Informatica PowerExchange for Tableau

(Version 10.0)

User Guide
Informatica PowerExchange for Tableau User Guide

Version 10.0
December 2015

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Part Number: PWX-TABLEAU-10000-0001

Table of Contents
Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Informatica Resources. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Informatica My Support Portal. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Informatica Documentation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Informatica Product Availability Matrixes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Informatica Web Site. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Informatica How-To Library. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Informatica Knowledge Base. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Informatica Support YouTube Channel. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Informatica Marketplace. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Informatica Velocity. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Informatica Global Customer Support. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Chapter 1: Introduction to PowerExchange for Tableau. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

PowerExchange for Tableau Overview. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Introduction to Tableau. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
PowerExchange for Tableau Implementation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
PowerExchange for Tableau Example. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Chapter 2: Installation and Configuration. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Installation and Configuration Overview. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Installing the Server Component. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Installing the Server Component on Windows. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Installing the Server Component on UNIX. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
Installing the Client Component. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
After You Upgrade. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Chapter 3: Tableau Connections. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Tableau Connection Overview. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Tableau Connection Properties. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Content URL. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Creating a Tableau Connection. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Chapter 4: Tableau Data Objects. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Tableau Data Objects Overview. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Tableau Data Extract File. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Tableau Packaged Workbook File. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Workbook Templates. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Tableau Data Object Properties. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Creating a Tableau Data Object. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

4 Table of Contents
Tableau Data Object Write Operation Properties. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Creating a Tableau Data Object Write Operation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Chapter 5: Tableau Mappings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Tableau Mappings Overview. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Tableau Mapping Example. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Appendix A: Data Type Reference. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Data Type Reference Overview. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Tableau and Transformation Data Types. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Decimal Data Type. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
Duration Data Type. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Index. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Table of Contents 5
Preface
The Informatica PowerExchange for Tableau User Guide provides information about reading data from
multiple sources and writing data to Tableau. The guide is written for database administrators and developers
who are responsible for developing mappings that read data from multiple sources, generate the Tableau
data extract file, and write data to Tableau Server.

This guide assumes that you have knowledge of Tableau and Informatica Data Services.

Informatica Resources

Informatica My Support Portal

As an Informatica customer, you can access the Informatica My Support Portal at
http://mysupport.informatica.com.

The site contains product information, user group information, newsletters, access to the Informatica
customer support case management system, the Informatica How-To Library, the Informatica Knowledge
Base, Informatica Product Documentation, and access to the Informatica user community.

Informatica Documentation
The Informatica Documentation team makes every effort to create accurate, usable documentation. If you
have questions, comments, or ideas about this documentation, contact the Informatica Documentation team
through email at infa_documentation@informatica.com. We will use your feedback to improve our
documentation. Let us know if we can contact you regarding your comments.

The Documentation team updates documentation as needed. To get the latest documentation for your
product, navigate to Product Documentation from http://mysupport.informatica.com.

Informatica Product Availability Matrixes

Product Availability Matrixes (PAMs) indicate the versions of operating systems, databases, and other types
of data sources and targets that a product release supports. You can access the PAMs on the Informatica My
Support Portal at https://mysupport.informatica.com/community/my-support/product-availability-matrices.

Informatica Web Site

You can access the Informatica corporate web site at http://www.informatica.com. The site contains
information about Informatica, its background, upcoming events, and sales offices. You will also find product

6
 and partner information. The services area of the site includes important information about technical support,
training and education, and implementation services.

Informatica How-To Library

As an Informatica customer, you can access the Informatica How-To Library at
http://mysupport.informatica.com. The How-To Library is a collection of resources to help you learn more
about Informatica products and features. It includes articles and interactive demonstrations that provide
solutions to common problems, compare features and behaviors, and guide you through performing specific
real-world tasks.

Informatica Knowledge Base

As an Informatica customer, you can access the Informatica Knowledge Base at
http://mysupport.informatica.com. Use the Knowledge Base to search for documented solutions to known
technical issues about Informatica products. You can also find answers to frequently asked questions,
technical white papers, and technical tips. If you have questions, comments, or ideas about the Knowledge
Base, contact the Informatica Knowledge Base team through email at KB_Feedback@informatica.com.

Informatica Support YouTube Channel

You can access the Informatica Support YouTube channel at http://www.youtube.com/user/INFASupport. The
Informatica Support YouTube channel includes videos about solutions that guide you through performing
specific tasks. If you have questions, comments, or ideas about the Informatica Support YouTube channel,
contact the Support YouTube team through email at supportvideos@informatica.com or send a tweet to
@INFASupport.

