Connect your data
The four ways to bring data into Orcabase: connect a database, sync apps and spreadsheets, upload files, or let Orcabase host it. How to choose.
Orcabase works with the data you already have. There are four ways to bring it in, and most companies use two or three of them side by side.
The four ways in
| Way in | Good for | Where the data lives | How fresh |
|---|---|---|---|
| Connect a database | Your app’s Postgres database, a BigQuery project | Stays where it is | Live: every question reads it as it is now |
| Sync data | Google Sheets, MySQL, and hundreds of apps through Fivetran | Copied into a warehouse Orcabase hosts | On a schedule you pick |
| Upload a file | One-off exports: CSV, TSV, Parquet, JSON | A new table in a database of yours | A snapshot; upload again to refresh |
| Let Orcabase host it | Teams without a database of their own | A Postgres server or DuckDB warehouse run by Orcabase | Whatever you sync or load into it |
Which one should I use?
- Your app has a Postgres database: connect it with a read-only user. Answers are always live, and there’s nothing to keep in sync.
- You already use BigQuery: connect it with a service account.
- Your numbers live in spreadsheets: sync them. Each tab becomes a table.
- Your data is in an app like Stripe, HubSpot or Google Ads: sync it through Fivetran.
- You have a one-off export: upload it.
Mixing sources
Synced and uploaded data can sit in the same DuckDB warehouse, and that warehouse can attach your Postgres database. Then one query can join your app’s live data with last night’s spreadsheet sync.
Add a data source
A connected database or a hosted one becomes a data source. To add one:
Open the form
Go to Data Sources then New data source.
Pick what you’re connecting to
- PostgreSQL: any Postgres database, whether Orcabase hosts it or you run it yourself.
- DuckDB: a DuckDB warehouse, by its URL and token. We add yours for you when we set the warehouse up.
- Google BigQuery: a BigQuery project.
Fill it in and create it
Give it a name your team will recognize, like “App database”, fill in the details, and click Create data source.
Test it
Open it and click Test connection. Orcabase runs a one-line query (
SELECT 1), and Connected means everything works.
Syncs are set up on a separate page, Sync data, because they copy data rather than connect to it. See Sync data.
Manage data sources
- Data Sources lists every source with its database type (for example
postgres), where it points, and a Test button. - Edit changes the name and connection details. Leave a password or key blank to keep the one already saved. A data source’s type can’t change; create a new one instead.
- Explore opens its schemas and tables. See Explore.
- Remove deletes it from Orcabase after you confirm. Queries that use it stop working. The database itself isn’t touched.
Where synced and uploaded data goes
| Data | Lands in |
|---|---|
| Google Sheets and MySQL syncs | A DuckDB warehouse you pick, one schema per source |
| Fivetran syncs | A hosted Postgres server, one schema per source |
| Uploaded files | The DuckDB or Postgres data source you upload into |
Connectors
For popular apps, and what you can ask about each once it’s connected, see the data sources catalog.
Something unclear or missing? Troubleshooting covers the common errors, or message us.