Imagine this situation, you or users of your product wants to consume some REST API in ETL / BI / Programming Tools using ODBC / JDBC Driver interface but there are no ODBC / JDBC Driver available for that API and you dont even know coding? If you are in a situation No Problem !!! In this post you will learn how to create a custom ODBC Driver for API (i.e. REST / SOAP / OData) without writing code… and access in most BI / ETL / Reporting tools using Industry Standard such as ODBC Interface….. Yes you heard it right… 🙂

Generally speaking, creating an ODBC Driver requires a lot of coding effort and that’s why most vendors don’t invest in providing ODBC Driver and let you consume their API using code only. They assume that your company / team has really sharp C# / JAVA / C++ coders available 🙂 …. but we all know that coding is not cheap and not easy to maintain in long run.

Basically, the approach mentioned in this article requires you to create an XML File (or call it Connector File) and then consume it using API Driver (ODBC) So let’s get started!

API Connector File – The Concept

ZappySys has developed a highly flexible API Connector Framework which you can use to build API Connector Files which can be used by API ODBC Driver in different apps. This API Connector Framework is so flexible that it can handle pretty much any API out there.

Here are a few example connector files we built using the same framework. Don’t worry about various parts in those connector files for now, you might not need to implement all those. We will start simple and explain to you advanced use cases later.

Example Connector Files

• Youtube
• Stripe
• Jira
• Shopify

Basic Example of API Connector File

Here is a very simple example of some API to read Customers and Orders. Keep in mind most features are omitted for simplicity.

Below connector file shows few concepts which we will discuss later in this article. Such as API Base URL (i.e. Service URL), Authetication, Pagination, EndPoints, Metadata, Parameters, Templates, Tables so on.

1. Open Notepad
2. Copy / Paste below XMl in notepad and save as NorthwindConnector.xml
3. Then you can Create a new ODBC DSN as mentioned here and use our connector file for Testing (Use Saved Connector File Option on new DSN wizard).

NorthwindConnector.xml

<?xml version="1.0"?>
<ApiConfig Name="Northwind" Slug="northwind-api" Desc="Sample connector for Northwind OData Service" Logo="https://www.odata.org/assets/ODataLogo-96.png">
  <ServiceUrls>
    <ServiceUrl Name="V3_API" Url="https://services.odata.org/V3/Northwind/Northwind.svc"/>
    <ServiceUrl Name="V4_API" Url="https://services.odata.org/V4/Northwind/Northwind.svc"/>
  </ServiceUrls>


  <!-- Implement supported way to Authenticate API calls -->
  <Auths>
    <Auth Name="ApiKeyAuth" Type="Http" TestEndPoint="get_customers" ConnStr="CredentialType=Token;TokenAuthHeader=X-APIKEY;Password=[$ApiKey$]">
      <Params>
        <Param Name="ApiKey" Label="Enter your API  Key" Secret="True"/>
      </Params>
    </Auth>  
  </Auths>

  <!-- Reusable Templates (i.e. API Pagination Properties) -->
  <Template>
    <EndPoint Name="PaginatedCall">
      <Params>
        <Param Name="NextUrlAttributeOrExpr" Type="Property" Value="$.['odata.nextLink']"/>
      </Params>    
    </EndPoint>
  </Template>

  <!-- EndPoints -->
  <EndPoints>
    <EndPoint Name="get_customers" Template="PaginatedCall" Url="/Customers?$format=json" Filter="$.value[*]" Method="GET">
      <OutputColumns>
        <Column Name="CustomerID" Label="Id" DataType="DT_WSTR" Length="20"/>
        <Column Name="CompanyName" DataType="DT_WSTR" Length="100"/>
      </OutputColumns>
    </EndPoint>

    <EndPoint Name="get_orders" Template="PaginatedCall" Url="/Orders?$format=json" Filter="$.value[*]" Method="GET">

      <OutputColumns>
        <Column Name="OrderID" Label="Id" DataType="DT_I4"/>
        <Column Name="OrderDate" DataType="DT_DBTIMESTAMP"/>
        <Column Name="CustomerID" DataType="DT_WSTR" Length="20"/>
        <Column Name="Notes" DataType="DT_NTEXT"/>
      </OutputColumns>
    </EndPoint>
  </EndPoints>

  <!-- Tables (with SELECT, LOOKUP UPDATE, INSERT, DELETE operations. For Demo we have used just SELECT EndPoint) -->
  <Tables> 
    <Table Name="Orders" SelectEndPoint="get_orders"/>
    <Table Name="Customers" SelectEndPoint="get_customers"/>
  </Tables>
</ApiConfig>

Using API Connector File in Apps

Once API connector file is created

Use in ODBC Apps

Click here to see an example – Using API connector file in ODBC Apps (ODATA). For other popular apps check this page and click on desired app.

Here is how it may look like if we import the previous connector file in API Driver UI. Notice how we selected the V3 Base URL as API. Also, see how various connector file elements translated to Driver UI…. very cool right ?

Using Custom API Connector File – New ODBC DSN – ZappySys API Driver

Using Custom API Connector file in ZappySys API ODBC Driver

Here is the output from Preview Tab

Preview Data from Custom API Driver – Using ZappySys API Driver

Use in JAVA Apps

Click here to see an example – Using API connector file in JAVA based Apps (It uses ZappySys Data Gateway as Bridge rather than direct ODBC call in Java becuase JAVA doesnt support ODBC directly)

Use in SQL Server (T-SQL code)

Click here to see an example – Using API connector file in SQL Server (It uses ZappySys Data Gateway as Bridge rather than direct ODBC call in SQL Servr becuase of some known issues of direct ODBC)

Use in SSIS Package

Click here to see an example – Using API connector file in SSIS Packages. It uses native API Source / API Destination components.

Create / Edit Connector file using Wizard from API Driver UI

If you like to edit your file previously created using Wizard then you can do the following steps.

1. Assuming you have already setup ODBC DSN for API Connector File we previously created.
2. Open Odbc UI (search for “ODBC” in the start menu and select “ODBC Administrator”)
3. Double-click on the Data source you like to edit
4. On the Properties Tab > Go to Advanced Tab
5. Click on Customize – Current Connector File (If you wish to create a new API connector file then you can click on Create New Connector File Button instead)

Create / Edit Custom API Connector File – From API ODBC Driver UI

Create Connector file from SSIS JSON / XML Source UI Settings

If you are an SSIS user and you have configured JSON Source or XML Source then you convert those UI settings into a basic API connector file by going on API Template and clicking on Create New Connector File button like below.

Create a new Custom API Connector File – From SSIS JSON / XML Source UI

Create API Connector file from scratch

So far you have understood the basic ideas about connector files. Also explored creating / editing API Connector File using Wizard in ODBC / SSIS.

Now let’s look at concepts of creating connector file in detail.

Basic Properties (Name, Slug, Logo)

Coming Soon

Service URL (API Base URL)

Coming Soon

Authentication

Coming Soon

Templates

Coming Soon

Parameters

Coming Soon

EndPoints

Coming Soon

Metadata / OutputColumns

Coming Soon

Tables

Coming Soon

Contact Us – We will build Custom API Driver for you

If you are still not sure how to use all these on your own or you do not have time/experience… no worries. Contact us and we will provide you an estimate for building a custom API Driver / connector.

In the contact form above provide us following details (or as much as you can provide)

• Which connector do you like to build?
• How are you planning to consume that data (i.e. which apps e.g. Power BI, Tableau)?
• Your use case (e.g. read customer data from Zoho Invoice System)
• Include table / data feed names you prefer to read from (e.g. Read Invoices, Read/Write Customers)

Conclusion

In this article, we explored how easy it is to create your custom ODBC Driver for API using a powerful API Connector Framework. Download ODBC PowerPack and build your own API Driver in a few clicks.

The post How to create custom ODBC Driver for API without coding appeared first on ZappySys Blog.

