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Session 1.1

Tableau connects to various data sources, including local files, databases, and cloud services, to visualize data effectively. Users can choose between a live connection for real-time data updates or an extract for improved performance with large datasets. The document outlines the steps to connect to a single Excel spreadsheet and includes a knowledge check on the connection process.

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Vito Djauhary
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3 views5 pages

Session 1.1

Tableau connects to various data sources, including local files, databases, and cloud services, to visualize data effectively. Users can choose between a live connection for real-time data updates or an extract for improved performance with large datasets. The document outlines the steps to connect to a single Excel spreadsheet and includes a knowledge check on the connection process.

Uploaded by

Vito Djauhary
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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CONNECTING TO DATA

SESSION 1
Section 1 of 6

Tableau data connections


Tableau helps you see and understand your data, but to do this, Tableau needs a connection to
that data

Tableau supports connecting to a wide variety of data, stored in a variety of places. For
example, your data might be stored on your computer in a spreadsheet or a text file, or in a
database on a server in your enterprise.

Tableau Desktop Connect pane on the Start Page

Or, you might connect to public domain data available on the web, such as U.S. Census
Bureau information, or to a cloud database source, such as Google Analytics, Amazon
Redshift, or Salesforce. For a list of the hundreds of data sources Tableau can connect to, see
the list of supported connectors on the Tableau website.

Link: https://help.tableau.com/current/pro/desktop/en-us/exampleconnections_overview.htm
Live connection vs extracts
By default, Tableau maintains a live connection to your data. A live connection is a direct
connection to your data, while a Tableau data extract is a compressed snapshot of data stored
locally and loaded into memory.

Tableau Connection options

Live Connection
Connecting live, which is the default connection, leaves the data in the database or source
file. This is best when you want to leverage a high performance database’s capabilities, or to
get up-to-the-second changes in data visualized in Tableau. Sometimes, connecting live can
result in a slow experience, depending on the database.

Extract
You can alternatively choose to extract the data into Tableau's high performance in-memory
data engine. This option is useful when you connect to a slow database or when you want to
take query load off critical systems.

You can choose to import only some of the data and bring in specific elements to the extract.
To access those options, click Edit. If the original data source changes, you can also refresh
the data in the extract by clicking Refresh.
Connect to a data source
Tableau can connect to a number of different flat file types as well as a wide range of server-
based data sources. In this module, we will connect to a single, file-based data source.

You can also connect to multiple data sources at a time and use relationships, joins, unions,
and blends to work with the data. We'll cover working with multiple data sources in
subsequent modules.

The types of flat files you can connect to include Microsoft Excel files, text files, JSON files,
PDF files, and more

In this lesson, we'll connect to a single Excel spreadsheet.


1. Open Tableau Desktop
2. In the Connect pane, click the Microsoft Excel file type.
3. In the Open dialog box, select “Exercise” excel file and click Open. Then Tableau
will show this page. You are now connected to the data.

4. Drag “Mega Mart” sheets into the canvas.


Knowledge Check 1
1. What is the best description of how Tableau makes a live connection to your data?
A. Tableau extracts all your data into its custom data structure at regular intervals.
B. You manually load file extracts into Tableau's database.
C. Tableau maintains a connection to the data source, so data refreshes in the
workbook.
D. You manually load data files into Tableau's database.

2. Why does Tableau create a live data connection by default?


A. Live connections maximize efficiency because they include the entire contents of the
data source.
B. Connecting live means that as new source data is added, it can be incorporated into
your analysis.
C. A live connection will query the data source and rebuild it as an extract.

3. To connect to data with Tableau Desktop, where in the interface do you first click from?
A. Data Source page
B. Connect pane
C. Data pane
D. File menu

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