Informatica Marketplace
The Informatica Marketplace is a forum where developers and partners can share solutions that augment,
extend, or enhance data integration implementations. By leveraging any of the hundreds of solutions
available on the Marketplace, you can improve your productivity and speed up time to implementation on
your projects. You can access Informatica Marketplace at http://www.informaticamarketplace.com.

Informatica Velocity
You can access Informatica Velocity at http://mysupport.informatica.com. Developed from the real-world
experience of hundreds of data management projects, Informatica Velocity represents the collective
knowledge of our consultants who have worked with organizations from around the world to plan, develop,
deploy, and maintain successful data management solutions. If you have questions, comments, or ideas
about Informatica Velocity, contact Informatica Professional Services at ips@informatica.com.

Informatica Global Customer Support

You can contact a Customer Support Center by telephone or through the Online Support.

Online Support requires a user name and password. You can request a user name and password at
http://mysupport.informatica.com.

The telephone numbers for Informatica Global Customer Support are available from the Informatica web site
at http://www.informatica.com/us/services-and-training/support-services/global-support-centers/.

Preface 7
CHAPTER 1

Introduction to PowerExchange
for Tableau
This chapter includes the following topics:

• PowerExchange for Tableau Overview, 8

• Introduction to Tableau, 8
• PowerExchange for Tableau Implementation, 9
• PowerExchange for Tableau Example, 9

PowerExchange for Tableau Overview

You can use PowerExchange for Tableau to connect to Tableau from Informatica.

You can integrate and transform data from sources, such as flat files, databases, and applications to
generate a Tableau data extract (TDE) file. You can also create a Tableau packaged workbook (TWBX) and
publish the generated file to Tableau.

When you connect to sources directly from Tableau, you have to rely on the speed of the underlying data
sources. For faster turnaround, offline access, and to share centralized data with multiple users, you can
eliminate connecting to data sources directly from Tableau and use the portable TDE file instead.

The TDE and TWBX files are compatible with Tableau products. You can use the TDE or TWBX file in
Tableau Desktop to visualize the data extract and identify patterns and trends. You can also use the Tableau
connection in a mapping to publish the TDE or TBWX file directly to Tableau Server or Tableau Online.

Introduction to Tableau
Tableau software delivers fast analytics, visualization, and rapid-fire business intelligence.

You can use Tableau Desktop to connect to any data, query the data, see patterns, identify trends, and
discover visual insights in seconds. You can create interactive visualizations, reports, and dashboards
without the need for programming.

Tableau Server is business intelligence that provides browser-based and mobile analytics. You can publish
dashboards to Tableau Server, so that other users can interact with the data in a browser or tablet.

8
 Tableau Online is a hosted version of Tableau Server. You can share dashboards with your organization and
customers in minutes. The live, interactive views of data in Tableau Online helps you answer your questions
in a web browser or tablet.

PowerExchange for Tableau Implementation

To generate a TDE file from the source data, create a Tableau data object and include the data object as a
target in a mapping. You can run the mapping or add the mapping to a workflow to process the data,
generate the TDE file, and publish the file to Tableau.

When you specify a Tableau workbook template (TWB) for a Tableau target, the Data Integration Service
applies the TWB template to the TDE file and generates a Tableau packaged workbook (TWBX) file.

The Data Integration Service integrates with the Tableau data extract API to generate the TDE or TWBX file.

The Data Integration Service uses the Tableau connection to write the TDE or TWBX file to a directory on the
machine where the Data Integration Service runs. You can publish the TDE or TWBX file to Tableau Server
or Tableau Online. The Tableau Rest APIs publish the TDE or TWBX file to Tableau Server or Tableau
Online. When you publish the TDE or TWBX file, the file is available for analysis to multiple users within an
organization. You can interact with the data, create reports and dashboards from the data, and visually
represent the data.

If you do not want to publish the data to Tableau Server or Tableau Online, you can manually import the TDE
or TWBX file from the Data Integration Service machine to Tableau Desktop. You can edit the TDE or TWBX
file in Tableau Desktop and later publish the data to Tableau Server or Tableau Online.

PowerExchange for Tableau Example

You are a sales analyst in an enterprise who can access data warehouses or flat files from Tableau Desktop
to analyze the data. You want to track the overall growth trend in sales, geographic distribution of sales, and
top customers, and present a snapshot of the sales distribution to senior executives.

