# 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.

Source: https://tini.so/docs/data

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](https://tini.so/docs/data/postgresql) | Your app’s Postgres database, a BigQuery project | Stays where it is | Live: every question reads it as it is now |
| [Sync data](https://tini.so/docs/data/sync) | Google Sheets, MySQL, and hundreds of apps through Fivetran | Copied into a warehouse Orcabase hosts | On a schedule you pick |
| [Upload a file](https://tini.so/docs/data/upload-files) | 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](https://tini.so/docs/data/hosted) | 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](https://tini.so/docs/data/postgresql) with a read-only user. Answers are always live, and there’s nothing to keep in sync.
- **You already use BigQuery:** [connect it](https://tini.so/docs/data/bigquery) with a service account.
- **Your numbers live in spreadsheets:** [sync them](https://tini.so/docs/data/google-sheets). Each tab becomes a table.
- **Your data is in an app** like Stripe, HubSpot or Google Ads: sync it [through Fivetran](https://tini.so/docs/data/fivetran).
- **You have a one-off export:** [upload it](https://tini.so/docs/data/upload-files).

> **Tip: Mixing sources**
>
> Synced and uploaded data can sit in the same DuckDB warehouse, and that warehouse can [attach your Postgres database](https://tini.so/docs/data/hosted#attach-postgres). 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:

1. **Open the form**

   Go to **Data Sources → New data source**.

2. **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.

3. **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**.

4. **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](https://tini.so/docs/data/sync).

## 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](https://tini.so/docs/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](https://tini.so/data-sources).

- [PostgreSQL](https://tini.so/docs/data/postgresql): Your app’s database, queried live.
- [BigQuery](https://tini.so/docs/data/bigquery): A Google Cloud project, through a service account.
- [Google Sheets](https://tini.so/docs/data/google-sheets): Every tab becomes a table, synced on a schedule.
- [MySQL](https://tini.so/docs/data/mysql): Tables copied into your warehouse on a schedule.
- [Fivetran connectors](https://tini.so/docs/data/fivetran): Hundreds of apps and databases.
- [Upload files](https://tini.so/docs/data/upload-files): CSV, TSV, Parquet and JSON.

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All docs: https://tini.so/llms.txt