In this blog post you will learn how to use Infor Compass JDBC driver in ODBC Apps (i.e. non-JAVA apps) such as Power BI, Excel, Informatica and many more listed here using JDBC-ODBC Bridge Driver. In other words, if you like to use Infor Compass data in your App / Programming language and App doesnt support using JDBC Driver Infor Provides then this article is for you. ZappySys has created a Bridge Driver which can translate ODBC calls to JDBC making it possible to call any JDBC driver in non Java Apps (i.e. ODBC Apps) written in languages like C++ / C#  / Python etc.

So lets get started.

Download Infor Compass JDBC Driver and ionapi file

Check below links to download and configure Infor Compass JDBC.

1. Download Infor Compass JDBC Driver (*.jar file)
2. Extract Driver files to local folder
3. Download and Configure *.ionapi file – Infor Compass JDBC Driver.ionapi file (Placed in same directory where JDBC driver is saved)

Setup JDK (Java Runtime)

Before you start using ZappySys JDBC Bridge Driver, we need to install JAVA Runtime (JRE) or Java Development Kit (JDK).

We recommend installing JDK21 or higher (other JRE / JDK version(s) might work too).

There are several ways to get Java Runtime Installer, but we recommend from following link. Skip below steps if you have JAVA Runtime already installed.

1. Download JDK 21 (i.e. Amazon Corrento OpenJDK distribution). Listed here
   Direct Download Link:  amazon-corretto-21-x64-windows-jdk.msi
2. Run the downloaded msi installer file
3. After it’s installed, you can confirm Java version by running the following command line. It will show
   

   java.exe -version

   Sample Output
   

   openjdk version "21.0.7" 2025-04-15 LTS
   OpenJDK Runtime Environment Temurin-21.0.7+6 (build 21.0.7+6-LTS)
   OpenJDK 64-Bit Server VM Temurin-21.0.7+6 (build 21.0.7+6-LTS, mixed mode, sharing)

Download Infor JDBC Driver / Generate ionapi Credentials File

To access infor Data using their official JDBC Driver you will need to do 2 things

1. Download Infor JDBC Driver locally
2. Create ionapi file locally

Read this link for more information

Here is the video Tutorial

Create ODBC DSN for Infor Compass JDBC Driver

In this section, you will learn how to Configure ODBC DSN. Later on, this DSN can be used to use ZappySys Driver. ODBC DSN can be stored at Machine Level (for all users) or the Current User Level. In this case, we are going to load data into Microsoft Excel from PostgreSQL Storage using ZappySys JDBC Bridge ODBC Driver.

1. Type odbcad32.exe in your search box and launch the DSN Config utility.
   
2. If you want access for yourself then stay on User DSN Tab. If you want to grant access to other users, then go to the System DSN tab. For SQL Server Integration go to the System Tab and add a new System DSN rather than User DSN. Click the New button.
   
3. From the Driver list Select ZappySys ODBC Driver. For this example, select [ZappySys JDBC Bridge Driver].
   

Configure ODBC DSN for Infor Compass Connectivity

Once you downloaded / extracted JDBC (*.jar) and *.ionapi files and saved them to the local disk you can configure ZappySys JDBC Bridge Driver like the below

1. Create a folder e.g. C:\Infor_Datalake
2. Extract jdbc driver files in that folder, keep ionapi file in the same folder too (v1.7 will look ionapi file under this folder)
3. Make sure do not rename ionapi file. It must be named as “Infor Compass JDBC Driver.ionapi”
   
   If you are getting this error (Infor Compass JDBC Driver.ionapi file is not found) then we suggest you copy ionapi file in the below locations too. If you are not planning to use Data Gateway / Linked Server then you can skip ionapi file copy to 3rd location (i.e. ZappySys.TdsServer.WindowsService folder).
   

   C:\Program Files (x86)\ZappySys\ZappySys ODBC PowerPack\JdbcBridgeDriverX64
   C:\Program Files (x86)\ZappySys\ZappySys ODBC PowerPack\JdbcBridgeDriverX86
   C:\Program Files (x86)\ZappySys\ZappySys ODBC PowerPack\ZappySys.TdsServer.WindowsService

4. Open ODBC DataSource UI by double clicking the DSN (you created in the previous section).
5. Enter JDBC Connection String as per this format
   

   jdbc:infordatalake://TENANTNNAME

6. Enter Driver class (Optional).
   

   com.infor.idl.jdbc.Driver

7. Enter User ID and Password is optional so keep it blank unless required by driver. Click Test Connection
   

   Using Infor Compass JDBC Driver in ODBC Apps via ZappySys JDBC Bridge Driver

8. Now you can go to Preview Tab and select Table from the dropdown and write query to preview data

Video Tutorial – ODBC-JDBC Bridge Driver

Connect Infor Compass Datalake in SQL Server (Linked Server)

So in our previous section, we saw how to connect using ODBC Driver but if you like to access Infor Datalake data in SQL Server then you have to use the Data gateway approach. Click here to learn more.

In Data Gateway Driver UI is pretty much the same as ODBC UI except few differences. You also need to configure the Linked server which requires extra steps. The above link is for a generic JDBC Driver but follow Infor Datalake JDBC-specific steps mentioned in the ODBC setup section in this article.

Troubleshooting Known Errors

Here in this section, we will discuss some known errors and its workaround.

The Infor Compass JDBC Driver.ionapi file is not found

If you get this error you can review this solution

Data Lake is not available /  Unable to verify trust for server certificate chain

If you get the following error then check this link for possible workarounds

JBR error: java.sql.SQLException: Data Lake is not available

at com.infor.idl.jdbc.Driver.connect(Driver.java:422) 
at DbConnection.Init(DbConnection.java:45) 

.......... 
.......... 
Unable to verify trust for server certificate chain [CN=mingle-ionapi.inforcloudsuite.com, CN=pa-trusted-ca.noble.loc, CN=noble-SUBCA-CA, DC=noble, DC=loc, CN=ROOTCA-CA, CN=ROOTCA-CA] .......... at sun.net.www.protocol.https.HttpsClient.afterConnect(HttpsClient.java:559) 
.......... 
..........

Test Connection Hangs

This happens if you have not installed the latest Java version (i.e. Java 21 or higher) and you are using the latest JDBC, which doesn’t support Java8 (i.e. infor-compass-jdbc-2025.06.05.jar)

To fix this issue, uninstall the  older version of Java and install the new Java (e.g. v21 or higher) from here

Using Infor Compass ODBC-JDBC connection in various apps (e.g. Power BI, Excel, Informatica, SQL Server)

Once you create ODBC DSN you are ready to test that in any ODBC-compliant apps listed here

If your app is not listed in the above link, then no worries just find the Option to connect to ODBC in your App and use DSN we created in an earlier section.

ZappySys ODBC Drivers built using ODBC standard which is widely adopted by industry for a long time. Which mean the majority of BI Tools / Database Engines / ETL Tools already there will support native / 3rd party ODBC Drivers. Below is the small list of most popular tools / programming languages our Drivers support. If your tool / programming language doesn't appear in the below list, which means we have not documented use case but as long as your tool supports ODBC Standard, our drivers should work fine.  

BI / Reporting Tools Integration	ETL Tools Integration	Programming Languages Integration
Microsoft Power BI Tableau SSRS (SQL Reporting Services) QlikView /Qlik Sense MicroStrategy Google Sheet Microsoft Excel Microsoft Access Oracle OBIEE Many more (not in this list).....	Informatica PowerCenter (Windows) Informatica Cloud SSIS (SQL Integration Services) SQL Server Talend Data Studio Pentaho Kettle Oracle OBIEE Many more (not in this list).....	Visual Studio C# C++ JAVA Python PHP PowerShell T-SQL (Using Linked Server)

 

Conclusion

In this post we saw how easy it is to use the Infor Compass JDBC driver in any non-JAVA app in a few steps. Click here to download ZappySys JDBC Bridge Driver.

The post Connect to Infor Compass using JDBC Driver in ODBC Apps (e.g. SQL Server, Power BI, Excel, Informatica) appeared first on ZappySys Blog.