You can integrate data from multiple sources, filter the data, and make the data available as a TDE file for
analysis in Tableau through PowerExchange for Tableau. You can import the TDE file in Tableau Desktop to
create interactive, real-time dashboards. The visual representation helps you understand the profitability, with
views presented by geography, product category, and customer segment. You can also publish the TDE file
to Tableau Server to share a live and interactive dashboard with all the executives in the organization.

PowerExchange for Tableau Implementation 9

CHAPTER 2

Installation and Configuration

This chapter includes the following topics:

• Installation and Configuration Overview, 10

• Installing the Server Component, 10
• Installing the Client Component, 12
• After You Upgrade, 13

Installation and Configuration Overview

The PowerExchange for Tableau installation consists of a server installation and a client installation. You can
install PowerExchange for Tableau on Windows or UNIX.

To configure PowerExchange for Tableau, perform the following steps:

1. Install or upgrade Informatica services. Create and configure a Model Repository Service and a Data
Integration Service.
2. Install the PowerExchange for Tableau server component after you install the Informatica services. The
server binaries are copied to the Informatica installation directory.
3. Install the PowerExchange for Tableau client component after you install the Informatica clients. The
client binaries are copied to the Informatica installation directory.

Installing the Server Component

You can install the server component on Windows or Linux machines.

Installing the Server Component on Windows

If multiple nodes exist in your environment, you must first install the server component on the master gateway
node. You can then install the server component on the other nodes in the domain.

Before you install, shut down the Informatica domain.

1. Navigate to the root directory of the extracted installer files.

2. Run the install.bat script file.

10
 The Welcome page appears.
3. Click Next.
The Installation Directory page appears.
4. Enter the absolute path to the Informatica installation directory. Click Browse to find the directory or use
the default directory.
By default, the server components are installed in the following location:
C:\Informatica\<version folder>\
If you did not shut down the domain, a message appears asking you to shut down the domain.
5. Click Next.
The Pre-Installation Summary page appears.
6. Verify that all installation requirements are met and click Install.
The Domain Information Panel page appears.
7. View or enter the domain information.

Property Description

Domain Name Name of the domain where Informatica services are installed.
This field is read-only.

Node Name Name of the node on which you are installing the PowerExchange for Tableau
server component.
This field is read-only.

Domain User Name User name of the administrator for the domain.

Domain Password Password for the domain administrator.

Master Gateway Node Indicates whether the node on which you are installing the server component is
the master gateway node.
Select the option for the master gateway node. Clear the option for all other
nodes on which you install the server component.

8. Click Next.
The installer shows the progress of the installation. When the installation is complete, the Post-
Installation Summary page displays the status of the installation.
9. Click Done to close the installer.
For more information about the tasks performed by the installer, view the installation log files.

Installing the Server Component on UNIX

If multiple nodes exist in your environment, you must first install the server component on the master gateway
node. You can then install the server component on the other nodes in the domain.

Before you install, shut down the Informatica domain.

1. Navigate to the root directory of the extracted installer files.

2. Enter ./install.sh at the command prompt.
Note: The install.sh file must have executable permissions.

Installing the Server Component 11

 3. Enter the path to the Informatica installation directory.
By default, the server components are installed in the following location:
<User Home Directory>/Informatica/<version folder>
If you did not shut down the domain, a message appears asking you to shut down the domain.
4. Review the installation information and press Enter to begin the installation.
5. View or enter the domain information.

Property Description

Domain Name Name of the domain where Informatica services are installed.
This field is read-only.

Node Name Name of the node on which you are installing the PowerExchange for Tableau
server component.
This field is read-only.

Domain User Name User name of the administrator for the domain.

Domain Password Password for the domain administrator.

Master Gateway Node Indicates whether the node on which you are installing the server component is
the master gateway node.
Select from the following options:
1. Yes. Select Yes if the node is the master gateway node.
2. No. Select No for all other nodes on which you install the server component.

For more information about the tasks performed by the installer, view the installation log files.
After you complete the installation, ensure that the binary files in the $INFA_HOME/services/shared/bin
directory have executable permissions.

Installing the Client Component

Install the client component on every Informatica Developer client machine that connects to the domain.

1. Unzip the client installation archive and navigate to the root directory of the extracted installer files.
2. Run the install.bat script file.
The Welcome page appears.
3. Click Next.
The Installation Directory page appears.
4. Enter the absolute path to the Informatica installation directory. Click Browse to find the directory or use
the default directory.
5. Click Next.
The Pre-Installation Summary page appears.
6. Verify that all installation requirements are met and click Install.

12 Chapter 2: Installation and Configuration

 The installer shows the progress of the installation. When the installation is complete, the Post-
Installation Summary page displays the status of the installation.
7. Click Done to close the installer.
For more information about the tasks performed by the installer, view the installation log files.

