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All documentation
  • Introduction
  • Connecting to data source
    1. Supported data sources
    2. Connecting to other data sources
  • Browser compatibility
  • Documentation for older versions
  • Connecting to other data sources

    This guide describes ways of connecting to the data sources that are not supported in Flexmonster out of the box (e.g., NoSQL databases or data warehouses such as Amazon Redshift).

    We suggest the following approaches to connect the component to your data source:

    • The easiest way: writing a server-side script that returns data in a JSON or CSV format — learn more here.
    • For .NET stack: using Flexmonster Data Server as a DLL, which allows implementing custom data fetching logic — learn more here.
    • For any stack: implementing a custom server that will retrieve data from your data source and pass it to Flexmonster — learn more here.

    You can also check out the list of supported data sources for which we have ready-to-use connection guides.

    Get data from a data source with a server-side script

    The steps below describe how to load data from your data source to Flexmonster using a server-side script.

    Step 1. Create a server-side script that fetches your data

    Write a server-side script that returns data from your data source in JSON or CSV format on a GET request. The component will use the URL to this server-side script.

    Note Ensure that your server-side script returns data in a format supported by Flexmonster. Check out the supported JSON and CSV formats.

    For example, if you use Google BigQuery tables, see the guide for creating an application that returns data.

    Step 2. Enable cross-origin resource sharing (CORS)

    By default, cross-domain requests are blocked on servers. To allow Flexmonster to access your server-side script, you must enable CORS on your server. Visit enable-cors.org to find information on how to enable CORS on different types of servers.

    Step 3. Connect Flexmonster to your data

    Now, connect Flexmonster to your server-side script by following our guides:

    Step 4. Run the application

    Launch the webpage from a browser — a pivot table is embedded into your project.

    Get data from a data source with Flexmonster Data Server DLL

    Flexmonster Data Server is a server-side solution developed by Flexmonster. The Data Server fetches your data from a data source, aggregates it, and then sends it to Flexmonster Pivot, which visualizes this data. Out of the box, the Data Server supports JSON, CSV, and SQL data sources.

    Using Flexmonster Data Server as a DLL gives you more flexibility in working with data: you can modify the built-in data parsers or implement a custom one. This approach allows you to retrieve data from any data source in any format.

    Learn how to use the Data Server as a DLL.

    Get data from a data source with a custom server

    If your data source is not supported in Flexmonster out of the box, you may create a server that will fetch, process, and aggregate the data from the data source.

    The next step is to connect Flexmonster Pivot to your server by implementing the custom data source API. It is our communication protocol for loading aggregated data from a server to Flexmonster Pivot. To learn how to implement the custom data source API on your server, refer to our step-by-step guide.

    As a result, Flexmonster will be able to visualize data from any data source through the proxy server.

    See also