In this post, we will cover how to connect ADP API using HTTP connection manager over OAuth connection manager with JSON Source. ADP API works a bit differently with the OAuth connection manager. Let’s take a look at it…

Prerequisites

Before we perform the steps listed in this article, you will need to make sure the following prerequisites are met:

1. SSIS designer installed. Sometimes it is referred as BIDS or SSDT (download it from Microsoft site).
2. Basic knowledge of SSIS package development using Microsoft SQL Server Integration Services.
3. Make sure ZappySys SSIS PowerPack is installed (download it).
4. Optional (If you want to Deploy and Schedule ) – Deploy and Schedule SSIS Packages
5. Make sure you have ADP Client Id & Secret.

What things are needed to connect ADP API

1. You need to have the Client ID and Client Secret before making your ADP API call.
2. If you don’t have this information, contact your client representative.
3. Certificate Signing Request (CSR): For more detailed information, see the Certificate Signing Request: https://developers.adp.com/articles/general/generate-a-certificate-signing-request
4. If you already have the .csr file from your API Settings as below: –
   

   ADP CSR Certificate

    

5. Then you need to convert those *.cer + *.key files to *.PFX
6. We do not support cert+key files but converting to PFX is fairly simple.
7. You can find many blog posts on how to convert to PFX. Here are some helpful links on how to convert *.pem to *.PFX (i.e. PKCS#12 OR p12 file format)
   -https://www.sslshopper.com/ssl-converter.html
   -https://stackoverflow.com/questions/808669/convert-a-cert-pem-certificate-to-a-pfx-certificate
8. Once you have .PFX certificate, Client ID, and Client Secret ready then you can provide these details to the  HTTP Connection manager as below: –
   General Settings: –
   

   ADP HTTP Connection Manager – General Tab

   Client Certificate: –

   

   ADP CSR Client Certificate Tab
9. After you provide all the required details in HTTP Connection Manager for ADP API.
10. You can select HTTP Connection manager as the connection provider in the JSON Source/REST API and preview the data.
11. Here you can connect ADP API successfully using the HTTP connection manager.

Note: By default, when a PFX file expires, the ADFP API throws a generic SSL/TLS channel error, which can be misleading. To verify the certificate’s expiration date, we have to:

1. Import the PFX file into the local certificate store (using the same blank password).
2. Use the mmc command from the Start menu.
3. Go to Add/Remove Snap-ins → Certificate → User Store → View Entry to check the expiration date.

Steps to Convert .cer and .key Files into a .PFX File

If you have separate .cer and .key files, you’ll need to convert them into a single .PFX file (PKCS#12 format) to use with our tool, as it does not support separate certificate and key files.
Converting to PFX is straightforward, and you can find many detailed guides online. Here are some helpful links:

• SSL Converter – sslshopper.com
• Convert .pem to .pfx – Stack Overflow

Conclusion:

This is how you can successfully connect ADP API using HTTP Connection over OAuth connection using ZappySys JSON Source/REST API.

The post How To Connect ADP API using HTTP Connection over OAuth Connection appeared first on ZappySys Blog.

In our previous article we explored several powerful features of the ZappySys Data Gateway. This follow‑up post focuses on keeping the gateway secure. You’ll learn about the new options available in the Network Settings tab, how to restrict access by IP address, and how to grant dataset‑level permissions to non‑admin users.

Network Settings Overview

The Network Settings tab contains filters that control which clients can connect to the gateway. Two common scenarios are addressed below: allowing a range of IP addresses, or permitting only a single IP address.

If your connection still fails even after opening port 5000, a third-party firewall is very likely blocking it.

The “Add Firewall Rule” option only creates a rule in Windows Defender Firewall and does not configure rules in third-party security software.

Common symptoms of this issue include:

• Login timeout or connection timeout errors
• OPENQUERY or Linked Server failing to connect
• Port appears open in Windows Firewall but connection still fails

Third-Party Firewall Blocking Gateway Connection

When you click “Add Firewall Rule” in ZappySys Data Gateway, the rule is added to Windows Defender Firewall to allow inbound traffic on the configured port (default: 5000).

In environments with third-party security software, this alone may not be sufficient.

Why?

If your system is using third-party security software (such as ESET Endpoint Security, McAfee, Symantec, etc.), Many enterprise antivirus tools include their own firewall, which takes priority over or replaces Windows Defender Firewall.
For example, in one case, the rule was added successfully in Windows Firewall, but traffic was still blocked by ESET Endpoint Security. Once the ESET firewall was paused, the connection worked immediately.
In such cases:

• Windows Defender rules may be ignored
• Traffic can still be blocked even if the port is open in Windows Firewall
• Connection attempts (e.g., Linked Server, ODBC queries) may fail with timeout errors

What to check

If you are unable to connect even after adding the firewall rule:

• Verify whether any third-party firewall/antivirus is installed
• Temporarily disable or pause it for testing
• If the connection works after disabling, then the traffic is being blocked by that software

How to fix

To resolve this issue:

• Add an inbound allow rule in your third-party firewall for the Gateway port (default: 5000)
• Ensure the rule allows traffic from the required source machines
• Ensure both inbound and outbound rules are allowed if required by your network policy
• Ensure rules are applied under the correct network profile (Domain / Private / Public)
• Contact your network/security administrator if needed

Test connectivity

You can verify if the port is reachable using PowerShell:

Test-NetConnection -ComputerName <GatewayHost> -Port 5000

If TcpTestSucceeded = False, the port is still blocked by a firewall or network security layer.

Note

⚠️ Important: Opening a port in Windows Defender Firewall alone does not guarantee connectivity if a third-party firewall is active.

IP Range Filter

1. Ensure you have installed the ZappySys ODBC PowerPack with the default options (this also installs the Data Gateway Service).
2. Open the gateway configuration app by typing “Gateway” in the Start menu and selecting ZappySys Data Gateway Configuration.
   

   Open ZappySys Data Gateway

3. Assuming the other tabs are already configured the way you want, switch to Network Settings.
4. Click the Edit IP Filters button (see screenshot below):
   

   Range IP Filters Network Settings for Data Gateway

5. In the IP Filters dialog, set Enabled to true, then supply the From and To addresses that define the permitted range:

Single range example:

[
  {
    "Name": "Network_1",
    "Enabled": true,
    "From": "192.168.1.1",
    "To": "192.168.1.255"
  }
]

Multiple ranges example:

[
  {
    "Name": "Network_1",
    "Enabled": true,
    "From": "192.168.1.1",
    "To": "192.168.1.255"
  },
  {
    "Name": "Network_2",
    "Enabled": true,
    "From": "192.167.1.1",
    "To": "192.167.1.255"
  }
]

6. Save the dialog, then click OK to apply the settings. Only clients whose IP addresses fall within the defined ranges will be allowed.

Single IP Filter

1. Repeat steps 1‑3 from the previous section.
2. Open the IP Filters dialog and enable it.
3. Enter the same value for the From and To fields to restrict access to one address.
4. Save and close the dialog; only that address may connect to the gateway.

Specific IP Filter Network Settings for Data Gateway.

Note: once any filter rule is enabled, all other addresses are automatically blocked.

User‑Based Permissions

You can further limit access by granting specific users permission to individual data sources. This is useful when you want to allow non‑admin users to consume only certain datasets.

1. Make sure the user(s) exist on the Users tab and that they are not assigned administrator rights.
2. Switch to the Datasets tab.
3. Find the row for the data source you wish to secure and click Edit in the Users column.
4. In the dialog that appears, select one or more users on the left pane and click the [ >> ] button to move them to the right pane.
5. Choose the desired permission type (for example, Full permission).
   

   Set Dataset User Permissions – ZappySys Data Gateway

6. Click OK to save the changes.
7. Restart the Data Gateway service to ensure the new permissions take effect.

Conclusion

In this article we reviewed several ways to harden the ZappySys Data Gateway. The network filters let you restrict connections to either a specific IP address or a range of addresses. The new user‑based permissions allow you to grant dataset access to individual users. Together these features make your gateway more secure and easier to manage.

If you haven’t yet installed the gateway, download it here to get started.

The post How to Secure ZappySys Data Gateway (Network Settings) appeared first on ZappySys Blog.

In this section, we will discuss how to register OAuth App to call Salesforce API using Client ID / Secret rather than using your User Id / Password. Once you follow these steps below to register your Salesforce App (OAuth App), at the end you will get a Client ID (sometimes referred to as App Id) and Client Secret (or App Secret). These two pieces can be used later on to call Salesforce API using OAuth. So let's get started.