After You Upgrade

After you upgrade Informatica Services, perform the following tasks manually:

• Set the Tableau product field in the Tableau connection properties corresponding to the configured setting
in the earlier version.
• Set the advance property for a Tableau data object write operation corresponding to the configured setting
in the earlier version.
• Set the execute permissions for the tdeserver64 third-party library file in the following location:
<INFA_HOME>/services/shared/bin

After You Upgrade 13

CHAPTER 3

Tableau Connections
This chapter includes the following topics:

• Tableau Connection Overview, 14

• Tableau Connection Properties, 14
• Creating a Tableau Connection, 16

Tableau Connection Overview

Create a Tableau connection to create a TDE or TWBX file in a directory on the machine where you run the
Data Integration Service. You can then use the Tableau connection to publish the TDE or TWBX file to
Tableau Server or Tableau Online.

When you create a Tableau connection, you define the connection attributes that the Tableau Rest APIs use
to publish the Tableau data extract to Tableau Online or Tableau Server. Enter the connection attributes that
are specific to the Tableau product that you want to connect to. You can specify Tableau Desktop, Tableau
Server, or Tableau Online in the connection properties.

Specify Tableau Desktop when you want to create a TDE or TWBX file on the local machine. To publish the
generated TDE or TWBX file to Tableau Server or Tableau Online, provide the Tableau Server or Tableau
Online URL and the user credentials.

Tableau Connection Properties

Use a Tableau connection to connect to Tableau Server or Tableau Online. When you create a Tableau
connection, you enter information to access Tableau.

The following table describes the Tableau connection properties:

Property Description

Name Name of the Tableau connection.

ID String that the Data Integration Service uses to identify the connection. The ID is not case
sensitive. It must be 255 characters or less and must be unique in the domain. You cannot change
this property after you create the connection. Default value is the connection name.

14
 Property Description

Description Description of the connection. The description cannot exceed 765 characters.

Location The Informatica domain where you want to create the connection.

Type Type of connection. Select Tableau.

The following table describes the properties to connect to Tableau Server or Tableau Online:

Connection Description
Property

Tableau Product The name of the Tableau product to which you want to connect.
You can choose one of the following Tableau products to publish the TDE or TWBX file:
- Tableau Desktop. Creates a TDE file in the Data Integration Service machine. You can then
manually import the TDE file to Tableau Desktop.
- Tableau Server. Publishes the generated TDE or TWBX file to Tableau Server.
- Tableau Online. Publishes the generated TDE or TWBX file to Tableau Online.

Connection URL URL of Tableau Server or Tableau Online to which you want to publish the TDE or TWBX
file. The URL has the following format: http://<Host name of Tableau Server or
Tableau Online>:<port>

User Name User name of the Tableau Server or Tableau Online account.

Password Password for the Tableau Server or Tableau Online account.

Content URL The name of the site on Tableau Server or Tableau Online where you want to publish the
TDE or TWBX file.
Contact the Tableau administrator to provide the site name.

Content URL
You can specify the name of the content URL to point to a specific site on Tableau Server or Tableau Online
where you want to publish the TDE file. Specify the site name in the connection properties.

The content URL has the following format: http://<Host name of Tableau Server or Tableau
Online>:<port> /#/site/<Name of the content URL>/View in Tableau Server or Tableau Online>

For example, if you create a site called infa on Tableau Server, the content URL for the site on Tableau
Server is: https://10.50.100.100:6000/#/site/infa/workbooks

The value you specify for the content URL in the connection properties is Infa.

To specify an existing content URL site name on Tableau Server or Tableau Online where you want to
publish the Tableau data extract, contact the Tableau Server or Tableau Online administrator.

Tableau Connection Properties 15

Creating a Tableau Connection
Before you create a Tableau data object, create a connection in the Developer tool.

1. Click Window > Preferences.

2. Select Informatica > Connections.
3. Expand the domain in the Available Connections.
4. Select Enterprise Applications > Tableau and click Add.
5. Enter a connection name.
6. Enter an ID for the connection.
7. Optionally, enter a connection description.
8. Select the domain on which you want to create the connection.
9. Select a Tableau connection type.
10. Click Next.
11. Configure the connection properties.
12. Click Test Connection to verify the connection to Tableau.
13. Click Finish.

