Connectors → Amazon Web Services (AWS) Redshift

About Amazon Web Services (AWS) Redshift

Amazon AWS Redshift is a data warehouse product which forms part of the larger cloud-computing platform Amazon Web Services. Redshift handles analytics workloads on large scale data sets stored by a column-oriented database management system (DBMS) principle.

AWS Redshift Connector

The AWS Redshift Connector enables Incorta to access files stored in a Redshift database. You can access the data you want with a standard SQL query.

The AWS Redshift connector supports the following Incorta specific functionality:

FeatureSupported
Chunking
Data Agent
Encryption at Ingest
Incremental Load
Multi-Source
OAuth
Performance Optimized
Remote
Single-Source
Spark Extraction
Webhook Callbacks

Steps to connect AWS Redshift and Incorta

To connect AWS Redshift and Incorta, here are the high level steps, tools, and procedures:

Create an external data source

Here are the steps to create a external data source with the AWS Redshift connector:

  • Sign in to the Incorta Direct Data Platform.
  • In the Navigation bar, select Data.
  • In the Action bar, select + NewAdd Data Source.
  • In the Choose a Data Source dialog, in Database, select RedShift.
  • In the New Data Source dialog, specify the applicable connector properties.
  • To test, select Test Connection.
  • Select Ok to save your changes.

AWS Redshift connector properties

Here are the properties for the AWS Redshift connector:

PropertyControlDescription
Data Source Nametext boxEnter the name of the data source
Usernametext boxEnter the Redshift database username
Passwordtext boxEnter the Redshift database password
Connection Pooltext boxEnter the connection pool. The default is 30.
Connection Stringtext boxEnter the connection string for the Redshift JDBC driver. The format is: jdbc:redshift://<HOST>:<PORT><DB>

The default port is 5439.
Connection Propertiestext boxOptionally enter connector properties for a custom connection to AWS Redshift in the format: propertyName=propertyValue, where each connector property is on a new line.

The available connector properties are specified by com.amazon.redshift.jdbc4.Driver. Refer to the Driver Configuratio Options section of the Amazon Redshift JDBC Driver Installation and Configuration Guide for further information.
Use Data AgenttoggleEnable using a data agent to securely ingest data from an external data source that is behind a firewall.
For more information, please review Tools → Data Agent and Tools → Data Manager.
Data Agentdrop down listEnable Use Data Agent to configure this property. Select from the data agents created in the tenant, if any.
Important: Data Agent

A data agent is a service that runs on a remote host. It is also a data agent object in the Data Manager for a given tenant. An authentication file shared between the data agent object and the data agent service enables an authorized connection without using a VPN or SSH tunnel. With a data agent, you can securely extract data from one or more databases behind a firewall to an Incorta cluster. Your Incorta cluster can reside on-premises or in the cloud. A CMC Administrator must enable and configure an Incorta cluster to support the use of Data Agents. Only a Tenant Administrator (Super User) or user that belongs to a group with the SuperRole role for a given tenant can create a data agent that connects to a data agent service. To learn more, see Concepts → Data Agent and Tools → Data Agent.

Create a schema with the Schema Wizard

Here are the steps to create an AWS Redshift schema with the Schema Wizard:

  • Sign in to the Incorta Direct Data Platform.
  • In the Navigation bar, select Schema.
  • In the Action bar, select + New → Schema Wizard
  • In (1) Choose a Source, specify the following:
    • For Enter a name, enter the schema name.
    • For Select a Datasource, select the AWS Redshift external data source.
    • Optionally create a description.
  • In the Schema Wizard footer, select Next.
  • In (2) Manage Tables, in the Data Panel, navigate the directory tree as necessary to select the AWS Redshift files. You can either check the Select All checkbox or select individual sheets.
  • In the Schema Wizard footer, select Next.
  • In (3) Finalize, in the Schema Wizard footer, select Create Schema.

Create a schema with the Schema Designer

Here are the steps to create an AWS Redshift schema using the Schema Designer:

  • Sign in to the Incorta Direct Data Platform.
  • In the Navigation bar, select Schema.
  • In the Action bar, select + New → Create Schema.
  • In Name, specify the schema name, and select Save.
  • In Start adding tables to your schema, select SQL Database.
  • In the Data Source dialog, specify the AWS Redshift table data source properties.
  • Select Add.
  • In the Table Editor, in the Table Summary section, enter the table name.
  • To save your changes, select Done in the Action bar.

AWS Redshift table data source properties

For a schema table in Incorta, you can define the following AWS Redshift specific data source properties as follows:

PropertyControlDescription
Typedrop down listDefault is SQL Database
Data Sourcedrop down listSelect the AWS Redshift external data source
IncrementaltoggleEnable the incremental load configuration for the schema table
Fetch Sizetext boxUsed for performance improvement, fetch size defines the number of records that will be retrieved from the database in each batch until all records are retrieved. The default is 5000.
Querytext boxEnter the SQL query to retrieve data from the AWS Redshift database
Update Querytext boxEnable Incremental to configure this property. Enter the SQL query to retrieve data updates from the AWS Redshift database.
Incremental Field Typedrop down listEnable Incremental to configure this property. Select the format of the table date column:
  ●  Timestamp
  ●  Unix Epoch (seconds)
  ●  Unix Epoch (milliseconds)
CallbacktoggleEnable this option to call back on the source data set
Callback URLtext boxEnable Callback to configure this property. Specify the URL.

View the schema diagram with the Schema Diagram Viewer

Here are the steps to view the schema diagram using the Schema Diagram Viewer:

  • Sign in to the Incorta Direct Data Platform.
  • In the Navigation bar, select Schema.
  • In the list of schemas, select the AWS Redshift schema.
  • In the Schema Designer, in the Action bar, select Diagram.

Load the schema

Here are the steps to perform a Full Load of the AWS Redshift schema using the Schema Designer:

  • Sign in to the Incorta Direct Data Platform.
  • In the Navigation bar, select Schema.
  • In the list of schemas, select the AWS Redshift schema.
  • In the Schema Designer, in the Action bar, select Load → Load Now → Full.
  • To review the load status, in Last Load Status, select the date.

Explore the schema

With the full load of the AWS Redshift schema complete, you can use the Analyzer to explore the schema, create your first insight, and save the insight to a new dashboard.

To open the Analyzer from the schema, follow these steps:

  • In the Navigation bar, select Schema.
  • In the Schema Manager, in the List view, select the AWS Redshift schema.
  • In the Schema Designer, in the Action bar, select Explore Data.