One of the benefits of virtual connections is that you can reuse the same extract multiple times, reducing data proliferation and removing redundant extract refresh jobs. To ensure that extract data is fresh for any content that uses a virtual connection, you can create an extract refresh schedule for the tables in your connection.

Extract tables

1. Select Extracts Only from the Table Mode drop-down menu.
2. Click Extract Now. Note that you can't edit the virtual connection while extracts are being generated.
3. Click Extract to extract the tables.
4. Click Publish to publish the virtual connection.
5. Click File > Close to close the virtual connection editor.

Schedule extract refreshes on Tableau Server or Tableau Cloud

1. Navigate to the virtual connection page. (From the Home or Explore page, click Virtual Connections from the drop-down menu, then select your virtual connection.)
2. On the Tables tab, the Data is column should have Extract as the value. If it doesn't, refresh your browser.
3. Select the Scheduled Tasks tab and click +New Task.
4. The Create Schedule Task dialog box has different options, depending on your product:

In Tableau Server:

1. Select a schedule from the drop-down menu.
2. Select whether to keep all extract refreshes in sync (if one fails, they all fail) or refresh independently (extracts succeed or fail individually).
3. Click Add or Edit Tables to select the tables you want to refresh. Virtual connections support only full refresh.
4. Click OK.
5. Click Create Scheduled Task.



In Tableau Cloud:

1. Select the Refresh Frequency using the drop-down menus for Repeats, Every and At. Select the days to refresh under On.
2. Select whether to keep all extract refreshes in sync (if one fails, they all fail) or refresh independently (extracts succeed or fail individually).
3. Click Add or Edit Tables to select the tables you want to refresh. Virtual connections support only full refresh.
4. Click OK.
5. Click Create Scheduled Task.



Virtual connections that connect to private network data use Tableau Bridge to keep data fresh. For more information, see Configure and Manage the Bridge Client Pool(Link opens in a new window).

Time limit for extract refreshes

To ensure that long-running refresh tasks don't take up all system resources and don't prevent refreshes of other extracts on your site, extract refreshes for a virtual connection are subject to a two-hour time limit. For more information about the timeout limit for refresh tasks and suggestions for resolving these errors, see Time limit for extract refreshes(Link opens in a new window). However, note that virtual connections support only full and not incremental refreshes.

Who can do this

To publish a virtual connection or set permissions, you must

• have credentials to the database that the virtual connection connects to, and
• be a server or site administrator, or a Creator.

Next step

After you schedule extract refreshes for a virtual connection, you can Use a Virtual Connection