16 Chapter 3: Tableau Connections

CHAPTER 4

Tableau Data Objects

This chapter includes the following topics:

• Tableau Data Objects Overview, 17

• Tableau Data Extract File, 17
• Tableau Packaged Workbook File, 18
• Tableau Data Object Properties, 23
• Tableau Data Object Write Operation Properties, 24

Tableau Data Objects Overview

A Tableau data object is a physical data object that represents data based on a Tableau resource. The Data
Integration Service generates the Tableau data extract file based on the data representation in the Tableau
data object.

You can choose to create a Tableau data object or fetch metadata from an existing Tableau data extract file.

The Developer tool adds a default column named tableau_sample when you create the Tableau data object.
Based on the columns in the source data, you can open the data object to add the required columns.

When you update a Tableau data extract file, you can either overwrite the file or append data to the existing
file. When you append data to an extract file, ensure that the column metadata in the extract file and the
Tableau data object are the same.

After you create the Tableau data object, create a Tableau data object write operation and specify the
properties for the write operation. You can choose to generate the Tableau data extract file and publish to
Tableau Server or Tableau Online. You can also apply a Tableau workbook template to the Tableau data
extract file to create a Tableau packaged workbook file. You can create or overwrite data when you publish
the Tableau data extract or Tableau packaged workbook file to Tableau.

Tableau Data Extract File

A Tableau Data Extract (TDE) file contains data extracted from an external data source.

The TDE file is a Tableau-specific file format with .tde extension, which contains individual memory-mapped
files for each of the columns in the underlying data source. You can use the Tableau connection to publish
the TDE file generated in Informatica to Tableau.

17
Tableau Packaged Workbook File
The Tableau packaged workbook file is a data file with .twbx extension.

Packaged workbooks contain a Tableau workbook along with supporting local file data sources, custom
shapes, TDE files, text files, Microsoft Access or Excel files, or background images grouped together in one
package. You can publish a packaged workbook from Informatica to Tableau. A workbook can either contain
a worksheet or a dashboard.

When you extract data from the source into a TDE file, you can apply a predefined Tableau workbook (TWB)
template to the extracted data to create a Tableau packaged workbook (TWBX) in Informatica. The TWB
template file is custom made to perform specific analysis on the extracted source data and populates graphs
and charts to represent the data. You can publish the TWBX file to Tableau and further modify the generated
graphs according to your business needs.

You can apply the following predefined template files for PowerExchange for Tableau to analyse the data
extract from Salesforce sources:

• Salesforce_Opportunity_Analysis.twb
• Salesforce_Pipeline_Analysis.twb
• Salesforce_Rep_Performance_Analysis.twb
• Salesforce_Opportunity_Analysis.twb
• Salesforce_Sales_Analysis_by_Region.twb
• Salesforce_Sales_Summary.twb

Note: The current version of PowerExchange for Tableau supports predefined TWB templates for Salesforce
data. To use the predefined TWB files and publish the TWBX file, you must use the Salesforce Opportunity
object as the source.

Workbook Templates
The templates provide pre-built dashboards for the Salesforce data and use standard Salesforce objects.

You can apply the following template files to a Tableau target to analyze the data extract from Salesforce
sources.

Sales Summary
The sales summary is a dashboard that displays an overview of the sales key performance indicators
(KPIs). Use the Salesforce_Sales_Summary.twb template to generate the sales summary.

The template uses the following entities to analyze and generate the graph:

• Salesforce Data Objects. Includes Opportunity, Opportunity Owner, Opportunity Creator, Opportunity
Account, Account Owner, and Account Creator.
• Measures. Includes Opportunity Expected Revenue and Opportunity Amount.
• Dimensions. Includes Opportunity Owner Department and Account Industry.
• Filter by. Includes Opportunity Create Date.

18 Chapter 4: Tableau Data Objects

 The following image is a sales summary graph generated from the Salesforce data:

Sales Analysis by Region

Use the Salesforce_Sales_Analysis_by_Region.twb template to analyze and display the sales KPIs by
region.
The template uses the following entities to analyze and generate the graph:

• Salesforce Data Objects. Includes Opportunity, Opportunity Owner, Opportunity Creator, Opportunity
Account, Account Owner, and Account Creator.
• Measures. Includes Opportunity Expected Revenue, Opportunity Amount, and Opportunity Count.
• Dimensions. Includes Opportunity Owner Department.
• Filter by. Includes Opportunity Create Date.

Tableau Packaged Workbook File 19

 The following image is a sales analysis summary graph generated from the Salesforce data:

Representative Performance Analysis

Use the Salesforce_Rep_Performance_Analysis.twb template to track the performance of the sales
team.
The template uses the following entities to analyze and generate the graph:

• Salesforce Data Objects. Includes Opportunity, Opportunity Owner, Opportunity Creator, Opportunity
Account, Account Owner, and Account Creator.
• Measures. Includes Opportunity Expected Revenue and Opportunity Amount.
• Dimensions. Includes Opportunity Owner Name.
• Filter by. Includes Opportunity Create Date.

