Getting Started with DB RTD

The DB RTD add-in allows creating refreshable reports and models based on database data in Microsoft Excel in an easy way.

Suppose we have two database tables, or views, like weblogs:

and downloads:

We want to create a simple dashboard to monitor visitors and downloads:

To solve this task using native Excel features, we have to create:

1. A pivot table for pages and months from dbo.weblogs;
2. A pivot table for pages and weeks from dbo.weblogs;
3. A pivot table for files and months from dbo.downloads;
4. A pivot table for files and weeks from dbo.downloads.

So, the target dashboard table will contain four types of formulas.

Moreover, we should record a macro to refresh tables and call the macro on timer events if we want to refresh data periodically.

DB RTD has a simple and elegant solution.

Just use RTD formulas to get and refresh database data like this:

=RTD("db.rtd",,"sqlexpress","test3.dbo.downloads","file","dbrtd.zip","week","4/23/2017","count(id)")

For example, the target table can look like this:

All formulas in the table are regular and have the same structure.

So, you can get refreshable data from any database and any table, with any supported aggregate formula like count, max, or min.

As a result, you can create reports and models with fewer efforts, in less time, and with clear structures.

Start learning with the Using DB RTD topic.