How do I connect Azure Data Factory to StackOverflow?

Execute the following steps to connect Azure Data Factory to StackOverflow. You only need knowledge of Azure Data Factory, your own business and the StackOverflow administration.

StackExchange is online collaboration software. Most popular variant is StackOverflow which is used by millions of software developers globally.

No technical knowledge is needed nor knowledge on the StackOverflow APIs to connect StackOverflow to Azure Data Factory. This step-by-step plan will tell you exactly which steps you need to go through on Invantive Cloud to create your own Azure data warehouse with data from StackOverflow.

The steps to connect Azure Data Factory to StackOverflow are:

1. Register an Invantive Cloud account.
2. Create a StackOverflow database.
3. Make the StackOverflow database available through the Microsoft OData connector.
4. Connect Azure Data Factory to StackOverflow through the connector.
5. Load data from StackOverflow into Azure Data Factory data warehouse.

Invantive Cloud offers a StackOverflow connector to download data from StackOverflow into Azure Data Factory, but there are over 75 other connectors available also for SQL, Power BI Desktop, Power BI Service, Power Query and/or Azure Data Factory.

With the StackOverflow connector for Azure Data Factory you will by default fetch the data from all connected StackOverflow companies in your dashboard. You can limit the number of StackOverflow companies that are retrieved in Azure Data Factory through the Database settings. For example, you can also limit the connector for Azure Data Factory to the data from exactly one StackOverflow company. Of course, you can also filter the data by a specific StackOverflow company using a filter step in Azure Data Factory. The StackOverflow connector for Azure Data Factory has advanced optimizations for great real-time performance with both a single StackOverflow company as well as with hundreds of StackOverflow companies.

When you are having questions, please check the forums for StackOverflow. Every organisation is entitled to 1 hour of free training to help you get started. This free hour also applies to free plans.

Register Account on Invantive Cloud

Skip this step when you already have an account on Invantive Cloud. Otherwise execute the following steps one time to register an account on Invantive Cloud:

1. Go to Invantive Cloud start page.

2. Select the Log on-button.

3. Select the Sign Up-button.

4. Enter your business email address.

5. Select the Next-button.

6. Enter your personal data.

7. Select the Next-button.

8. Enter your password and repeat the provided password.

9. Select the Next-button.

10. You will receive a six-digit verification code by email within 2 minutes.

11. Enter the six-digit verification code.

12. Select the Sign Up-button.

13. Log on now.

14. Make sure you have an authentication app installed on your phone. Select the Next-button.

15. Add the displayed QR code to the authentication app, enter the current verification code, and choose "Finish".

16. Skip registration of the organization.

17. Complete your personal data and choose 'Save'.

18. Go to the dashboard.

19. The Invantive Cloud dashboard will be shown.

You now have a login code on Invantive Cloud with which you can set up the connection with StackOverflow and numerous other platforms. You will use the same Invantive login code and workflow for all other platforms.

Create StackOverflow database

In this step, we set up a database with data from StackOverflow. The database is "virtual" because it is not a traditional database, but is fed real-time from StackOverflow. Invantive Cloud provides Azure Data Factory with a real-time link to StackOverflow. The database will be used for all your StackOverflow reporting with Azure Data Factory. So you only need to perform these steps once.

1. Click the Add Database button.

2. Select StackOverflow from the list.

3. Please fill out the form with login information for StackOverflow.

4. Select the OK-button.

Congratulations! You can now process data from StackOverflow within the Invantive Cloud website. You can do this for example with the interactive SQL editor.

Grant connection from Azure Data Factory access to StackOverflow

To retrieve the data from Azure Data Factory we create a link via Invantive Bridge Online. This creates a "bridge" between the cloud of Invantive and the standard OData connector that is available in every version of Azure Data Factory. You do not need to install anything locally: no connector, no ado.NET provider and no Azure Data Factory add-on neither.

Execute the following steps to safely use the data from StackOverflow outside of Invantive Cloud:

1. Next to the database you will find an orange text requesting you to allow access from your current location (IP address). Select the nearby orange button.

2. You must completely disable IP address checking by entering an asterisk ("*") since Microsoft Azure Data Factory consists of hundreds of thousands of servers across the globe.

You are now ready to import the StackOverflow data into Azure Data Factory.

Configure Azure Data Factory connector for StackOverflow

You will now pull in Azure Data Factory data from StackOverflow through the established link.

Please note again that Invantive Cloud under the hood handles all complexity such as setting up credentials such as a refresh token, acquiring an access token, optimizing and parallelizing access, accessing an API within the rate limits, scopes and security restrictions. There is absolutely no need for knowledge on complex technical topics such as OAuth access tokens or API. The Microsoft Azure Data Factory steps, activities and pipelines can be constructed using just the OData feed and basic authentication.

Execute the following steps:

1. Start Microsoft Azure Data Factory and select 'Ingest'.

2. Select 'Built-in copy task'.

3. Select source type 'OData' and select 'New connection'.

4. Enter in the window the Bridge Online URL of the Azure Data Factory database. This URL containing the data can be found in the Database-form of Invantive Cloud. Choose authentication type 'Basic authentication'. Enter the Invantive Cloud user name and password.

5. The list of available StackOverflow tables appears. Select the desired tables and construct your pipeline in Microsoft Azure Data Factory.