20 Chapter 4: Tableau Data Objects

 The following image is a sales summary graph generated by region from the Salesforce data:

Pipeline Analysis
Use the Salesforce_Pipeline_Analysis.twb template to analyze the sales pipeline.

The template uses the following entities to analyze and generate the graph:

• Salesforce Data Objects. Includes Opportunity, Opportunity Owner, Opportunity Creator, Opportunity
Account, Account Owner, and Account Creator.
• Measures. Includes Opportunity Expected Revenue.
• Dimensions. Includes Opportunity Owner Nam and Opportunity Stage Name.
• Filter by. Includes Opportunity Create Date.

Tableau Packaged Workbook File 21

 The following image is a pipeline analysis graph generated from the Salesforce data:

Opportunity Summary
Use the Salesforce_Opportunity_Analysis.twb template to understand from where you get the sales
opportunities.
The template uses the following entities to analyze and generate the graph:

• Salesforce Data Objects. Includes Opportunity, Opportunity Owner, Opportunity Creator, Opportunity
Account, Account Owner, and Account Creator.
• Measures. Includes Opportunity Expected Revenue.
• Dimensions. Includes Opportunity Type and Account Industry..
• Filter by. Includes Opportunity Create Date and Account Billing Address Country.

22 Chapter 4: Tableau Data Objects

 The following image is a sales opportunity summary generated from the Salesforce data:

Tableau Data Object Properties

Specify the data object properties when you create a Tableau data object.

The following table describes the properties that you configure for a Tableau data object:

Property Description

Name Name of the Tableau data object.

Location The project or folder in the Model Repository Service where you want to store the Tableau
data object.

Access Type You can choose one of the following options:

- Create an empty metadata object. Creates a Tableau data object with a sample port.
- Fetch metadata from file. Imports metadata from the specified Tableau data extract file.

Resource Location of the Tableau data extract file. Required when you specify the access method as
Location File.

Tableau Data Object Properties 23

 Creating a Tableau Data Object
Create a Tableau data object to specify a Tableau resource.

1. Select a project or folder in the Object Explorer view.

2. Click File > New > Data Object.
3. Select Tableau Data Object and click Next.
The New Tableau Data Object dialog box appears.
4. Enter a name for the data object.
5. Click Browse next to the Location option and select the target project or folder.
6. Specify the access method. Choose to create a Tableau data object or fetch data from an existing
Tableau data extract file.
• To create a Tableau data object, select Create an Empty Metadata Object as the access method.
• To fetch data from an existing Tableau data extract file, select Fetch Metadata from File as the
access method.
7. To fetch data from an existing Tableau data extract file, perform the following tasks:
a. Click Browse next to the Resource Location option. The Windows Open dialog box appears.
b. Navigate to the location of the Tableau data extract file with .tde extension and click Open.
Ensure that the Tableau data extract file was generated by using the Tableau Data Extract API and
contains the Extract object.
c. Optionally, select the table in the extract file and click View to review the column details.
8. Click Finish.
The data object appears under Data Object in the project or folder in the Object Explorer view.

Tableau Data Object Write Operation Properties

Tableau data object write operation properties include run-time and advanced properties that apply to the
Tableau data object.

The run-time properties display the name of the Tableau connection. The Developer tool displays advanced
properties for the Tableau data object operation in the Advanced view.

24 Chapter 4: Tableau Data Objects

 The following table describes the advanced properties that you can configure for a Tableau data object write
operation:

Property Description

Target Operation Creates or overwrites the TDE file on the local machine, Tableau Server, or Tableau Online,
as specified in the Tableau connection properties.
Select one of the following options to publish the TDE file:
- create. Creates a TDE file. Ensure that a TDE file with the same name does not exist.
- append. Adds data to an existing TDE file on the local machine. The append operation is
applicable only for Tableau Desktop.
- overwrite. Delates the existing TDE file and creates a new TDE file.
The append and overwrite operations work only if there is an existing TDE file.

Extract File Path The file path where you want to save the generated Tableau data extract file. Ensure that the
file path is on the machine where the Data Integration Service runs. The path is a temporary
location for Tableau Server and Tableau Online.
Default is the location of the target file specified in the Tableau connection properties.