Register Salesforce App (OAuth)

1. Login into your account and go to Setup as shown below (click on gear icon at the top right corner):
2. Then in the search bar input "app" and open App Manager:
3. Then click New Connected App to create a new OAuth App: NOTE: In some version, it may say New External Client App

   Look for one of the following buttons:

   • New Connected App (Classic name)

   • New External Client App (Lightning name)

   
4. Give your App a name and: - Enable OAuth Settings - Set callback URL to following two URLs (one in each line) https://login.salesforce.com/services/oauth2/success https://zappysys.com/oauth - Add an OAuth scope you want or simply add "Full access". - Add "Perform requests on your behalf at any time (offline_token)" scope to get a refresh token so that you don't have to re-authenticate each time requesting an access token: IMPORTANT: You can use "Access and manage your data (api)" if you do not like to grant full permission to this app but make sure you request same permission from the caller app too  (Example on ZappySys Salesforce Connection UI -> Advanced Tab -> Set scope as "api offline_access" rather than "full offline_access"
5. Click "Save".

Get Client Id and Client Secret for Salesforce Connected App

Once the App is created, we need to find out the App Id / Secret so we can use it for API calls.

1. Go to App Manager
2. Find out the recently created App and click View (click on the small arrow to the right)
3. Once App page is loaded you can Copy Consumer Key and Consumer Secret (click on reveal to see). Also copy anyone Call back URL (We will need this for OAuth Connection > Advanced Tab > Call Back URL or Redirect URL property depending on which ZappySys Product / Driver you are using)
4. That's it, you can now use these 3 pieces to ZappySys OAuth connection UI or on Salesforce Connection UI (new version with OAuth support). The above screenshot shows where to enter these 3 pieces in the New Salesforce Connection. For the OAuth Connection, the redirect URL goes to the Advanced Tab > Callback URL textbox.

Get Client Id and Secret for Salesforce External Client App

If you created a new App by clicking on the New External Client App button, then your App may not be visible in the App Manager Screen. In that case, find it below way. [caption id="attachment_11637" align="alignnone" width="1222"] Get Client Id, Client Secret - For New External Client App[/caption]

Enable Client Credentials Grant (Non-Interactive Run-As)

If you like to enable Non-Interactive mode, just like UserId / Password Authentication, but without actually passing a real UserId or Password on the Connection UI, then you can enable Client Credentials Flow as below. NOTE: Only the New version of ZappySys Salesforce Connection supports Client Credentials Grant. Version released after Nov 1, 2025 supports this grant type. [caption id="attachment_11639" align="alignnone" width="419"] Enable Salesforce Client Credentials Grant (Run As)[/caption]

(OPTIONAL) Configure Salesforce OAuth refresh token validity

By default, Salesforce Refresh Token doesn't expire once you generate. If you want to change the default behavior, follow these steps.

1. Go to "Manage Connected Apps" menu item and press on your App name:
2. Click "Edit Policies" to configure refresh token validity:
3. Set "All users may self-authorize" and "Refresh token is valid until revoked" options:
4. Click "Save".

Using Salesforce Connection with OAuth App in SSIS / ODBC

Once you have Client ID / Secret, you can use it in the Salesforce Connection in SSIS Connector / ODBC Driver for Salesforce like below (Only the new version will have OAuth option)

Troubleshooting Known Issues

Let’s look at some common issues with Salesforce Connection and how to fix them.

OAuth Error: Missing Required Code Challenge

When you click Generate Token button, you may get an error like the one below.

Salesforce OAuth Generate Token Error – Missing Required Code Challenge

Solution

Here is how to fix it.

For Salesforce Connection UI: Go to Advanced Tab => Check Enable PKCE Code Verifier option
–OR–
For OAuth Connection UI: Go to OAuth2 Grant Options Tab => Check Enable Code Verifier Option

Enable PKCE code verifier option – OAuth Connection for Salesforce.

The post How to register Salesforce App and obtain Client ID / Secret (for API Call / OAuth) appeared first on ZappySys Blog.

In the previous article, we learned how to copy settings from curl to ZappySys products, and in this article, we will continue on how to migrate Postman API call to SSIS / ODBC PowerPack. Postman is a very popular client tool to test API calls. Many API providers document how to call their API using Postman. In this article we will focus on how to use the same settings in ZappySys Products to implement API integration in SSIS or other apps like Power BI, Informatica, Excel, Tableau, SSRS… many ODBC apps.

When you are connecting to an API you may have examples of how to do that in Postman. If you know how to do it in Postman, you are one step away from making it work in SSIS PowerPack and ODBC PowerPack (JSON, XML, CSV Drivers, and other). Most of the examples will show how to do that specifically using ODBC PowerPack and JSON Driver, but since ODBC PowerPack UI is very similar to the connectors of SSIS PowerPack, it will be quite clear where to use it in SSIS PowerPack as well. In the examples where UI differs significantly, both – ODBC and SSIS PowerPack – examples will be presented.

Prerequisites

In this article we assume you meet these requirements:

When migrating Postman API call to SSIS PowerPack

1. Postman installed.
2. SSIS designer installed. Sometimes it is referred to as BIDS or SSDT (download it from Microsoft site).
3. Basic knowledge of SSIS package development using Microsoft SQL Server Integration Services.
4. ZappySys SSIS PowerPack is installed (download it).

When migrating Postman API call to to ODBC PowerPack

1. Postman installed.
2. ZappySys ODBC PowerPack installed (download it).

The Basics

This section shows how to migrate simple options such as URL, HTTP Request Method, and HTTP Headers.

How to configure the URL and HTTP Request Method

Migrate Postman API call to SSIS / ODBC (API URL setting to ODBC Driver (GET / POST) )

How to configure HTTP Headers

Migrate Postman HTTP Headers setting to ODBC Driver

Posting data

In this section, you will find how to post data in ZappySys products. You will learn how to post different formats of data, upload files and send multi-part data.

How to configure POST raw body

Migrate Postman Body / Content-Type setting to ODBC Driver

How to configure POST JSON body

Migrate Postman Body / Content-Type setting to ODBC Driver

Use this table to determine what kind of Body Content Type to configure:

How to configure POST form/x-www-form-urlencoded data

Migrate Postman Body (x-www-form-urlencoded) setting to ODBC Driver

How to configure multipart form POST data

Migrate Postman Multi-Part File Upload setting to ODBC Driver (Upload File)

Authentication

This section will cover all common authentication methods, starting from using API Key to OAuth 2.0.

How to authenticate using API Key in HTTP headers

Authentication – Migrate Postman API Key (via header) setting to ODBC Driver

How to authenticate using API Key as a parameter in URL

Authentication – Migrate Postman API Key (via URL query parameter) setting to ODBC Driver

How to authenticate using Bearer Token

Authentication – Migrate Postman Bearer Token setting to SSIS / ODBC Driver

How to authenticate using Basic Authentication

In ODBC PowerPack

Authentication – Migrate Postman Basic Auth setting to SSIS / ODBC Driver (Login using Userid / password)

In SSIS PowerPack

In SSIS PowerPack use the same configuration as above, just create ZS-HTTP Connection Manager using instructions below:

Authentication – Migrate Postman Basic Auth setting to SSIS JSON / XML Source (Login using Userid / password)

How to authenticate using OAuth

In ODBC PowerPack

1. Configure main options:
   

   Authentication – Migrate Postman OAuth setting to SSIS / ODBC Drivers ( JSON / XML / CSV API) – Client ID / Secret / Scope / Auth and Token Url (Client Credential Grant Type, Password Grant Type, Code Authorization Grant Type)

2. Configure Callback/Return Url:
   

   Authentication – Migrate Postman OAuth setting to SSIS / ODBC Drivers ( Callback / Redirect URL )

If you are using a known, public API service, you may try locating it in the OAuth Providers list, which will save you from configuring Authorization and Access Token URLs:

For simplicity and if your company policy allows it or at least for testing purposes, you can use a Default OAuth Application created by ZappySys:

In SSIS PowerPack

In SSIS PowerPack use the same configuration as above, just create ZS-OAUTH Connection Manager using instructions below:

Authentication – Migrate Postman OAuth setting to SSIS JSON / XML Source

How to authenticate using AWS Signature

In ODBC PowerPack

Authentication – Migrate Postman AWS API call setting to SSIS / ODBC Drivers ( JSON / XML / CSV API call)

In SSIS PowerPack

In SSIS PowerPack use the same configuration as above, just create ZS-OAUTH Connection Manager using instructions below:

How to authenticate using NTLM Authentication

In ODBC PowerPack

In SSIS PowerPack

In SSIS PowerPack use the same configuration as above, just create ZS-HTTP Connection Manager using instructions below:

Conclusion

This article was quite self-explanatory, but if you have any questions or you have an authentication method that is not listed here and you don’t know how to proceed, please, contact us and we will try to help you: https://zappysys.com/support/.

