Connecting Looker to analytics data

How can I connect Looker to my Tallyfy data?

You can connect Looker (the enterprise BI platform) to Tallyfy in about 15-20 minutes using Amazon Athena. Once connected, you’ll build LookML models and interactive dashboards that make your workflow data actually useful.

Looker vs Looker Studio

This guide covers Looker (Google Cloud’s enterprise BI platform). Looking for Looker Studio (the free visualization tool)? Check out the Looker Studio connection guide instead.

Requirements

Before you start, make sure you have these five things:

• Tallyfy Analytics subscription activated for your organization
• Looker access (self-hosted or Looker Cloud)
• Administrative permissions in Looker to create database connections
• Administrative access to your computer for driver installation (if self-hosted)
• Authentication credentials provided by Tallyfy Support

Authentication Overview

Amazon Athena (which hosts Tallyfy Analytics data) offers two authentication methods:

Method	Description	Best For
IAM Username/Password	Web console access credentials	AWS Console access only
Access Key/Secret	Token-based authentication	BI tool connections (recommended)

Important Note

When Tallyfy provisions your Analytics account, you’ll receive two distinct credential sets:

• AWS IAM login - Use only for accessing the AWS web console
• Access Key + Secret Access Key - Use for connecting Looker and other BI tools

Why does this matter? Token-based authentication (Access Key + Secret Access Key) gives you reliable connections without those frustrating “security token invalid” errors. Trust me - use the Access Keys for Looker.

Setup Process

Step 1: Install Required Drivers (Self-Hosted Looker Only)

If you’re using Looker Cloud, skip this step - Google handles the drivers. For self-hosted Looker instances:

1. Download the Simba Athena JDBC Driver from the AWS Athena JDBC documentation page ↗.
2. Install the driver in your Looker instance’s JDBC driver directory (typically /usr/local/looker/looker/lib/custom/)
3. Restart your Looker instance to load the new driver

Driver Versions

AWS maintains two JDBC driver versions (2.x and 3.x). The 3.x driver offers better performance, especially for large result sets. Grab the latest 3.x version unless you have specific compatibility requirements.

Step 2: Configure Looker Connection

1. Log into your Looker instance as an administrator
2. Navigate to Admin > Database > Connections
3. Click Add Connection
4. Select Amazon Athena as the dialect
5. Configure the connection parameters:
   • Name: Give it a descriptive name (e.g., “Tallyfy Analytics”)
   • Host: athena.us-east-1.amazonaws.com (or your specific AWS region)
   • Port: 443
   • Database: Your assigned database name (typically your organization name)
   • Username: Your Tallyfy-provided Access Key ID
   • Password: Your Tallyfy-provided Secret Access Key
6. In Additional Params, add:

   s3_staging_dir=s3://your-staging-bucket/looker-results/

7. Click Test to verify the connection
8. If successful, click Connect

S3 Staging Directory

The S3 staging directory is where Athena stores query results. Tallyfy Support provides this path when they provision your Analytics account. Make sure your Access Key has write permissions to this bucket.

Step 3: Configure Performance Settings

Want faster queries? Here’s how to optimize:

1. In the connection settings, locate Additional Params
2. Add performance optimization parameters:

   ;UseResultsetStreaming=1;MaxConcurrentQueries=20

3. UseResultsetStreaming=1 - Enables streaming for large result sets (requires athena:GetQueryResultsStream policy)
4. MaxConcurrentQueries=20 - Increases connection pool size for heavy usage
5. Save the connection settings

Connection Pooling

The default is 5 concurrent connections. If Looker is your primary analytics tool for Tallyfy data, bump this to 10-20. If you’re just doing occasional exploration, leave it at 5 to conserve resources.