Extract File Name for the Tableau data extract file with the .tde extension.
Name Default is the file name you specified when creating the target object. If the operation is for
Tableau Server or Tableau Online, the file gets deleted after the Data Integration Service
publishes the TDE file to Tableau Server or Tableau Online.
To publish a TWDX file to Tableau, you must provide the extract file name
salesforce_opportunity.tde defined in the template.

Project Name Name of the project within a specific site on Tableau Server or Tableau Online where you
want to publish the Tableau data extract. By default, the Tableau connection publishes the
TDE file to the default project on the site that you specify on Tableau Server.

Data Source Name of the Tableau data extract that you want to publish to Tableau Server or Tableau
Online. If you do not specify a data source name, the default Tableau data extract file name
remains the source name.
If you do not specify a data source name, the extract file name remains the data source
name. If you do not specify both the data source name or the extract file name, the metadata
file name that you specify when creating the Tableau data object remains the data source
name.

Workbook Name of the predefined Tableau workbook template (TWB) file name that you want to apply
Template File to the TDE file to generate a Tableau packaged workbook file (TWBX). You must provide the
Name TWB name to publish the TWBX file.

Workbook Name Name for the workbook that you want to publish to Tableau. If you do not specify a workbook
name, the name of the TWB template file remains the workbook name.

Creating a Tableau Data Object Write Operation

Create a Tableau data object write operation from a Tableau data object.

Before you create a data object operation, you must create the data object with the resource.

1. Select the data object in the Object Explorer view.

2. Right-click and select New > Data Object Operation.
The Data Object Operation dialog box appears.
3. Enter a name for the data object operation.
4. Select the type of data object operation. Select extracts Write to create a write operation.

Tableau Data Object Write Operation Properties 25

 5. Click Add.
The Select a resource dialog box appears.
6. Select the resource for which you want to create the data object operation and click OK.
7. Click Finish.
The Developer tool creates the data object operation for the selected data object.
Open the Tableau data object operation to edit the input properties in the Advanced view.

26 Chapter 4: Tableau Data Objects

CHAPTER 5

Tableau Mappings
This chapter includes the following topics:

• Tableau Mappings Overview, 27

• Tableau Mapping Example, 27

Tableau Mappings Overview

After you create a Tableau data object operation, you can develop a mapping.

You can add a Tableau data object operation to a Tableau mapping as a target. Validate and run the
mapping to integrate and transform source data and generate the Tableau data extract file. You can edit the
Tableau data object operation run-time properties to modify the default values. You can also add advanced
run-time properties to publish the Tableau data extract file to Tableau Online or Tableau Server.

Tableau Mapping Example

You work in the retail industry, and business analysts in your enterprise need to analyze product sales trends
based on region.

The sales record files contain columns with information about products that are sold in multiple outlets and
regions. You consolidate the data in the sales record files that you receive through the day. You can then
perform transformations based on your requirements.

The following image shows a Tableau mapping:

You use the following objects in the Tableau mapping:

Flat file data object

The source for the mapping is a flat file data object that contains the product sales data.

27
 Create a flat file data object and specify the sales record as the resource for the data object. Source
columns in the flat file data object include Region ID, Product ID, Quantity, and Cost. Configure the read
properties of the data object.

Transformations
Add transformations to get aggregate data about the product sales in a particular region.

• The Filter transformation filters the data in the sales record files based on the value you specify for
the region ID column.
The Data Integration Service returns the rows that meet the filter condition.
• The Sorter transformation sorts the data in ascending order based on the region ID.
• The Aggregator transformation collects statistics about product sales for a particular region.
Use the result of the Sorter transformation as an input to the Aggregator transformation. You can
increase Aggregator transformation performance with the sorted input option.

Tableau data object write operation

The target of the mapping is a Tableau data object write operation. Create a Tableau data object and
then create a Tableau data object write operation to generate the Tableau data extract file.

Specify the absolute path and name of the Tableau data extract file to which you want to write the data.
You must then specify the content URL for a specific site on Tableau Server where you want to publish
the Tableau data extract file.

When you run the mapping, the Data Integration Service writes the sales information to a target TDE file
and publishes the TDE file to Tableau Server. You can then visualize the sales data categorized by
region in Tableau Server.

28 Chapter 5: Tableau Mappings

APPENDIX A

Data Type Reference

This appendix includes the following topics:

• Data Type Reference Overview, 29

• Tableau and Transformation Data Types, 29
• Decimal Data Type, 31
• Duration Data Type, 31

Data Type Reference Overview

Informatica Developer uses the following data types in Tableau mappings:

• Tableau native data types. Tableau data types appear in the physical data object column properties.
• Transformation data types. Set of data types that appear in the transformations. They are internal data
types based on ANSI SQL-92 generic data types, which the Data Integration Service uses to move data
across platforms. Transformation data types appear in all transformations in a mapping.
When the reads source data, it converts the native data types to the comparable transformation data types
before transforming the data. When the writes to a target, it converts the transformation data types to the
comparable native data types.