The post How to migrate Postman API call to SSIS / ODBC PowerPack appeared first on ZappySys Blog.

In our previous article we saw how to call PayPal API in SSIS. Now in this article, we will see How to Make PayPal API Call in ODBC from the SQL Server. This blog mainly focuses on ODBC approach but steps mentioned to call PayPal APIs can be useful for any developer regardless of which programming language or tool set you use. We will also see How to send basic Authorization header along with body in OAuth2.

We will go through the steps to Create PayPal Order from MS SQL Server.

In nutshell, this post will focus on how to make PayPal API Call using ODBC Driver.

Prerequisites

Before we perform the steps listed in this article, you will need to make sure the following prerequisites are met:

1. A first requirement, make sure that Microsoft Access installed
2. Make sure to have ZappySys ODBC PowerPack installed.
3. Credentials of PayPal API. Click here to create API.

What is PayPal?

PayPal is an American company operating a worldwide online payments system that supports online money transfers and serves as an electronic alternative to traditional paper methods like checks and money orders. The company operates as a payment processor for online vendors, auction sites, and many other commercial users, for which it charges a fee in exchange for benefits such as one-click transactions and password memory. PayPal’s payment system, also called PayPal, is considered a type of payment rail.

Get Started with PayPal API

If you have need to automate PayPal operations (e.g. read / write / update / delete ) then you can use PayPal REST API. Before you can integrate a PayPal product or solution, you must set up your development environment to get OAuth 2.0 client ID and secret credentials for the sandbox and live environments. You exchange these credentials for an access token that authorizes your REST API calls. To test your web and mobile apps, you create sandbox accounts.

Get PayPal credentials

To generate OAuth 2.0 credentials for the sandbox and live environments:

1. Log into Dashboard and type your PayPal personal or business account email and password.
2. In the REST API apps section, click Create App. The purpose of this app is to generate your credentials.
3. Type a name for your app and click Create App. The page shows your sandbox app information, which includes your credentials.
   

   Note: To show your live app information, toggle to Live.

4. Copy and save the client ID and secret for your sandbox app.
   

   PayPal Client ID and Secret

5. Review your app details and save your app.

Call PayPal Create Order API in SQL Server (T-SQL) using Data Gateway

Let’s start with an example. We use JSON Driver to make the call to PayPal API, we will Create the PayPal Order from SQL Server.

In REST API calls, include the URL to the API service for the environment:

• Sandbox: https://api.sandbox.paypal.com
• Live: https://api.paypal.com

1. To do this, first of all, we will open the ZappySys Data Gateway Configuration:
   

   Open ZappySys Data Gateway

2. Add the Native – ZappySys JSON Driver Data source.
   

   Add Gateway Data Source (Native JSON Driver)

3. Now it’s time to connect with PayPal. Let’s use JSON Driver Data source with the following URL:
   

   https://api.sandbox.paypal.com/v2/checkout/orders

   Body:
   

   {
     "intent": "CAPTURE",
     "purchase_units": [
       {
         "amount": {
           "currency_code": "USD",
           "value": "100.00"
         }
       }
     ]
   }

   

   PayPal : Create Order

4. Create Basic OAuth Client Credentials Grant (Configure ZS-OAuth Connection).
   In the SSIS ZS OAuth Connection Manager, Select Provider as Custom, select version as OAuth2 and select Grant Type as  Client Credentials Grant. Enter the credentials and access token url and click OK.
   

   https://api.sandbox.paypal.com/v1/oauth2/token

   

   ZS OAuth Connection – Client Credentials Grant

5. Furthermore, Now click on Test Connection button to test PayPal Connection.
   

   PayPal : Test Connection

6. Write your Query and Preview Data.
7. (Optional Step) If your Query use POST method (e.g. Create Invoice) to submit data then you have Save Metadata (Read More). We will use this meta file in later step when we call POST request.
   

   Generate Metadata File for REST API POST Operation using ZappySys API Driver (JSON / XML)

8. Now using Code Generator we will generate the query.
   

   Generate Query

Setup Linked Server in MS SQL Server for PayPal

Once you configured the data source in Gateway, we can now setup Linked Server in SQL Server to query API Calls.

1. Assuming you have installed SQL Server and SSMS. If not then get both for FREE from here: Get SQL Server Express and  Get SSMS
2. Open SSMS and connect to SQL Server.
3. Go to Root > Server Objects > Linked Servers node. Right click and click New Linked Server…

   

   Add Linked Server in SQL Server

4.  Now enter the linked server name, select Provider as SQL Native Client
5. Enter data source as 

   GatewayServerName, PORT_NUMBER

    where server name is where ZappySys Gateway is running (Can be same as SQL Server machine or remote machine). Default PORT_NUMBER is 5000 but confirm on Data gateway > General tab in case its different.
6. Enter Catalog Name. This must match name from Data gateway Data sources grid > Name column

   

   Configure Linked Server Provider, Catalog, Server, Port for ZappySys Data Gateway Connection

7. Click on Security Tab and select last option “Be made using this security context“. Enter your gateway user account here.
8. Click OK to save Linked Server

Create Order in PayPal from SQL Server (Call POST API Method)

1. To Create Order in PayPal we need to execute the query like this. Please refer to this link for more information: Create Order example.
   
   Important Note*: Below query uses META property (fully explained here). This is needed if you creating anew record using POST, PUT. If you don’t pass META='{xxxx}’ in query driver calls REST API two times (first time to parse metadata and second time to get actual data). So that you find some odd thing in PayPal if you execute the query without Meta then you will find two same Orders created in your PayPal as the driver makes two calls as mentioned above.

   -- In below query rather than WITH(META=''[{"Name": "Success","Type": "Int32"}]'' ....
   -- You can also use WITH(META=''c:\my-meta-file.txt'' .... We created this file in previous section
   
   SELECT * FROM OPENQUERY([MY_LINKED_SERVER_NAME]
   , 'SELECT * FROM $
   WITH(META=''[{"Name": "Success","Type": "Int32"}]''
   	 ,Src=''https://api.sandbox.paypal.com/v2/checkout/orders''
   	,RequestData=''{
     "intent": "CAPTURE",
     "purchase_units": [
       {
         "amount": {
           "currency_code": "USD",
           "value": "100.00"
         }
       }
     ]
   }''
   	,RequestContentTypeCode=''ApplicationJson''
   	,RequestMethod=''POST''
   )')

2. Here is the preview after you run REST API query in SQL Server. It will return created Order Id, Links and status. Notice that you can override default configuration by supplying many parameters in WITH clause.
   

   Create Order In PayPal Using SQL Query

3. You can also find this created Order by opening that URL in the browser.
   

   Created Order In PayPal

PayPal API integration in ODBC apps (e.g. Power BI, Excel, Informatica, Access, C#…)

So far we have looked at SQL Server integration only, but what if you like to use same powerful ZappySys API drivers part of ODBC PowerPack in other Apps like Power BI, Excel, MS Access, Informatica and many more… ?? Well not to worry if you know that App supports ODBC you can use ZappySys ODBC Driver same way described earlier… only difference is you dont need Linked Server and you dont have to use OPENQUERY statement when you use ODBC Drivers.

