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How do I connect Tableau to Salesforce?

Use the Salesforce ODBC driver documentation.

Before you can use the Salesforce ODBC driver to connect Tableau to Salesforce, you need to configure an ODBC data source. An ODBC data source stores the connection details for the target database (Salesforce, in this case) and the ODBC driver that's required to connect to it (the Salesforce ODBC driver, in this case).

You can configure a user ODBC data source, which is only available to the user who creates it, or a system ODBC data source, which is available to all users on the machine. You configure ODBC data sources in ODBC Data Source Administrator, which is included with Windows.

To run ODBC Data Source Administrator, in the Windows Run dialog box, enter:

%windir%\syswow64\odbcad32.exe

Use ODBC Data Source Administrator to create your Salesforce ODBC driver data source:

  1. Do one of the following:
    • To create a user data source, in the User DSN tab, choose Add.

      –Or–

    • To create a system data source, choose the System DSN tab, and then choose Add.
  2. In the Create New Data Source dialog box, choose Easysoft ODBC-Salesforce Driver, and then choose Finish.
  3. Complete the DSN Setup dialog box:
    Setting Value
    DSN Salesforce
    User Name The name of your Salesforce user. For example, myuser@mydomain.com.
    Password The password for your Salesforce user.
    Token The security token for your Salesforce user, if required.

    To find out whether you need to supply a security token, choose the Test button. If the connection attempt fails with an error which contains LOGIN_MUST_USE_SECURITY_TOKEN, you need to supply one.

    Salesforce emails the security token to the email address associated with your Salesforce user account. If you have not received a security token, you can regenerate it. Salesforce will then email the new security token to you. To regenerate your security token, log in to Salesforce and then choose Setup from the user menu. Search for "security token" in the Quick Find box. Choose Reset Security Token in the Reset Security Token page. When you receive the token in your email client, copy it and then paste it into the Token field.
  4. Use the Test button to verify that you can successfully connect to Salesforce.

You can now connect Tableau to Salesforce:

  1. In Tableau Desktop, on the Data menu, choose Connect To Data.
  2. In the Connect To Data page's On a server section, choose Other Databases (ODBC).
  3. In the Generic ODBC Connection dialog box, choose the Salesforce ODBC driver data source from the DSN list, and then choose Connect.
  4. Use the Table section of the dialog box to retrieve the Salesforce objects that you want to work with.

    For example, to work with a single object, choose Single Table and then select the magnifying glass beneath. In the Select Table dialog box, choose Load. Choose the object that you want to work with, and then choose Select.

  5. Enter a name for the ODBC connection in the space provided (or accept the default value), and then choose OK.
  6. Note the capabilities reported by Tableau for the data source, and then choose OK.
  7. The Salesforce ODBC driver provides real time access to your Salesforce objects and so you can choose Connect Live.

    Your Salesforce objects are now ready for use in Tableau.