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Add a Microsoft Excel Data Source

You can add a Microsoft™ Excel data source so that CDM users can query data in an external Microsoft Excel spreadsheet.

  1. Verify that the Excel spreadsheet is on a network that is accessible by the CDM Server. The server cannot link to a file that is on your local computer.
  2. In CDM, do either of the following to open the Data Source Connectivity tab in the work area:
    • Click the File tab, then navigate to Administration > External Data > Data Source Connectivity.
    • Click the Home tab, then in the Navigation Pane, click Administration and double-click Data Source Connectivity under External Data.
  3. Click Home > Add > External Microsoft Excel File Data Source, or right-click any existing data source in the work area and click Add > External Microsoft Excel File Data Source.
  4. Specify the connection parameters.
  5. Click Test Connection.
    • If the connection succeeds, the Connection successful icon Connection successful icon is displayed.
    • If the connection fails, the Connection test failed icon The connection test failed icon is displayed. Check with the database administrator to ensure that the database server is running and that you have the correct parameters.
  6. Click OK.

Users can now create and edit queries to the newly created Microsoft Excel data source. They can also associate queries with reports, allowing query results to be used by the reports.

Note: You must ensure that each new data source is added to the whitelist element so that the application server can authenticate the data source.

Connection Parameters for Excel Data Source

To connect to Excel as one of your data sources in CDM, use the following parameters:

Parameter

Description

Name

Enter a unique name for the data source.

Description

Specify a description for the data source. This is optional.

Expiration Policy

Select the expiration policy. Expiration policies determine when the cached data must be refreshed from the underlying external data sources.

File Path

Click Select File, browse to the location of the Excel file, and double-click the file name. The file location must be accessible by the application server.

Note: You cannot edit the file path manually. To change the path, click Select File again and browse to a new location.

Allow Query Variables in File Path

Select this checkbox to enable a user to use query variables in the file path of the Excel data source. This option is useful if a user wants to centrally manage a data source location and update it whenever the source location of the Excel file changes.

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