Tableau and Transformation Data Types

The following table lists the Tableau data types that the Data Integration Service supports and the
corresponding transformation data types:

Tableau Data Type Transformation Data Type Range and Description

Integer Integer -2,147,483,648 to 2,147,483,647

Precision 10, scale 0

Double Double Double-precision floating-point numeric value.

Precision 15

29
 Tableau Data Type Transformation Data Type Range and Description

Date Date/Time Jan 1, 0001 A.D. to Dec 31, 9999 A.D.

Precision of 29, scale of 9
(precision to nanosecond)

DateTime Date/Time Jan 1, 0001 A.D. to Dec 31, 9999 A.D.

Precision of 29, scale of 9
(precision to nanosecond)

unicode_string String, Text, Bigint, or Decimal The Data Integration Service performs an implicit
conversion of String, Text, Bigint, or Decimal to
unicode_string:
String:
- 1 to 104,857,600 characters
- Fixed-length or varying-length string
Text:
- 1 to 104,857,600 characters
- Fixed-length or varying-length string
Bigint:
- 9,223,372,036,854,775,808 to
9,223,372,036,854,775,807
- Precision of 19, scale of 0
- Integer value
Decimal:
- Precision 1 to 28 digits, scale 0 to 28
- Decimal value with declared precision and scale.
Scale must be less than or equal to precision.

char_string String, Text, Bigint, or Decimal The Data Integration Service performs an implicit
conversion of String, Text, Bigint, or Decimal to
char_string:
String:
- 1 to 104,857,600 characters
- Fixed-length or varying-length string
Text:
- 1 to 104,857,600 characters
- Fixed-length or varying-length string
Bigint:
- 9,223,372,036,854,775,808 to
9,223,372,036,854,775,807
- Precision of 19, scale of 0
- Integer value
Decimal:
- Precision 1 to 28 digits, scale 0 to 28
- Decimal value with declared precision and scale.
Scale must be less than or equal to precision.

boolean String 1 to 104,857,600 characters. Fixed-length or

varying-length string. Valid values are True and
False.

duration String Valid values for hours are integer values between 0
and 23. Valid values for minutes and seconds are
integer values between 0 and 59. If there is no value
for any field, specify 0.

30 Appendix A: Data Type Reference

Decimal Data Type
When you read data as Decimal in the reader object, use String or Double instead of the Decimal data type
for better performance. As Tableau does not support the Decimal data type, you must change the decimal
data to string data type that Tableau supports. Change the decimal data type to string in the input wizard of
the Tableau data object and char_string or unicode_string in the output wizard of the Tableau data object. To
write the decimal data to double data type supported by Tableau, change the decimal data type to double in
the input wizard of the Tableau data object. The Data Integration Service performs an implicit conversion of
decimal to a comparable native data type, unicode or char_string, that Tableau supports.

Duration Data Type

Duration is specified in days, hours, minutes, seconds, and milliseconds. All the values must be integers. You
must change the string data type that arrives from different source fields to a single string value and then
map this string value to the duration data type in the target operation.

For example, the Data Integration Service reads data from five different source fields of string data type, such
as, 5 days, 10 hours, 21 minutes, and 35 seconds. Use the Expression transformation to concatenate the
input string values to a single string value of comma-separated values, such as 5,10,21,35,0. Map the string
output received from the Expression transformation to duration data type. Use the single string value as the
input value and duration as the output value in the target operation of the mapping.

Decimal Data Type 31

Index

C R
client component run-time properties
installation 12 Tableau data object operation 24
connection properties
content URL 15
content URL
connection properties 15 S
creating server component
Tableau data object 24 installation 10
Tableau data object operation 25 installation on UNIX 11
installation on Windows 10

D
data type reference T
overview 29 Tableau data object
creating 24
general properties 23

I overview 17
Tableau data object operation
installation creating 25
server component 10 properties 24
client component 12 Tableau mapping
installation on UNIX example 27
server component 11 overview 27
installation on Windows
server component 10

U
O upgrade
Informatica Services 13
overview
Tableau data objects 17

W
P workbook templates
opportunity summary 18
PowerExchange for Tableau pipeline analysis 18
data types 29 rep performance analysis 18
installation overview 10 sales analysis by region 18
overview 8 sales summary 18

32