableau from SQL Server

Actually, we will be getting data from SQL Server which in turn will be getting data from ZappySys Data Gateway data source. Let's begin and see how to accomplish that:

Open Tableau Desktop and click File > New.
To create new Connection click More > Microsoft SQL Server > Enter your credentials to connect to SQL Server (in our example before we used john):
Once connection is created for SQL Server we can read Outlook Mail (Office 365) data 3 different ways:
1. Query View which contains OPENQUERY to Linked Server for Outlook Mail (Office 365) data
2. Use direct SQL Query using OPENQUERY
3. Use Stored Procedure (Mostly useful to parameterize calls
See below example to pull data from Outlook Mail (Office 365) in Tableau using SQL View approach:
Once your data sources are created you can click on Sheet1 and drag fields to create visualizations for Tableau Dashboard:

Passing Parameters to Outlook Mail (Office 365) calls in Tableau (Dynamic SQL)

Now let's look at scenario where you have to pass parameters to build Dynamic Dashboard. You can try to insert Parameters in your Direct SQL when you build Dynamic SQL but we found some issues with that so we are going to suggest Stored Procedure approach. For more information on Known issue on Dynamic Metadata Check this post.

First lets create a stored procedure in SQL Server for Parameter Example. Notice how we added WITH RESULT SETS in the code to describe metadata.

--DROP PROC dbo.usp_GetInvoicesByCountry
--GO
/*
Purpose: Parameterize Outlook Mail (Office 365) call via SQL. Call ZappySys Drivers inside SQL Server.
*/
CREATE PROC dbo.usp_GetInvoicesByCountry
	@country varchar(100) 
AS 

DECLARE @sql varchar(max)
--//Escape single ticks carefully
SET @sql =  'SELECT OrderID,CustomerID,Country,Quantity FROM $
WITH (Src=''https://services.odata.org/V3/Northwind/Northwind.svc/Invoices?$format=json@filter=Country eq '+ @country +'''
	 ,Filter=''$.value[*]''
	 ,DataFormat=''OData''
)'

DECLARE @sqlFull varchar(max)
SET @sqlFull='SELECT * FROM OPENQUERY([LS_TO_OUTLOOK_MAIL_OFFICE_365_IN_GATEWAY], ''' + REPLACE( @sql, '''', '''''' ) + ''' )'
PRINT @sqlFull --//For DEBUG purpose

EXECUTE (@sqlFull) 
WITH RESULT SETS ( 
 (OrderID int,CustomerID varchar(100),Country varchar(100),Quantity int) --//describe first result. If you don't do this then wont work in Tableau 
)
GO
-- Example call
EXEC dbo.usp_GetInvoicesByCountry @country='Germany'

Once you create a stored procedure go to Tableau datasource and select Database which contains the stored procedure we just created.
Now find your stored proc and drag it on the datasource pane. You will see parameters UI as below. You can create new parameter - Select New Parameter under Value Column.
Thats it now you can reuse your parameterized datasource anywhere in Dashboard.
If you have need to select Parameters from predefined values rather than free text then edit your parameter and select List option. Define values you like to select from as below.
When you create Tableau Dashboard you will see Parameter dropdown (If you selected List) elase you may see Textbox to enter custom value.

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.

Method-1 (Preferred)

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

Search for gateway in start menu and open ZappySys Data Gateway.
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).

Method-2

Here is another way to add / edit Inbound Traffic rule in windows firewall. Use below method if you choose to customize your rule (for advanced users).

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

SQL Server Firewall Allow Inbound Data Gateway

Supported Outlook Mail (Office 365) Connector actions

Got a specific use case in mind? We've mapped out exactly how to perform a variety of essential Outlook Mail (Office 365) operations directly in Tableau, 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 Outlook Mail (Office 365) in Tableau and integrate data without writing complex code — all of this was powered by Outlook Mail (Office 365) 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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