BI Publisher Data Models: How to Set Up a BI Connector Data Source and Table

Modified on Thu, 6 Aug at 11:41 AM

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Before you start

  • BI Connector is installed and your license is activated. If not, start with installation of Desktop Edition (in PC clients) or Server Edition (in Server clients).
  • You have your Oracle Fusion instance URL handy.
  • You have your Oracle Fusion credentials (username and password for Basic auth, or JWT details if your organisation uses JWT authentication).
  • (Recommended) Organise your BI Publisher Data Models into a dedicated folder structure in Oracle Fusion before proceeding. This makes Step 4 faster and keeps your configuration clean.
Note — The steps in this article apply to:

1. Fusion base tables (for pipelining via Microsoft Fabric or ADF/Synapse)
2. Existing BI Publisher Data Models in Oracle Fusion
3. Custom queries built in the BI Connector IDE or VS Code extension

 

Part A — Create the Data Source

Step 1 — Open the Data Sources section

Open BI Connector and click Data Sources on the left pane.

 

Step 2 — Create a new Data Source

Click New Data Source. Enter a name for your connection — for example, Fusion Data Models.

Set the Data Source Type to Data Model and pick the appropriate Oracle Analytics Application from the drop-down.

 

Step 3 — Enter your Oracle instance URL

Login to your Oracle Fusion instance in a browser. After successful authentication, copy the URL up to oraclecloud.com. The URL typically looks like:

https://______.oraclecloud.com

 

Step 4 — Add your Data Model folder path

Enter the folder path where your BI Publisher Data Models are stored. For example:

/shared/Custom/ERP/Financials

Click Verify & Add. Repeat this step for every additional folder path you want to include. Data Models in sub-folders under the path you add will also be fetched automatically.

Important — Folder paths are case-sensitive. The easiest way to get the exact path: log in to Oracle Fusion in a browser, navigate to the Data Model, click More → Properties, and copy the value shown against the Location field.
Important — Avoid adding root folders (such as /shared). Oracle will return all Data Models across all sub-folders under that root, which causes delays. Add the most specific folder path possible.

 

Step 5 — Set up authentication

Fill in the authentication fields based on your auth type:

  • Basic auth: enter your Username and Password.
  • JWT auth: enter the Client ID, Client Secret, and other required JWT details.
  • Custom SSO: Enter the authentication details as shared by the BI Connector team for your custom config. Enable the SSO toggle and enter the SSO login URL, per the steps shared by the BI Connector team.
Tip — JWT authentication is more secure and is highly recommended over Basic auth or Custom SSO.

 

Step 6 — Test and save the Data Source

Click Test & Save. If the details entered in the BI Connector app are validated immediately, a success message appears at the top right and your data source is saved.


Instead, if a browser authentication is prompted, just go through the login flow on the browser, including MFA if applicable. If the browser authentication is successful, a success message appears at the top right and your Data Source is saved.

Important — What credentials to enter if browser authentication is prompted?

1. Enter Service Account credentials if setting up the connection on a Gateway/Integration Runtime/Tableau Bridge Server
(or)
2. Enter your user credentials if setting up the connection on your PC


Pipelining just the Fusion base tables via Fabric or ADF/Synapse? You can skip Part B entirely and scroll to the bottom for your next steps. Part B is only needed if you want to set up a BI Connector Table pointing to a specific Data Model or Query.

 

Part B — Create the Table

This part has two options — follow only the one that applies to you:
  • Option 1 — Use Existing Data Model: your query comes from a BI Publisher Data Model already in Oracle Fusion.
  • Option 2 — Use Query: your query is one you have written or saved in BI Connector.

 

Option 1 — Use Existing Data Model

 

Step 7 — Open the Tables section

Click Tables on the left pane, then click Add Table.

 

Step 8 — Name the Table and select the Data Source

Enter a name in the Table Name field.

Important — Spaces are not allowed in the Table Name. Use an underscore ( _ ) or a hyphen ( - ) instead.

Pick the Data Source you created in Part A from the drop-down. Select Use Existing Data Model and click Next: Select Data Set.

 

Step 9 — Select the Data Model and Dataset

The Data Models from the folder paths added in Part A are listed. Navigate through the folders, select the Data Model of your interest, then select the Dataset within it, and click Next: Configuration.

 

Step 10 — Configure and save the Table

The Configuration screen opens. Here you can:

  • No of Rows per Fetch — set how many rows BI Connector fetches from Oracle per round-trip. The default is 50,000. This is not a cap on total rows — BI Connector makes as many round-trips as needed to fetch all the data. For example, if your dataset returns 1 million rows, BI Connector makes 20 round-trips of 50,000 rows each, fetching all rows without overloading Oracle’s resources.
  • Parameters — if the selected Dataset has parameters, they are automatically listed here. Enter the values for each parameter. For date parameters, you can pick dynamic values such as Today, Yesterday, or Last X days from the calendar picker.

When ready, click Preview to verify the data, then click Save.

Done with Option 1? Scroll to the bottom of this article for your next steps.

 


 

Option 2 — Use Query

 

Step 7 — Open the Tables section

Click Tables on the left pane, then click Add Table.

 

Step 8 — Name the Table and select the Data Source

Enter a name in the Table Name field.

Important — Spaces are not allowed in the Table Name. Use an underscore ( _ ) or a hyphen ( - ) instead.

Pick the Data Source you created in Part A from the drop-down. Select Use Query and click Next: Select Query.

 

Step 9 — Select the Query

The My Queries and Pre-built Queries folders are shown. Expand the folder of your choice, select the query, and click Next: Configuration.

 

Step 10 — Configure and save the Table

The Configuration screen opens. Here you can:

  • No of Rows per Fetch — set how many rows BI Connector fetches from Oracle per round-trip. The default is 50,000. This is not a cap on total rows — BI Connector makes as many round-trips as needed to fetch all the data. For example, if your dataset returns 1 million rows, BI Connector makes 20 round-trips of 50,000 rows each, fetching all rows without overloading Oracle’s resources.
  • Parameters — if the selected query has parameters, they are automatically listed here. Enter the values for each parameter. For date parameters, you can pick dynamic values such as Today, Yesterday, or Last X days from the calendar picker.

When ready, click Preview to verify the data, then click Save.

 

What would you like to do next?

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