SharpCloud Connectors – Technical Information

SharpCloud connectors provide powerful functionality to integrate, transform, and synchronize external data with your story, helping you manage and visualize data effectively.

Core Concepts

All connectors follow a consistent process:

• Authentication
• Mapping
• Syncing and Publishing

Each connector maps a single external dataset to one category. Multiple connectors can be used to update multiple categories or the same category if needed.

Before using a connector, ensure the target category already exists in the story.

Authentication

Authentication methods vary depending on the connector. Some rely on your SharpCloud login, while others require credentials such as API tokens or OAuth.

Mapping

Mapping allows you to:

• Create new attributes based on incoming data
• Map incoming data to existing attributes

This ensures the external data aligns correctly with your story structure.

Syncing and Publishing

Syncing applies the mapped data to your story, creating or updating items.

Publishing a connector allows:

• Other admins to access and run it
• Automated scheduled updates (hourly or daily, except for some connectors such as Excel)

If a scheduled update fails, email notifications will be sent until the issue is resolved.

Controllable Options

Connectors include configurable options such as:

• Add List Items to allow new list values
• Add Tags to include tags during updates
• Delete Mode to remove items no longer in the source
• Mode to run as Preview or Update
• Notify Users to reflect updates in active stories
• Email notifications for update results

Each connector also has a unique ConnectorID.

Related To Functionality

The Related To feature allows you to create relationships between items across categories.

If your dataset includes a column named in the format RelatedTo.CategoryName, and the category exists in the story, relationships will be created automatically using comma-separated values.

Advanced SQL

The connector interface includes a graphical mapping tool, but you can enable Show Advanced SQL to:

• Customize queries
• Filter data
• Rename fields
• Perform joins and transformations

Once edited, you cannot return to the graphical interface.

Common SQL functions include:

• Aggregate functions such as SUM, COUNT, AVG
• String functions such as LEFT and SUBSTRING
• Table functions such as JOIN and GROUP BY
• Conversion and conditional functions

Advanced Connection String

Each connector includes an Advanced section where you can define additional connection parameters if required.