Overview

This article provides a step-by-step guide on how to configure and connect an ODBC MS Access DSN (Data Source Name) in Bold BI. The process involves downloading the ODBC driver, setting up the DSN, and configuring the Bold BI application to use the DSN. By following the steps outlined in this guide, you can successfully configure and connect an ODBC MS Access DSN to your on-premise Bold BI build, enabling you to visualize and analyze your Access database data within Bold BI dashboards.

Download and Install the ODBC Driver

To begin, you need to download and install the ODBC driver for MS Access:

1. Download the ODBC driver from the Microsoft website: Microsoft Access Database Engine 2010 Redistributable.
2. Open the ODBC Data Sources (32-bit) from Windows and select the System DSN tab.
   
   
3. Click the “Add” button to create a new ODBC DSN. You will see a list of ODBC DSNs installed on your machine.
   
   
4. Choose “Microsoft Access Driver (*.mdb, *.accdb)” from the list.
   
   
5. In the setup window, assign a name to the Data Source Name field.
   
   
6. Click the “Select” button to choose the Access Database file you wish to configure.
   
   
7. After selecting the AccessDB file, click “Advanced Options”.
   
   
8. Enter the login name and password for the ODBC Access DSN.
   
   
9. Click “OK” to finalize the configuration.
   
   

Configuring Bold BI for ODBC Data Source Connection

If Bold BI is installed on-premise and hosted in IIS, it will default to 64-bit mode, listing only 64-bit System DSN values. To use 32-bit DSN values, you must run the dashboard application in 32-bit mode.

Switching to 32-bit Mode in IIS

1. Open the Internet Information Services (IIS) Manager.
   
   
2. Navigate to Sites and select your Bold BI application site.
   
   
3. Stop the site and all associated application pools.
   
   
4. In the Application Pools, select “BoldBIApi” and click “Advanced Settings”.
   
   
5. Set “Enable 32-bit Applications” to “True”.
   
   
6. Apply the same setting to all other relevant application pools.
   
   
7. Restart the site and application pools.
   
   

Connecting to the ODBC Data Source

To configure the ODBC data source in Bold BI:

1. Click the “Data Sources” button in the configuration panel to add a new data connection.
   
   
2. Select “CREATE NEW” to launch a new connection and Choose the ODBC connection type.
   
   

Creating an MS Access ODBC Data Source

1. Enter a name and optional description for the data source.
2. Select the DSN name from the dropdown list.
   
   
3. Enter the MS Access ODBC server username and password. Optionally, enter the database name.
   
   
4. Click “Connect” to establish a connection with the ODBC server.
   
   
5. In the data design view, drag and drop the table or use the Code View to pass a query. Click “Save” to save the data source with a relevant name.
   
   

Additional References

• Data Transformation
• Editing a Data Connection
• Dashboard Designer Walk Through