Database driver Files MultiSource

Note: This feature is available in Enterprise, AWS, Team editions only.

Table of contents

• Overview
• Multi Source driver connection
  • Open a file from Cloud Storage
  • Create a connection
• Features and capabilities
  • Advanced SQL query capabilities
  • Folder structure
  • Internal database
  • Additional features

Overview

This guide explains how to set up and use the Multi Source driver in CloudBeaver. This driver allows you to work with multiple files of different formats within a single connection, including:

• CSV
• JSON
• Parquet
• XML
• XLSX

You can query data from different sources simultaneously, apply filters and sorting, and even join data across files.

Important: When using the Multi Source driver, all connected files are read-only. To make changes, update the original files outside CloudBeaver.

Multi Source driver connection

This section describes two ways to set up a connection: opening a file from Cloud Storage or creating a connection using the wizard.

Note: The connection from Cloud Storage is temporary and will be removed when the session ends.

Open a file from Cloud Storage

You can open files directly from your Cloud Storage. Open Cloud Storage, find the file you need, and double-click it to create a connection. The connection will appear in the File databases folder in Database Navigator.

You'll need to be logged in using the Identity Provider associated with your Cloud Storage.

Create a connection

To create a connection in CloudBeaver, use the new connection wizard, select the Files - Multi Source driver, and fill the following fields:

Field	Description	Options
Configuration	Choose how to specify the connection details.	- Manual: Enter the database path manually. - URL: Provide a connection URL.
Database	Enter the file/folder path.	Use the appropriate format for your cloud provider. For instance: s3://AWS/files/path/example/
Connection name	Enter a custom name for your connection.	Defaults to Files - Multi Source@localhost.
Project	Select the project where this connection belongs.	Default: Private.
Description	(Optional) Add details about this connection.
Keep alive (in seconds)	Set how long the connection stays active.	Default: 0 (no timeout).
Auto commit	Enable automatic transaction commits. See more details on Auto and Manual commit modes.	Enabled by default.
Read-only connection	Restrict the connection to read-only mode.	Optional checkbox.

Tip: When using the folder path in the Database field, CloudBeaver scans the directory up to two levels deep for supported files. If the folder contains multiple files, CloudBeaver organizes them into schemas based on their directory structure. For more information, see folder structure.

Features and capabilities

Advanced SQL query capabilities

The Multi Source driver supports the full range of SQL queries:

• Simple queries (e.g., SELECT * FROM table): Data is read directly from the files.
• Complex queries (e.g., using WHERE, JOIN, ORDER BY, GROUP BY): When a complex query is executed for the first time, the driver imports the data from all selected files into an internal database to enable advanced SQL functions. Subsequent queries run faster because the data is already imported into an internal database.

Note: If you want to join data from different files, they must be opened in the same connection. To do this, use a folder path instead of a single file when creating the connection.

Folder structure

When working with multiple files and folders, CloudBeaver organizes them as follows:

Location	Schema in CloudBeaver
Root files	Default schema
Subfolder files	Schema named after the subfolder
Files in deeper folders	Ignored

If your folder structure looks like this:

Data/
├── employees.csv
├── sales.json
└── Reports/
    ├── monthly.xml
    ├── yearly.parquet
    └── summary.xlsx

CloudBeaver will create:

• Default schema: employees, sales
• Reports schema: monthly, yearly, summary

Tip: To focus on specific files, consider selecting individual files or folders when configuring the connection.

Internal database

When you execute a complex query (such as WHERE, JOIN, GROUP BY, or ORDER BY.) on multiple files for the first time, the Multi Source driver processes the data by importing it into a temporary internal SQLite database.

This internal database stores data temporarily on the server during your session and is cleared when session ends.

Additional features

CloudBeaver provides additional features compatible with Multi Source driver, but not exclusive to it:

Category	Feature
Data Export	Data Export
Data Visualization	Visual Query Builder
	Charts

For more details on driver properties, see File-based driver properties.