Tableau

Tableau Desktop connects to Syntra ODBC through its built-in PostgreSQL connector, giving you access to QuickBooks data for building visualizations and dashboards.

Prerequisites

• Syntra ODBC installed and running
• Tableau Desktop 2020.1 or later

Connecting Tableau

Step 1: Open a New Connection

1. Open Tableau Desktop.
2. Under Connect > To a Server, click PostgreSQL.

Step 2: Enter Connection Details

Field	Value
Server	localhost
Port	5433
Database	quickbooks
Username	syntra
Password	Your password

Select Require SSL only if you have TLS configured.

Step 3: Click Sign In

Tableau connects to Syntra and presents the schema browser.

Step 4: Select Tables

1. In the Schema dropdown, select public.
2. Drag tables from the left panel onto the canvas.
3. Tableau auto-detects join relationships. Adjust join conditions if needed, typically joining on list_id = *_ref_list_id columns.

Using Custom SQL

For advanced queries, click New Custom SQL in the left panel and enter your query:

SELECT
    i.ref_number,
    c.name,
    i.txn_date,
    il.item_ref_full_name AS Item,
    il.quantity,
    il.amount
FROM invoice_lines il
JOIN invoices i ON il.txn_id = i.txn_id
JOIN customers c ON i.customer_ref_list_id = c.list_id
WHERE i.txn_date >= '2025-01-01'

Live vs. Extract

Mode	Description
Live	Queries sent to Syntra in real time. Good for small datasets or when you need up-to-the-minute data.
Extract	Tableau creates a local .hyper file snapshot. Better performance for large datasets and complex calculations.

For most use cases, Extract mode with scheduled refreshes provides the best balance of performance and freshness.

Publishing to Tableau Server

1. Create your workbook with an Extract data source.
2. Publish to Tableau Server or Tableau Cloud.
3. Configure refresh schedules to pull updated data from Syntra on a regular basis.
4. Ensure the Tableau Server machine can reach the Syntra server (or install Tableau Bridge for cloud-to-on-premises connectivity).

Tips

• Data types: Syntra maps QuickBooks fields to PostgreSQL types. Dates, amounts, and quantities are correctly typed for Tableau.
• Performance filters: Apply filters early in the data source to reduce the volume of data transferred.
• Parameters: Use Tableau parameters combined with Custom SQL to create dynamic, user-driven queries.