Connect Tableau Desktop to the Salesforce Data Cloud

Applies to: Data Cloud, Tableau Desktop, Tableau Prep

Tableau Desktop (version 2023.2 and later)

Salesforce introduced a new Salesforce Data Cloud connector. The new Tableau connector seamlessly connects Data Cloud and Tableau Desktop. The Salesforce Data Cloud connector is available for Tableau Cloud, Tableau Desktop, and Tableau Prep.

Note: The Tableau Desktop UI displays both the old Customer Data Platform connector and the new Salesforce Data Cloud connector. After the Customer Data Platform connector is deprecated in October 2023, the Tableau Desktop UI will show Customer Data Platform connector (deprecated).

Benefits of the Data Cloud Connector

  • The connector is automatically included in a Tableau Desktop installation and eliminates the additional step to install the connector with a Taco file and a JDBC driver.
  • The connector is data spaces aware with improved usability that shows the object label in Tableau connect UI instead of the object API name.
  • The connector is powered by accelerated queries.

Note: Tableau Desktop 2023.2 is required to use the Data Cloud connector.

Migrate Existing Workbooks

Complete the following steps to migrate your existing workbooks to the Salesforce Data Cloud connector.

1. Launch Tableau Desktop 2023.2 or later.

2. Select Data, New Data Source.

3. Select Data space = default. You’re now connected to the Data Cloud connector.

Note: Data spaces represent a logical segregation of the data in Data Cloud. When you authored your workbook using the old connector, you used ALL data in Data Cloud because the concept of Data spaces didn’t exist before the June’ 23 release. As a result, to recreate the exact same workbook, we recommend customers use Data space = default.

4. Recreate your data model by adding relationships.

6. Select Replace Data Source.

7. Select OK, after you’re prompted to.

8. Replace the measures and dimensions. You’re now connected to the new data source.

9. Remove the old data source by right-clicking on the old data source, and then select Close.

Tableau Desktop (version 2023.1 and earlier)

Warning: The Customer Data Platform connector will be deprecated in October 2023. You can use the connector until it’s been retired. After the connector is retired, it’s removed from the Tableau user interface and any data sources using the connector will no longer work as expected. Typically, a deprecated connector will be retired 1–2 releases after it’s deprecated.

New users: If you’re a new user, you can use the built-in Salesforce Data Cloud connector.

Step 1: Install the Salesforce Data Cloud.taco file

Note: This step applies to versions 2021.1–2021.3. Starting in version 2021.4, the Salesforce_CDP.taco file is automatically installed.

  1. Remove or rename any Salesforce_CDP.taco files that have been previously installed to avoid conflicts. The Tableau Desktop.taco files are installed in the following locations:

    • MacOS: /Applications/Tableau Desktop <VERSION>.app/Contents/Resources/connectors/Salesforce_CDP.taco
    • Windows: C:\Program Files\Tableau\Tableau 2022.3\bin\connectors

  2. Download the latest Salesforce Data Cloud connector (Salesforce_CDP.taco file) from the Tableau Exchange Connectors site: Customer Data Platform Connector.

  3. Move the.taco file to the Tableau connector directory:

    • Windows: C:\Users[Windows User]\Documents\My Tableau Repository\Connectors

    • macOS: /Users/[user]/Documents/My Tableau Repository/Connectors

Step 2: Install the Salesforce Data Cloud JDBC driver

Note: Tableau version 2023.1 for Desktop is only compatible with JDBC driver version 18 and above.

  1. Download the latest JDBC driver (Salesforce-CDP-jdbc-[version].jar file) from the Salesforce CDP GitHub site: Salesforce-CDP-jdbc.

  2. Move the downloaded Salesforce-CDP-jdbc-[version].jar file to the following location:

    • Windows: C:\Program Files\Tableau\Drivers

    • macOS: /Users/[user]/Library/Tableau/Drivers

    Note: Unhide the folders to view them.

Step 3: Enable a High Assurance Session

You can enable a High Assurance session in to ensure that your connected app is secure. This session policy requires users to verify their identity with multi-factor authentication when they log into the connected app.

    1. Log in to Salesforce as a CDP Admin.
    2. In the Salesforce Data Cloud, search for App Manager.
    3. In the Setup's Quick Find, search for Salesforce CDP Tableau Connection in the list.
    4. Select Manage.

    IMPORTANT: Make sure you’re clicking the dropdown for Salesforce CDP Tableau Connection only!

     

    1. Select Edit Policies.

    1. Under Session Policies, select the High assurance session-required check box.

    1. Select Save. High assurance config is now enabled.

Step 4: Connect to the Salesforce Data Cloud in Tableau Desktop

  1. Launch Tableau Desktop (2021.1 and later).

  2. Go to Connect,To a Server, and select Salesforce CDP.

  3. In the Salesforce CDP dialog, confirm that OAuth is selected in the Authentication section and https://login.salesforce.com is selected in the OAuth instance URL section.

  4. Select Sign In to open a pane in a web browser.

  5. Sign in to Salesforce with your username and password.

  6. Select Allow.

  7. Close the browser pane.

    Tableau Desktop is now connected to the Salesforce Data Cloud and you can perform Tableau operations.

Next Steps

Use Accelerators for Quick Data Insights

You can quickly visualize your data using accelerators. Tableau Accelerators are pre-built dashboards designed to help you get a jump start on data analysis. Tailored to specific industries and enterprise applications. Accelerators are built with sample data that you can swap out for your own data, allowing you to discover insights with minimal setup. Accelerators are available on the Tableau Exchange. For more information about accelerators, see Use Accelerators to Quickly Visualize Data. You may want to try some of the following Salesforce Data Cloud accelerators.

Salesforce Data Cloud Identity Resolution Accelerator

You can use the Identity Resolution Accelerator to explore how identity resolution in Salesforce Data Cloud is working for your business. You can view your ingested sources, how they contribute to unified individuals, and their composition. For more information, see Salesforce Data Cloud Identity Resolution.

Salesforce Data Cloud Email Marketing Campaign Accelerator

With the CDP Email Marketing Campaign Accelerator you can monitor the efficiency of your email campaigns end to end. You can explore campaigns that have the highest conversion, email trends over time, and more. For more information, see Salesforce Data Cloud Email Marketing Campaigns.

Salesforce Data Cloud Customer Engagement Accelerator

This accelerator is an exploratory dashboard that gives marketing and sales teams a comprehensive view of the engagement levels of customers across the following channels.

  • Sales
  • Email
  • Messages (SMS)
  • Website
  • Push Notifications

The accelerator helps these teams to select the best channels to interact with the customer, develop relevant messaging, and create positive customer experiences to increase loyalty and retention. For more information, see Salesforce Data Cloud Customer Engagement.

 

See also:

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