Subject Areas: How to Set Up a BI Connector Data Source and Table

Modified on Thu, 6 Aug at 11:44 AM

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 instance URL handy.
You have your Oracle credentials (username and password for Basic auth, or JWT details if your organisation uses JWT authentication).

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, OAC Subject Areas.

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

Step 3 — Enter your Oracle instance URL

Enter your Oracle instance URL. For OAC, enter the URL up to oraclecloud.com. For OAS or OBIEE, include the port number. For example:

https://your-instance.oraclecloud.com or http://your-server:port

Tip — Not sure of your URL? Log in to your Oracle Analytics instance in a browser and copy the URL from the address bar up to the port or domain.

Step 4 — 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 5 — 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/Tableau Bridge Server
(or)
2. Enter your user credentials if setting up the connection on your PC

Part B — Create the Table

Step 6 — Open the Tables section

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

Step 7 — Name the Table

Enter a name in the Table Name field.

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

Step 8 — Select the Data Source

Pick the Data Source you created in Part A from the drop-down, then click Next: Manage Subject Area.

Step 9 — Add the Subject Area name

Enter the name of the Subject Area you want to connect to, then click Verify & Add. Repeat this step to add more Subject Areas to the same Table.

Important — Subject Area names are case-sensitive. Enter the name exactly as it appears in your Oracle Analytics instance.

Step 10 — Save the Table

Click Save. Your Table is now ready to use.

What would you like to do next?

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