Within Tableau it’s possible to connect to a Sharepoint list using the OData data connector.
To connect to a Sharepoint list takes some understanding of the Sharepoint URL structure, which I’ll attempt to explain below.
How to connect Tableau to a Sharepoint List
Each Sharepoint site has its own administration, lists, pages, etc.
For reporting Sharepoint data in Tableau I have always used a List. A list is basically a Sharepoint version of a database table.
To connect to a Sharepoint list from Tableau you need to know the name of the LIST. The use of caps is deliberate because this is important. Connect to the source list and NOT a view of a list.
Build the Sharepoint to Tableau connection URL
The exact URL depends on your Sharepoint instance.
Each instance differs but the URL should have a root of something such as:
https://YourSharepointRoot/SharepointSite/SharepointArea/ then could be Pages, Lists, SitePages / PageName, ListName, etc.
We only want the first part of the URL, up to SharepointArea.
Add this to the end of the URL: _vti_bin/ListData.svc/.
This gives a URL of https://YourSharepointRoot/SharepointSite/SharepointArea/_vti_bin/ListData.svc/
Opening the URL in your Sharepoint site, if you’ve got it right, will give an XML list of all of the objects. This includes the lists (which we want), not the views of lists (which we don’t want).
However it doesn’t give a way to identify the list name. This is something you can find in the URL when viewing the list to bring into Tableau.
To complete the connecting Sharepoint to Tableau we just need to add the list name to the end, such as:
https://YourSharepointRoot/SharepointSite/SharepointArea/_vti_bin/ListData.svc/ListName
The OData connection window should appear as follows:
Click OK and the Sharepoint list fields should load into your Tableau workbook.
Curious if you have a solution to the issue where columns that allow a “Choice” column with “Checkboxes (allow multiple selections)”? I notice that when I select the checkboxes, the dimension will not show up in Tableau through OData. But when i make it “Drop-down Menu” or “Radio Buttons” it will show up. HOwever this defeats the point, as I need multi select (which I will then parse in Tableau”. We are using Sharepoint 2010.
I’m not sure, never come across that before, you can ask the Tableau forums, https://community.tableau.com/community/forums, it’s highly likely someone on there has come across this situation
@Andy Miller
Hi Andy, I am running into the same issue; have you found a solution yet?
@Andy Miller
Hi..
I did an integration between tableau and sharepoint , the sharepoint columns are transformed while seeing them in tableau ..
one such example is , the NAME field has john,robert,david as values in the sharepoint list but in tableau it is shown as 123,784,987..Could you please help me resolve this ?
@shyam
How do we connect SharePoint to Tableau Server
First connect a tableau extract to sharepoint. Next publish that extract to Tableau Server. Finally, within Tableau Server, set the extract to update to your required schedule.
Hi Andy, Did you come up with a solution to your above issue ?
hi..
Can we dump or export data from tableau into sharepoint on adaily basis?
Tableau isn’t a database, it’s a visualisation tool. I expect you can are able to dump data from your database directly to sharepoint.
@Andy Miller
Hello Andy,
The solution is to copy your multi-pick field to a text column and then use the text field in your Tableau dashboard.
Hope that helps,
Glenna
Here’s an alternative approach.
http://www.axioworks.com/2018/02/using-tableau-to-report-on-sharepoint-lists-and-libraries-a-step-by-step-guide/
Gets round some of the query issues with large sharepoint and comlicated lists