ZappySys ODBC Drivers built using ODBC standard which is widely adopted by industry for a long time. Which mean the majority of BI Tools / Database Engines / ETL Tools already there will support native / 3rd party ODBC Drivers. Below is the small list of most popular tools / programming languages our Drivers support. If your tool / programming language doesn't appear in the below list, which means we have not documented use case but as long as your tool supports ODBC Standard, our drivers should work fine.  

BI / Reporting Tools Integration	ETL Tools Integration	Programming Languages Integration
Microsoft Power BI Tableau SSRS (SQL Reporting Services) QlikView /Qlik Sense MicroStrategy Google Sheet Microsoft Excel Microsoft Access Oracle OBIEE Many more (not in this list).....	Informatica PowerCenter (Windows) Informatica Cloud SSIS (SQL Integration Services) SQL Server Talend Data Studio Pentaho Kettle Oracle OBIEE Many more (not in this list).....	Visual Studio C# C++ JAVA Python PHP PowerShell T-SQL (Using Linked Server)

 

Conclusion

So in this blog, we learned how to generate a PayPal API Token, Load PayPal data in MS SQL Server table using ODBC JSON / REST API Driver in a very simple way. You can achieve many more functionalities with this tool. Check our blogs/articles on JSON / REST API Driver to find out what this tool is capable of more.

References

Finally, you can use the following links for more information about the use of PayPal API with our tools:

• Landing Page for ODBC JSON / REST API Driver, you can also find Tutorial Video here.
• Help File: Documentation of JSON Driver.
• PayPal API

The post How to Make PayPal API Call in ODBC / SQL Server (T-SQL) appeared first on ZappySys Blog.

In our previous blog we saw how to read JIRA data in SQL Server. Now let’s learn how to Import SAP S/4HANA OData Service Data Into Sql Server. SAP S/4HANA provides OData REST API interface to access data in your application using HTTP Protocol. We will use ODBC XML Driver to read SAP data and load into SQL Server.

So, let’s get started.

About SAP HANA / OData REST API Service

You can expose your SAP Data using ODATA REST API Service. Here is a good article which shows how to expose data as OData Service.   For more information on SAP OData Service feature check this SAP help page. If you are new to OData Standard then read here to know more how OData can facilitate data extraction using HTTP REST API. If you need Sample XML based OData Service then use below test URLs.

https://services.odata.org/Northwind/Northwind.svc/
https://services.odata.org/Northwind/Northwind.svc/Customers
https://services.odata.org/Northwind/Northwind.svc/Orders
https://services.odata.org/Northwind/Northwind.svc/Invoices
https://services.odata.org/Northwind/Northwind.svc/Products

Now let’s look at how to read SAP Data using ODBC Driver. At this point we assume you have exposed your data as OData Endpoint.

Read SAP S/4HANA data using XML Driver

First let’s look at steps to configure XML Driver. We will read data from SAP S/4HANA OData Service and then in next section we will look at how to load data into SQL Server or other target.

1. To do this, first of all, we will open the ZappySys Data Gateway Configuration:
   

   Open ZappySys Data Gateway

2. Add the Native – ZappySys XML Driver Data source.
   

   Add Gateway Data Source

3. Now edit that XML data source to configure it. Enter your OData Service URL its typically like below. Replace 3 parts with your own value (i.e. replace {MY-INSTANCE},  {MY-PROJECT}, {MY-TABLE})
   

   https://{MY-INSTANCE}/sap/opu/odata/sap/{MY-PROJECT}/{MY-TABLE}

   For example if you are hosting SAP HANA in Cloud Instance then your URL may look like below
   

   https://myXXXXXX-api.s4hana.ondemand.com/sap/opu/odata/sap/MyTestProject/PurchaseOrders

   And create New ZS-HTTP connection in it select Basic Authentication and enter your SAP HANA UserID / Password to call OData Service and select the desire filter.
   

   XML Driver : SAP S/4HANA OData Service Configuration

4. Now go to Data Format / Compression (Zip/GZip) tab and select Data Format as OData to get all the records.
   

   Data Format : Odata

5. Finally, now using Query Builder and Code Generator we will generate the query.
   

   Generate Query

6. That’s it we are ready to load SAP S/4HANA OData Service data to SQL Server.

Load SAP S/4HANA OData Service in MS SQL Server

SAP S/4HANA Integration with Other BI Tools (Power BI, Excel, SSRS, MS Access…)

ZappySys ODBC Drivers built using ODBC standard which is widely adopted by industry for a long time. Which mean the majority of BI Tools / Database Engines / ETL Tools already there will support native / 3rd party ODBC Drivers. Below is the small list of most popular tools / programming languages our Drivers support. If your tool / programming language doesn't appear in the below list, which means we have not documented use case but as long as your tool supports ODBC Standard, our drivers should work fine.  

BI / Reporting Tools Integration	ETL Tools Integration	Programming Languages Integration
Microsoft Power BI Tableau SSRS (SQL Reporting Services) QlikView /Qlik Sense MicroStrategy Google Sheet Microsoft Excel Microsoft Access Oracle OBIEE Many more (not in this list).....	Informatica PowerCenter (Windows) Informatica Cloud SSIS (SQL Integration Services) SQL Server Talend Data Studio Pentaho Kettle Oracle OBIEE Many more (not in this list).....	Visual Studio C# C++ JAVA Python PHP PowerShell T-SQL (Using Linked Server)

 

Conclusion

So in this blog, we learned how to Import SAP S/4HANA OData Service Data in MS SQL Server using ODBC XML / SOAP API Driver in a very simple way. You can achieve many more functionalities with this tool. Check our blogs/articles on XML File / REST API Driver https://zappysys.com/blog/category/odbc-powerpack/odbc-drivers/xml-soap-api-driver/ to find out what this tool is capable of more.

References

Finally, you can use the following links for more information about the use of SAP S/4HANA OData Service with our tools:

• SAP API Business Hub
• Landing Page for ODBC XML / SOAP API Driver, you can also find Tutorial Video here.
• Help File: Documentation of XML Driver.
• Blog/articles link: https://zappysys.com/blog/category/odbc-powerpack/odbc-drivers/xml-soap-api-driver/

The post Import SAP S/4HANA OData Service Data Into Sql Server via ODBC Driver appeared first on ZappySys Blog.

In our previous blog we saw how to export REST API to CSV using c# or Python. In this post we will look at specific example on How to Export REST API to MS Access using VBA Command Button, along with few other topics such as how to make REST API Call, how to read all Customers data from Odata using our ODBC JSON Driver and load it into the Ms Access Table.

We will go through the steps to read data from Odata and Load into MS Access using VBA Command Button.

In nutshell, this post will focus on how to make ODBC Driver Call using VBA.

So let’s get started.

Requirements

1. First of all, you will need ZappySys ODBC PowerPack installed.
2. Secondly, Make sure that Microsoft Access installed for VBA example.

An introduction to Rest API and OData

In this example, we will use OData (Open Data Protocol) to consume REST API. REST API (Representational State Transfer Application Program Interface) allows handling the interoperability between computers and the internet.

In REST API we can handle web services in different formats. In this example, we will work with the Northwind example. The Northwind example is available in this URL:

https://services.odata.org/V3/Northwind/Northwind.svc

1. By default, the data is displayed in XML format. To show the data in JSON use this URL:
   

   https://services.odata.org/V3/Northwind/Northwind.svc/?$format=json

2. There are collections of data like Categories, CustomerDemographic, Customers, Invoices, etc. For example, the following URL will show the data of the categories collection:
   

   https://services.odata.org/V3/Northwind/Northwind.svc/Customers?$format=json

3. In the next steps, we will use ZappySys drivers to connect to this URL and query using OData.

Configure ODBC DSN for ZappySys JSON Driver

ODBC driver can be accessed in two modes.

1. Using DSN
2. Without DSN (Supply direct Connection String e.g. DRIVER={ZappySys JSON Driver}; …….. )

In this article, we will use the DSN approach (User DSN). We will first add the ZappySys JSON Driver in the ODBC Data Source Administrator.