Step 4: Set Up Temp Database for PDTs

Persistent Derived Tables (PDTs) cache complex calculations for faster dashboard loading:

1. In your connection settings, find Temp Database
2. Enter only the S3 directory path: tallyfy-athena-results/looker-pdts/
3. Looker will store pre-calculated tables here for reuse
4. Save the settings

Working with Tallyfy Data in Looker

Available Data Tables

Tallyfy Analytics gives you access to four main tables:

• processes - Completed and in-progress workflow instances
• steps - Individual task data within processes
• form_fields - Form field values collected during workflows
• users - User activity and participation metrics

Building Your First LookML Model

Ready to start modeling? Here’s a basic example:

1. In Looker, navigate to Develop > LookML Projects
2. Create a new project or select an existing one
3. Create a new model file and define your connection:

   connection: "tallyfy_analytics"
   
   explore: processes {
     join: steps {
       sql_on: ${processes.process_id} = ${steps.process_id} ;;
       relationship: one_to_many
     }
   }

4. Create view files for each table (processes, steps, form_fields, users)
5. Define dimensions and measures based on your business needs

Creating Effective Visualizations

What can you actually build? Here are the most popular dashboards:

1. Process Duration Analysis - See where workflows get stuck (remember: durations show elapsed time, not effort)
2. Team Performance Scorecards - Track completion rates and average handling times per user
3. Form Data Analytics - Spot trends in customer requests or quality issues
4. Real-time Process Monitors - Dashboard showing active processes and their current status
5. SLA Compliance Tracking - Measure whether tasks complete within target timeframes

Interpreting time metrics

Duration and handling time metrics show elapsed calendar time between task assignment and completion. This includes weekends, holidays, and waiting periods. For actual effort tracking, see how to track time spent on tasks.

Advanced Features

Embedding Looker Dashboards

Want to share insights beyond Looker? Use the Looker API to embed dashboards:

• Embed in internal portals or wikis
• Share via Slack using Looker’s Slack integration
• Schedule email delivery of reports
• Create public dashboards with controlled access

Query Optimization Tips

Make your queries blazing fast:

• Use Aggregate Awareness - Pre-calculate common metrics in PDTs
• Leverage Incremental PDTs - Only recalculate changed data
• Apply Smart Filters - Push filtering to Athena rather than post-processing in Looker
• Monitor Query Performance - Use Looker’s Query History to identify slow queries

Troubleshooting Connection Issues

Connection not working? Let’s fix it. Check these things in order:

• Double-check your Access Key and Secret Access Key - even one wrong character breaks everything
• Verify the S3 staging directory path is correct and your credentials have write access
• Make sure the JDBC driver is installed correctly (self-hosted only)
• Test if your Looker instance can reach athena.us-east-1.amazonaws.com on port 443
• Verify your Tallyfy Analytics subscription is active in your account settings
• Check driver logs by adding ;LogLevel=DEBUG;LogPath=/tmp/athena_debug.log to Additional Params

Still stuck? Contact Tallyfy Support with the exact error message you’re seeing.

Debugging Tips

Enable detailed logging to diagnose issues:

1. Add to Additional Params: ;LogLevel=DEBUG;LogPath=/tmp/athena_debug.log
2. Attempt your connection
3. Check /tmp/athena_debug.log for detailed error information
4. Share relevant log excerpts with Tallyfy Support if needed

Related articles

Analytics > Looker

Looker integrates with Tallyfy Analytics through Amazon Athena to transform workflow data into interactive dashboards and embedded analytics that enable teams to explore process insights answer business questions and monitor performance in real-time without requiring technical expertise.

Looker > Connecting Looker Studio to analytics data

Looker Studio connects to Tallyfy workflow data through third-party connectors like CData or OWOX in 10-15 minutes enabling users to create free shareable dashboards and reports from their analytics data without requiring enterprise BI platform subscriptions.

Tableau > Connecting Tableau to analytics data

Tableau connects to Tallyfy data through Amazon Athena using Access Key authentication and JDBC drivers allowing users to create visual dashboards from workflow data in approximately 15 minutes.

Powerbi > Connect Power BI

Power BI integrates with Tallyfy Analytics through Amazon Athena using ODBC drivers and Access Key authentication to create interactive dashboards and automated reports from workflow data with connection setup taking approximately 15 minutes.

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