Embed Tableau Server Views into SharePoint

When the Tableau Server is configured for using Active Directory, and it automatically authenticates users, then the users can see views you embed in SharePoint pages with the Tableau web part.

Requirements:

• You need SharePoint 2013 or later to embed views, and an administrator needs to deploy the TableauEmbeddedView web part to your SharePoint server. For the sample SharePoint code and instructions, take a look at the below location on your computer:

E:\Program Files\Tableau\Tableau Server\packages\extras.<version_code>\embedding\sharepoint\

The sample code is provided for an example, and it may require modification to work in your SharePoint deployment.

• For seeing embedded views, users need to have a Tableau Server license and the same user name on SharePoint.

How to embed a View into SharePoint?

You can also embed the Tableau web part in a new or existing SharePoint page.

1. Open that page where you want to embed a view and then switch to edit mode.
2. In the page, click Web Part on the Insert tab.
3. Under the Categories, in the Custom (or Miscellaneous) folder, select TableauEmbeddedView, and then click on Add in the lower-right corner.

4. Select the TableauEmbeddedView web part, click on the drop-down arrow, and then select the option Edit Web Part.

5. On the right-side of the page, you can also specify the attributes of the TableauEmbeddedView web part.

• In the Tableau Server Name, enter the name of the Tableau Server. You not need to specify “http://” before the Tableau Server name.
• In the View Path, enter the path to the view you want to embed.
• Specify whether or not you want to show the toolbar, use Trusted Authentication, use SSL, or whether you want to embed the view as an image instead of as an interactive view.
• You can then also specify a title for the web part in the Appearance section, the Height, Width, Chrome State, and Chrome Type. In general, you must specify a fixed height (for instance, 700 Pixels) and adjust the width to fit the zone.

6. Click on OK for applying the changes and exit edit mode.

The view will get embedded into the web part that you have just created. To see the view, the users will be automatically authenticated using Active Directory.

When the Tableau Server uses Local Authentication to authenticate users, there are some extra steps you require to take so they can see views embedded in SharePoint pages.

Requirements:

• For embedding views, you need SharePoint 2013 or later.
• For seeing embedded views, users must have a Tableau Server license and the same user name on SharePoint.

How to edit Security Permissions for TableauEmbeddedView.dll?

You can edit the security permissions for TableauEmbeddedView.dll so that all users of the operating system can use it.

1. First, locate the TableauEmbeddedView.dll and TableauEmbeddedView.wsp files that are installed with Tableau Server. If the Tableau Server is installed on drive E, the files will be in the following directory:

E:\Program Files\Tableau\Tableau Server\packages\extras.<version_code>\embedding\sharepoint\

2. Copy all the files from the folder to the root directory of the SharePoint server. The root directory is usually located at E:\Inetpub\wwwroot\wss\VirtualDirectories\<port>\bin, for example:

E:\Inetpub\wwwroot\wss\VirtualDirectories\80\bin

3. For editing the security permissions on TableauEmbeddedView.dll, right-click on the TableauEmbedded.dll and then select Properties > Security.
4. Under Group or user names, select the option Everyone, and then click Edit.

5. Under the option Permissions for Everyone, for the Full control permission, select Allow.

6. Click on OK.

How to install and Deploy TableauEmbeddedView.wsp?

The TableauEmbeddedView.wsp file gives the SharePoint more information about what to do with the .dll file. You have already copied the TableauEmbeddedView.wsp file to the SharePoint root directory in the previous procedure. For installing and deploying the .wsp file, follow the below steps:

1. Open the SharePoint 2013 Management Shell and enter the below command:

Add-SPSolution -LiteralPath “E:\Inetpub\wwwroot\wss\VirtualDirectories\80\bin\TableauEmbeddedView.wsp”

2. On the home page of SharePoint Central Administration, click on System Settings.
3. In the Farm Management section, click on Manage farm solutions.
4. On the Solution Management page, click on the solution that you want to deploy.
5. On the Solution Properties page, click on Deploy Solution.
6. On the Deploy Solution page, under the Deploy When section, select any one of the below options:

• Now
• At a specified time. You can specify a time by using the date and time boxes.

7. In the section Deploy To?, in the A specific web application list, either click on All web applications or you can select a specific Web application, and then click on OK.
8. Open your SharePoint site. Click on the settings icon and select the option Site settings.

9. Under the Site Collection Administration, click on the Site collection features.
10. Scroll to the TableauEmbeddedView feature and click on Activate to activate the feature.

How to verify the Web Part’s Deployment?

In this procedure, you will verify that whether the Tableau web part is installed.

1. Open the SharePoint site in a web browser.
2. Click on the settings icon and select the option Site settings.
3. Under Web Designer Galleries, click on Web parts.

4. Confirm that the TableauEmbeddedView.webpart is listed.

How to embed a View Using the Tableau Web Part?

You can easily embed the Tableau web part in either a new or existing SharePoint page.

1. Open that page where you want to embed a view and switch to edit mode.
2. In the page where you want to embed the view, click Web Part on the Insert tab.
3. Under the Categories, in the Custom (or Miscellaneous) folder, select TableauEmbeddedView, and then click on Add in the lower-right corner.

4. Select the TableauEmbeddedView web part, click on the drop-down arrow, and then select the option Edit Web Part.

5. On the right-side of the page, you can specify the attributes of the TableauEmbeddedView web part.

• In the Tableau Server Name, enter the name of your Tableau Server. You not need to specify “http://” before the Tableau Server name.
• In the View Path, enter the path to the view you want to embed.
• Specify whether or not you want to show the toolbar, use Trusted Authentication, use SSL, or whether you want to embed the view as an image instead of as an interactive view.
• You can then also specify a title for the web part in the Appearance section, the Height, Width, Chrome State, and Chrome Type. In general, you must specify a fixed height (for instance, 700 Pixels) and adjust the width to fit the zone.

6. Click on OK for applying the changes and exit edit mode.

Now the view is embedded on the page, and users who have access to it will automatically sign-in based on their user name and password for SharePoint.