Follow these steps to accomplish the task:

1. First, Windows search, write ODBC and select the ODBC Data sources (32 bits)
   

   Open ODBC Data Source

2. As a second step, in ODBC Data source Administrator press the Add button.
   

   Add ZappySys

3. In this step, create the new data source, select ZappySys JSON Driver.
   

   Add new zappysys json driver

4. Here we have several properties, write a data source name. In this example, the name will be ZappySys JSON to Excel.
5. The Data Source (URL or file path) can specify the URL of the source or if it is a local file, you can specify the local path. In this example, the URL is:
   

   https://services.odata.org/V3/Northwind/Northwind.svc/Customers?$format=json

   You can also specify a local file path as Data SourceFor a single file:  c:\data\myfile_1.json
   For multiple files: c:\data\myfile_*.json
6. Configure the ODBC JSON Driver like this and test the connection:
   

   Configure JSON Driver for REST API Call

7. Now click on Copy Connection string Button.
   

   ODBC Driver : Copy Connection String

8. That’s it Connection string is copied to clipboard. Now let’s use this connection string in the VBA code.

How to import REST API data to Access using VBA

1. Open the access database and create the table with the desire columns to get API data in it.
   

   Create Table in Access

2. Now close the table, and go to Create menu and click on Form Design to add the new blank form in design view.
   

   Access : Create a New Form in Design View

3. It will open the new form in the design view, now add new button with the desire text.
   

   Access : Add Command Button

4. Now right click on button and go to properties and click on … builder button and select Code Builder.
   

   Access : Code builder

5. When you click the button, it will open a new VBA instance, executing the command event associated with that button click.
   Next, insert the provided code inside the Command5_Click() function. In this example, the button is named Command5, and that’s why it’s added within this click function.
   The provided code encompasses the following steps:
   1. Ensure the table is closed:
      It’s crucial to close the table beforehand; otherwise, executing the subsequent command may result in an error.
   2. Truncate the table:
      Clear the existing data from the table. If you want to add fresh data each time
   3. Make the API call:
      Utilize the ODBC Driver connection string to initiate an API call.
   4. Insert into the Access table:
      Use the retrieved data from the API call to insert new records into the Access table.
   5. Open the table:
      Reopen the table to inspect the newly inserted data.

   ' Pass your ZappySys Driver Connection String: Refer to below link to learn how to obtain the ZappySys Driver connection string:
       ' https://community.zappysys.com/t/how-to-copy-the-zappysys-driver-connection-string/172
       Dim zsConnStr As String
       zsConnStr = "DRIVER={ZappySys JSON Driver};DataPath='https://services.odata.org/V3/Northwind/Northwind.svc/Customers?$format=json';Filter='$.value[*]';IncludeParentColumns=0;RequestMethod='GET';RequestHeaders='cache-control: no-cache || Accept: */*'"
           
       'ZappySys Driver Query
       Dim zsDriverQuery As String
       zsDriverQuery = "Select * from $"
    
       'MS Access Table Name
       Dim tableName As String
       tableName = "tblCustomers"
   
       ' 1. Close Table If Open
       CloseTableIfOpen tableName
   
       ' 2. Truncate Table (Optional): If you want to load fresh data each time, uncomment the line below.
       'TruncateTable tableName
   
       ' 3. Import Data From API Into Table
       ImportDataFromAPIIntoTable zsConnStr, zsDriverQuery, tableName
   
       ' 4. Open Table for Viewing (Optional)
       OpenTableForViewing tableName
   
       ' Show Message after Loading Data Successfully
       MsgBox "Data Loaded Successfully!"

   

   VBA Button OnClick Function

    

6. Below the Private Sub Command5_Click() function, please add the necessary functions and procedures as provided below:

   Sub ImportDataFromAPIIntoTable(zsConnStr As String, zsDriverQuery As String, tableName As String)
       Dim dscn As New ADODB.Connection
       dscn.Open zsConnStr
   
       Dim rs As Object
       Set rs = New ADODB.Recordset
       
       ''ZappySys Driver Query Goes here
       rs.Open zsDriverQuery, dscn
   
       Dim strQuery As String
       strQuery = ""
       ' Check if the recordset is not empty
       If Not rs.EOF Then
           ' Get the field names
           Dim fieldNames As String
           fieldNames = ""
   
           For i = 1 To rs.Fields.Count
               fieldNames = fieldNames & rs.Fields(i - 1).Name
               If i < rs.Fields.Count Then
                   fieldNames = fieldNames & ","
               End If
           Next i
   
           ' Generate the INSERT script
           Dim insertScript As String
           ' Iterate through the recordset to get the values
           Do Until rs.EOF
               ' Generate Insert script
               insertScript = "INSERT INTO " & tableName & " (" & fieldNames & ") VALUES"
               insertScript = insertScript & vbCrLf & "("
               For i = 1 To rs.Fields.Count
                   ' Assuming all fields are text, you might need to handle different data types appropriately
                   
                   If IsNull(rs.Fields(i - 1).Value) Then
                       insertScript = insertScript & "''"
                   Else
                       insertScript = insertScript & "'" & EscapeSingleQuote(rs.Fields(i - 1).Value) & "'"
                   End If
                   
                   
                   If i < rs.Fields.Count Then
                       insertScript = insertScript & ","
                   End If
               Next i
               insertScript = insertScript & ")"
               
               'Insert data
               CurrentProject.Connection.Execute insertScript
               
               rs.MoveNext
           Loop
       End If
       
       ' Close the recordset and connection
       rs.Close
       dscn.Close
       Set rs = Nothing
       Set conn = Nothing
       
   End Sub
   
   Sub OpenTableForViewing(tableName As String)
       If Not IsTableOpen(tableName) Then
           DoCmd.OpenTable tableName
       End If
   End Sub
   
   Public Function IsTableOpen(strName As String) As Boolean
        IsTableOpen = SysCmd(acSysCmdGetObjectState, acTable, strName)
   End Function
   
   Sub CloseTableIfOpen(tableName As String)
       If IsTableOpen(tableName) Then
           DoCmd.SelectObject acTable, tableName
           DoCmd.RunCommand acCmdSaveRecord
           DoCmd.Close
       End If
   End Sub
   
   
   Sub TruncateTable(tableName As String)
       Dim strSql As String
       strSql = "DELETE FROM " & tableName & ";"
       CurrentProject.Connection.Execute strSql
   End Sub
   
   Public Function EscapeSingleQuote(strData As String) As String
        EscapeSingleQuote = Replace(strData, "'", "''")
   End Function

7. Now, save the VBA form code and provide some appropriate form names.
   

   Save form vba code

    

8. Make sure to add the reference to the Microsoft ActiveX Data Objects X.0 Library in the project settings.In Microsoft Access VBA,
   You can add the reference to the Microsoft ActiveX Data Objects X.0 Library by following these steps:
   1. In the VBA editor, go to “Tools” in the menu and select “References.”
   2. In the References dialog box, scroll down the list to find “Microsoft ActiveX Data Objects X.0 Library” (where “X.0” corresponds to the version number, such as 6.1, 2.8, etc.).
   3. Check the box next to the appropriate version to enable the reference.
   4. Click “OK” to save the changes and close the References dialog box.

   Now, your Access project has a reference to the Microsoft ActiveX Data Objects library, and you can use its features in your VBA code.

   

   Access : Add reference

   If the MS ActiveX reference is not added, an error will be thrown.

   

   VBA : Error Type not defined

9. Close the code project, open the form in Form View, and click on the button.
   

   Access : Click Command Button

10. After clicking the button, it will initiate a REST API call, insert the data into the Access table, and open the table to display the inserted records along with a success message.
    

    Access : Open the table

Conclusion

In this article, we saw how to use VBA to call REST API. We show how to do REST API calls in Access using the ZappySys ODBC driver. Also, we show how to write VBA Code in MS Access for command button to make REST API call, truncate access table and insert record in the access table using VBA code. If you liked this article and you want to try, you can download the ZappySys ODBC installer here.

References

• ZappySys ODBC installer.
• Access ODBC Query
• Using ADO with Microsoft Visual Basic and Visual Basic for Applications

Form VBA Code:

After completing the migration of the higher-level VBA code, you’ll notice a transformation in the structure of your forms’ code.

Option Compare Database

Private Sub Command5_Click()
 
    ' Pass your ZappySys Driver Connection String: Refer to below link to learn how to obtain the ZappySys Driver connection string:
    ' https://community.zappysys.com/t/how-to-copy-the-zappysys-driver-connection-string/172
    Dim zsConnStr As String
    zsConnStr = "DRIVER={ZappySys JSON Driver};DataPath='https://services.odata.org/V3/Northwind/Northwind.svc/Customers?$format=json';Filter='$.value[*]';IncludeParentColumns=0;RequestMethod='GET';RequestHeaders='cache-control: no-cache || Accept: */*'"
        
    'ZappySys Driver Query
    Dim zsDriverQuery As String
    zsDriverQuery = "Select * from $"
 
    'MS Access Table Name
    Dim tableName As String
    tableName = "tblCustomers"

    ' 1. Close Table If Open
    CloseTableIfOpen tableName

    ' 2. Truncate Table (Optional): If you want to load fresh data each time, uncomment the line below.
    'TruncateTable tableName

    ' 3. Import Data From API Into Table
    ImportDataFromAPIIntoTable zsConnStr, zsDriverQuery, tableName

    ' 4. Open Table for Viewing (Optional)
    OpenTableForViewing tableName

    ' Show Message after Loading Data Successfully
    MsgBox "Data Loaded Successfully!"
    
End Sub

Sub ImportDataFromAPIIntoTable(zsConnStr As String, zsDriverQuery As String, tableName As String)
    Dim dscn As New ADODB.Connection
    dscn.Open zsConnStr

    Dim rs As Object
    Set rs = New ADODB.Recordset
    
    ''ZappySys Driver Query Goes here
    rs.Open zsDriverQuery, dscn

    Dim strQuery As String
    strQuery = ""
    ' Check if the recordset is not empty
    If Not rs.EOF Then
        ' Get the field names
        Dim fieldNames As String
        fieldNames = ""

        For i = 1 To rs.Fields.Count
            fieldNames = fieldNames & rs.Fields(i - 1).Name
            If i < rs.Fields.Count Then
                fieldNames = fieldNames & ","
            End If
        Next i

        ' Generate the INSERT script
        Dim insertScript As String
        ' Iterate through the recordset to get the values
        Do Until rs.EOF
            ' Generate Insert script
            insertScript = "INSERT INTO " & tableName & " (" & fieldNames & ") VALUES"
            insertScript = insertScript & vbCrLf & "("
            For i = 1 To rs.Fields.Count
                ' Assuming all fields are text, you might need to handle different data types appropriately
                
                If IsNull(rs.Fields(i - 1).Value) Then
                    insertScript = insertScript & "''"
                Else
                    insertScript = insertScript & "'" & EscapeSingleQuote(rs.Fields(i - 1).Value) & "'"
                End If
                
                
                If i < rs.Fields.Count Then
                    insertScript = insertScript & ","
                End If
            Next i
            insertScript = insertScript & ")"
            
            'Insert data
            CurrentProject.Connection.Execute insertScript
            
            rs.MoveNext
        Loop
    End If
    
    ' Close the recordset and connection
    rs.Close
    dscn.Close
    Set rs = Nothing
    Set conn = Nothing
    
End Sub

Sub OpenTableForViewing(tableName As String)
    If Not IsTableOpen(tableName) Then
        DoCmd.OpenTable tableName
    End If
End Sub

Public Function IsTableOpen(strName As String) As Boolean
     IsTableOpen = SysCmd(acSysCmdGetObjectState, acTable, strName)
End Function

Sub CloseTableIfOpen(tableName As String)
    If IsTableOpen(tableName) Then
        DoCmd.SelectObject acTable, tableName
        DoCmd.RunCommand acCmdSaveRecord
        DoCmd.Close
    End If
End Sub


Sub TruncateTable(tableName As String)
    Dim strSql As String
    strSql = "DELETE FROM " & tableName & ";"
    CurrentProject.Connection.Execute strSql
End Sub

Public Function EscapeSingleQuote(strData As String) As String
     EscapeSingleQuote = Replace(strData, "'", "''")
End Function

The post How to Export REST API to MS Access using VBA Command Button appeared first on ZappySys Blog.

Read RSS feed in SSIS can be challenging. RSS named first RDF Site Summary and later named Rich Site Summary and Really Simple Syndication allows customer applications to be updated with the news of a site. For example, Microsoft RSS feeds, Apple RSS feeds, Samsung RSS feeds, etc.  With RSS the information comes to you directly and you do not need to waste time checking the web site. In this article, we will show how to read RSS feed in SSIS and later using ODBC.

Requirements

1. First of all, ZappySys SSIS Powerpack installed.
2. Secondly, SSDT for Business Intelligence (SSIS) installed.
3. Finally, ODBC Powerpack installed.

Getting Started

Understanding RSS data

1. In order to start, we will work with the WordPress RSS example:
   

   https://wordpress.org/news/feed/

2. When you go to the link, you see the feed like this:
   

   RSS information

3. Basically, it is an XML file with the Last Build date (lastBuildDate), the title, link, description. It shows the WordPress news per version and date.

Read RSS feed in SSIS

1. First of all, you need an SSIS Project and a Data Flow with the ZS XML Source (if you are not familiar with SSIS and the ZS XML Source, refer to this link.
   

   Drag and drop Data Flow

2. Secondly, In the ZS XML Source, add the following RSS WordPress URL:
   

   https://wordpress.org/news/feed/

   

   SSIS read RSS

3. After that, you will be able to see the following tags when you press the array filter:
4. This time, we will focus on the information under channel which is the most relevant, make sure that the array filter is this one:
   

   $.rss.channel[*].item[*]

   

   Using RSS filters in SSIS

5. In addition, press the preview data button and you will see the following information:
   

   SSIS preview RSS

Read RSS feed in SSIS and copy to SQL Server

1. In the previous section, we got data from RSS. Now we will copy to SQL Server.
2. First of all, drag and drop the OLEDB Destination and join the XML Source with the OLEDB Destination:
   

   SSIS RSS to OLEDB

3. Also, in the OLEDB Destination, press New button and select a SQL Server connection or create a new one:
   

   RSS to Oledb

4. In addition, in the table or view textbox press new to create a new destination table:
   

   Create a new SQL table to store RSS data

5. Next, modify the table name:
   

   Change SSIS destination table name

6. Also, go to the mappings page to generate the mappings:
   

   RSS Source to SQL Destination in SSIS

7. Finally, run the package and you will export the data from RSS to SQL Server.

How to read RSS feed in SSIS using pagination

If you have multiple rows, pagination helps a lot to handle multiple items. You can handle the information in pages. Instead of loading all the information, you can get the data from page 1, 2, 3 and more.

1. First of all, in the URL, you can include the following to specify the page:
   

   https://wordpress.org/news/feed/?paged=2

2. Also, note that it used the word paged and not page. Many URLs use page and not paged, but WordPress is different:
3. In addition, if you want to use variables, you can use a variable like this:
   
   RSS page as a variable
4. Also, we have a pagination tab with different pagination options. You can check the configuration here:
   

   RSS pagination configuration

5. Finally, for more information about pagination, refer to this link.

How to read RSS feed in ZappySys ODBC PowerPack

Zappysys ODBC PowerPack is a powerful tool to access to REST API, SOAP, XML, JSON, CSV, Odata. In this article, we will show how to access to RSS using ODBC PowerPack.

1. First of all, open your ODBC Data Source Administrator in Windows.
2. Secondly, in the user DSN, press Add.
3. Also, add the Zappysys XML Driver:
   

   odbc XML driver

4.  In addition, add the following URL:
   

   https://wordpress.org/news/feed/

   

   ODBC to RSS connection

5. Finally, you can use the filters and pagination as we did with the SSIS PowerPack in the previous sections.
   

   ODBC pagination RSS

Conclusion

To conclude, we can say that with SSIS PowerPack and ODBC PowerPack, it is easy to access, filter and paginate RSS information or any XML / SOAP API. We strongly recommend you to try the product by yourself and check the results.

References

For more information about RSS, refer to these links:

• RSS
• What Is RSS? RSS Explained

The post How to read RSS feed in SSIS and ODBC (with pagination) appeared first on ZappySys Blog.